‘Time well spent’: filling the parent-child technology gap

Timewell spent – three words currently striking fear into the tech industry. Where once consumers’ media anxieties resided in concerns about too much screen time and “square eyes”, now they surround the amount of time spent disappearing down myriad digital rabbit holes. It is an environment in which trusted brands and storytellers are thriving.

Dean Weller, chief executive of Generation Media, says that parents daren’t be afraid of technology, “as their children sure aren’t”. However, he adds that there is clearly an issue with parents’ trust in technology. He points to a study by research company Giraffe Insights, “Kids and the Screen”, which found that only 9 per cent of parents chose a free online video website for their children’s viewing content online because they trusted it to be safe.

The traditional parental anxieties surrounding “too much too soon” are also manifesting themselves in technology. Lore Oxford, behavioural analyst at Canvas8, says that 30 per cent of parents say they are “very concerned’” about their child’s internet safety.

“Perhaps the scariest thing about technology for parents is that the milestones are unclear,” Oxford adds. “When should a kid get their first phone? First email? First social-media account? When it comes to online milestones, kids have done these before parents have even had time to think about it. This confusion adds to fears of tech, but also to fears of judgement from other parents. As a result, some parents are banning tech, while others are responding by installing trackers on their devices, impeding upon their child’s privacy.”