SWNYPARENT By Zoya Gervis
New York office – 646-873-7565 / usnews@swns.com
Three quarters of modern parents use technology to actively keep an eye on their children, according to new research.
A study of 2,000 parents whose kids are between the ages of three and 18 examined the way that they use different tech devices to help them parent.
The research showed that 76 percent of parents use smart tech devices like security cameras and video doorbells as well as video calling as an aid to help keep their children both safe and well-behaved.
Asurion’s study, conducted by OnePoll, explored the different technology devices that parents use to monitor their children and found that 59 percent have a Wi-Fi enabled camera installed in their home.
In fact, parents use technology nine times a week on average to help keep an eye out on their children.
Monitoring and limiting their children’s online habits plays a big role in parents feeling they are keeping their kids safe and out of trouble. Eighty-three percent of parents agree that they should be allowed to monitor their children, especially their digital lives.
In fact, more than half (51 percent) revealed that they use parental controls to limit or monitor their kids’ internet browsing and social media, and 53 percent say they use parental control settings on the TV to limit what their children can watch. And three in five parents admitted to checking browsing history on their kids’ phones, laptops, or desk computers.
Parents are turning to technology to monitor their children’s offline activities as well. Three quarters of parents said they use tech to ensure that their children are safe when they aren’t around. And 48 percent of parents use video calls with their children to monitor their children’s whereabouts and ensure they are behaving.
In fact, 38 percent of parents revealed that they’ve caught their children breaking the rules by watching their kids on their home cameras.
But keeping an eye on the kids isn’t a recent technology phenomenon. Two in five parents said they also search through their child’s room the old-fashioned way to make sure they aren’t hiding anything.
For more than half (54 percent) of parents, technology allows them to connect with their children no matter where their kids are – with 49 percent relying on tech to know where their children are and who exactly they are hanging out with. In fact, for 81 percent of parents, technology has helped them be more involved in keeping track of their child’s activities.
“The survey results demonstrate the increasingly integral role that technology plays in parenting children,” said Bettie Colombo, spokesperson for Asurion. “But keeping up with the latest devices, apps and software to help parent can be daunting and confusing. Asurion’s trained experts provide device, setting, and app suggestions to help parents keep their kids safe online and in the real world – all via the convenience of their smartphone.”
TOP 5 WAYS PARENTS USE TECH TO HELP PARENT
Checking browsing history 60%
Using parental controls to limit or monitor internet browsing and social media 51%
Apps/programs for monitoring phone usage 48%
Using video calls with the kids 48%
Ipads/phones used for entertainment while traveling/car journeys 44%
TOP 5 REASONS PARENTS TURN TO TECH TO HELP PARENT
Ensure kids are safe 75%
Be able to connect with children whenever/wherever they are 54%
Know where children are and who they are with 49%
It helps to more easily manage family’s hectic schedules 37%
Convenience 37%
TOP 5 THINGS PARENTS SAY PARENTS SHOULD NEVER DO
Create fake social media account to follow child on social media 45%
Read kids’ diary or journal 44%
Read through child’s text messages 23%
Search through child’s room 23%
Go through child’s search history on their phone, laptop or desk computer 17%
TOP 5 THINGS PARENTS CAUGHT KIDS DOING, THANKS TO TECH
Lying about something they did 48%
Not doing homework 40%
Inviting friends over when they weren’t supposed to 38%
Leaving the house while “grounded” 36%
Coming home late from school 32%
TOP 5 TECH HACKS PARENTS USE TO MONITOR KIDS ACTIVITIES
Parental controls on the TV 57%
Parental controls on child’s mobile phone 47%
Home security camera 45%
Tracking functionality on child’s mobile phone 39%
Baby video monitor 32%
