Teen phone use: Tips to fix heavy use


Wondering what your teen does when you’re not around? They are likely on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram or Snapchat, according to a new report.

The Pew Research Center survey, released Dec. 12, found that nearly half of 13- to 17-year-olds are online almost all the time. The figure is approximately the same as in the last two years and, of course, it is too much.

Nine in 10 teens say they use YouTube, while about six in 10 teens say they use TikTok and Instagram, and 55 percent use Snapchat, according to the survey. About 32 percent use Facebook, while 23 percent use WhatsApp.

Regardless of the platform, if kids are always online, they don’t have enough time to do other important things, experts said. And what they do on social media could be bad for their physical or mental health.

As many teens take a break for the December holidays, they may be spending even more time online. Here’s what you should do about it.

How much time should children be allowed to be online? It depends

There is no simple answer to how much time children should spend on social media. This is because a lot depends on what they are doing in these applications.

“Children who follow feeds for 5 hours a day to read about current events and direct message their friends are likely at much less risk than a child online for even 10 minutes who is offered content about cutting and hiding it from their friends. parents. ”said Dr. Mitch Prinstein, chief psychology officer at the American Psychological Association.

To determine how much time is appropriate for their children, parents should consider what their teens do on these platforms, said Melissa Greenberg, a clinical psychologist at the Princeton Psychotherapy Center in New Jersey. To learn more, ask them how they feel when they use social media.

“Are they compulsively checking how others respond (to their posts), how many likes or comments they get? Does this contribute to having negative feelings about themselves? Greenberg suggested asking. Also, “Is your teen comparing himself to others?”

It’s also important, Greenberg said, to ask whether teens are part of healthy online groups.

“Teens who identify as LGBTQ+ and who do not have a community at school can find an online community where they identify and connect meaningfully with others, and this can really increase self-esteem and a sense of belonging,” she said.

“I’ve also worked with teens who connect on social media with other fans of a certain musician or book series, and that can help them feel part of a community.”

Based on these answers, parents can help set appropriate time limits for their children.

This is an important life skill that we must teach. “If a parent includes their teens in this conversation, it will provide scaffolding for how the teen can address a variety of behaviors in the future, not just social media, but also things like television and even substance use,” Greenberg said.

One teen Greenberg worked with decided to limit time on social media to one hour per day after realizing they were using it in a healthy way to connect with members of the LGBTQ+ community, but needed to reduce the amount of time they spent scrolling and comparing. themselves with other people.

What else could we be doing with this time?

When I talk to parents in schools about how to manage their children’s social media use, I advise them to make sure their children get enough sleep and physical activity, that they learn to focus on things like homework, putting away their phones and having free time. interactions with family and friends.

“The biggest concern is probably the time this is taking away from other necessary activities,” Prinstein said.

Sleep “is not only critical for our attention, emotions, and safety the next day, but also an important factor affecting the size of our brain and how effectively it reorganizes itself in our teenage years.”

He recommended making sure teenagers stop using their phones at 9 pm on weekdays.

Involving children in sports or other extracurricular activities can ensure that they get exercise and spend time away from their phones. After all, it’s hard for teens to check Instagram when they’re shooting hoops or defending a base.

Teenagers also need to learn to focus and be present in their surroundings. As I often say, the human brain cannot multitask. So if kids are on TikTok while doing homework or other tasks, they can’t fully focus on their work.

Children also need plenty of opportunities to play and cultivate friendships offline.

“Adolescence is a period in which we learn relational skills that we use for the rest of our lives in our professional and work relationships,” Prinstein said.

“Time spent on social media can distance children from some of these learning opportunities, not only because they spend so much time online, but also because online interactions lack most verbal and non-verbal cues, the nuances and sophistication within our relationships.

That means encouraging teens to meet up with friends and put away their phones while they hang out. It’s also a good idea to set aside family time for everyone to unplug, whether while eating, playing, or going for a walk.

Of course, parents should resist the temptation to check their own phones at such times, something Prinstein says parents do.

“Our kids will want to spend a lot of time on social media if they think we’re doing the same thing,” Prinstein said. “Therefore, a first step may be for the entire family to create a phone-free zone in the schedule.”

Many teenagers spend a large part of their lives online. But parents can help by being curious about what kids are doing online and helping them determine how much time it will allow them to meet their other needs. With so many children spending almost all of their waking hours online, it’s a great time to have these conversations.



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