COLUMBUS, Ohio - As kids spend more time on screens , a new national survey conducted by Ipsos on behalf of The Kids Mental Health Foundation , founded by Nationwide Children's Hospital , identifies parents' greatest fears for their children around screen time.
The top three fears parents have around their child and screen time are: privacy and safety concerns (47%), exposure to misinformation (36%) and not socializing in person (34%). Fewer parents ranked concerns around body image and schoolwork high on their list.
"My biggest concerns with screens are making sure that my kids don't get exposed to things before I'm ready for them to and making sure that people aren't trying to contact them," said Xia Chekwa, a mom of three kids in Columbus, Ohio. "They're aware that not everywhere is a safe place, not everything is a safe thing to watch."
Eight in 10 parents say they actively do something to manage the screen time of kids. Parents who set screen-time boundaries say setting time limits works the best (58%), followed by encouraging offline hobbies (53%) and using parental control apps (34%).
"When it comes to screen time, we can't expect kids to set their own limits and boundaries. because this technology is made to keep us using it," said Ariana Hoet, PhD , executive clinical director of The Kids Mental Health Foundation and a pediatric psychologist at Nationwide Children's. "As parents, we have to pay attention to how much they are using technology – what they are consuming on it, what are they doing with it, and who are they interacting with through various platforms of games or social media."
The Kids Mental Health Foundation offers free, evidence-informed resources to help parents understand how to set healthy screen time boundaries and understand how phones, tablets, computers and more impact the mental health and well-being of kids.
Dr. Hoet says having conversations with kids about technology and screen time is key.
"Sit with them, watch how they use it, ask them questions, be engaged," said Dr. Hoet. "And not only does that help your child feel like, oh, you're interested in me and what I'm doing, but it helps you learn as the parent or caregiver."
Chekwa believes having a social media plan and setting healthy boundaries with technology now will help her oldest daughter in the future.
"Eventually, there's going to come a time when we're not there," said Chekwa. "And we want to make sure that she knows, and she can decipher and use her intuition for herself and not just because mom and dad said so."
During Mental Health Awareness Month, The Kids Mental Health Foundation has launched an initiative — Kids Mental Health Starts With Us
