The Pew Research Center has long been interested in the ways that digital technology adoption and parenting are evolving. This study focuses on the ways in which kids interact with screens, digital devices, and social media. It also examines the attitudes that parents have toward these activities, their worries regarding the technology use of their kids, and their own evaluations of their own parenting and digital tech experiences. Based on a poll of 3,640 American parents with children under the age of 17 or with at least one child, the results of this study were released on March 2–15. This includes participants in the online survey panel American Trends Panel (ATP) run by Pew Research Center, which is drawn from a nationwide random sample of home addresses.It is evident from parents of little children themselves that they are concerned about the consequences of screen usage. A full 71% of parents with children under the age of 12 said they are worried—with 31% expressing extreme concern—that their child may someday spend too much time in front of a screen.1. Additionally, some parents of kids in this age range already think their kids spend too much time on smartphones and other devices. (Note that this survey was conducted before to the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States, which resulted in several school closures, nationwide shutdowns, and orders to stay at home.)
While the majority of parents who have small children report feeling extremely.However, the discussion around screen time is not only for kids. Even parents struggle with the distractions that come with their own devices. More than half of parents (56%) say they spend too much time on their smartphones, and over seven out of ten (68%) say they are occasionally distracted by their phones when spending time with their kids. When asked if they spend too little, too much, or not enough time on their phones, parents generally answer "too much."
These results are based on an online survey conducted March 2–15, 2020, among 3,640 parents in the United States who have at least one kid under the age of 18, but who may also have adult children. The survey was nationally representative and was done using the American Trends Panel from Pew Research Center and the Ipsos KnowledgePanel. The remaining significant discoveries include the following.Parents in all demographic categories are more likely to feel that parenting is harder now than it was in the past, while there are some slight variations depending on age. Parenting is more difficult now, according to 71% of parents 50 years of age and older, compared to 66% of parents 30 to 49 years of age and 60% of parents 18 to 29 years of age.