Are parents spending too much time on their cell phone? - WSIL TV

(WSIL) -- Like it oregon not, compartment phones are a portion of our mundane life. Whether it's talking to a loved one, driving directions, oregon Googling information, and astatine immoderate constituent children are apt going to inquire their parents for one.

Dr. Tara Chambers, who's an outpatient therapist astatine Spero Family Services, says parents usage them too.

"You travel location and you request those minutes to benignant of decompress," she explains. "Put that ocular spread betwixt your enactment time and your location day."

So what are ma and dada looking astatine erstwhile they're connected their compartment phones?

"I deliberation you're seeing a batch of parents who are getting connected societal media," Chambers says. "Running done Facebook oregon Twitter oregon Instagram."

Jesse Smith-Fulia, a Social Work and Sociology teacher astatine Shawnee Community College, agrees. 

"Social media conscionable seems overmuch much addictive," helium explains. "It seems to beryllium designed for addiction. In ways that possibly the quality oregon your enactment email is not." 

According to a survey by Pew Research successful 2020, 68% of parents say, they are astatine slightest sometimes distracted by their smartphone with 17% saying this happens often.

While being distracted mightiness not beryllium intentional, kids tin prime up connected it.

"Kids are going to beryllium little engaged with idiosyncratic who looks engaged than idiosyncratic who is making oculus contact, bending down to their level, asking them questions," Chambers says.

Possibly missing the accidental for the kid to speech astir their time to their ma oregon dad. Chambers says this is simply a mode children similar to de-compress aft school.

Smith-Fulia adds to that thought saying the kid could besides effort to hid emotions from their parents similar sadness implicit being rejected by a crush.

"If are parents connected their devices," helium says. "There isn't that abstraction and clip to kinda announcement hold a infinitesimal my kid isn't acting successful the nonstop aforesaid mode they should be."

Smith-Fulia believes determination are immoderate positives to compartment telephone usage, and parents tin summation a child's surface clip arsenic they summation responsibilities.

"Children tin pass with their parents instantaneously portion they're astatine enactment without having to telephone them," helium says astir the technology. "They tin conscionable sprout a substance message."

However, the bottommost enactment is children are picking up connected what they see. Parents utilizing compartment phone.

"I deliberation the connection is that this is truly important and this (cell phones) belongs successful our family," Smith-Fulia says.

To assistance with prime time, Chambers believes parents should fto children prime a household enactment that's distraction free.

"Here's what I want," she adds. "I privation everyone to play monopoly, I privation everyone to spell extracurricular and play basketball, oregon spell for a car ride."