According to a new Pew Research study published this week, parents are struggling to manage their children’s heavy use of screens, including television, computers, phones and gaming devices.
The survey asked parents how they are managing the use of screen time, 42% say they could do a better job with 58% believing they are doing the best they can. Thirty-nine percent said they have become more strict about their children’s screen time than other parents they know.
Parents claim to have more priority over other daily routines. Pew found 42% make sure screen time is reasonable with 76% believing enough sleep is a priority, 77% good manners, 61% staying active and 54% reading.
The survey, conducted mid-2024 included 3,054 eligible parents sampled from the American Trends Panel, Pew Research Center’s nationally representative panel of randomly selected U.S. adults.
According to Pew, a majority of children 12 or younger have access to devices — 90% for TV, 68% for tablets, 61% for smartphones, 50% for gaming devices, 39% for desktops or laptops, 37% for voice-activated assistants, 11% for smartwatches and 8% for AI chatbots. In the survey, 82% said they allow a child younger than 2 to watch TV.
Smartphone Use
- A total of 23% say their child has their own smartphone.
- 57% those 11-12
- 29% for 8-10,
- 12% for 5-7
- 8% younger than 5
Among specific content, 85% of parents said their child ever Watches YouTube, including 51% daily. In 2020, it was 80% for children 11 and younger.
And 15% said their children 12 and younger use TikTok, 8% Snapchat, 5% each Facebook and Instagram. They are using these platforms even though companies have put age restrictions in place.
Eighty percent say social media harms outweigh the benefits, though 46% say a smartphone is more harmful and 20% for tablets.
Parents surveyed explained why they let their children use cellphones: 92% to contact them, 85% for entertainment, 69% to help in learning, 43% to calm them down and 30% so they don’t feel left out.
Source: PEW Research