Almost 70% of children receive a mobile phone before the age of 9

Minors emulate the technological attitudes they see in adults.
SHUTTERSTOCK

The 61 percent of parents who impose rules on their children in the use of mobile devices and the Internet admit that they do not comply with them and affirms that they are not always a good example or role model for minors.

This is revealed by a recent study by Kaspersky called ‘Raising the smartphone generation’, which investigates how adults and their children manage their current healthy behavior and digital habits.

According to the results of this report, in addition to the number revealed by the percentage of 61 percent of parents who admit that they find great difficulties in following a model of behavior for their children, it points out that at the same time the 54 percent of them try to establish healthy digital habits for everyone the family members.

Since, from a very young age, children tend to imitate the behavior and digital consumption habits of their parents, they should pay attention to what is the image that the little ones receive from these role models.

For this reason, the moment they first come into contact with mobile devices has a great influence on them. According to this study, 68 percent of children receive a device before nine years old.

In this case, according to Kaspersky, despite the fact that 53 percent of respondents would like their children to use them for less than two hours a day, 82 percent of them acknowledge that they themselves use their mobiles for more hours.

However, this research shows very different results: almost half of those surveyed, 48 percent, admit that they spend three to five hours connected to devices daily and 62 percent believe that it is normal to spend that time connected.

How they use the devices

In addition to knowing how often minors use mobile devices, this study reflects under what circumstances they are handled. For instance, 65 percent of parents say they use their devices while eating, although only 11 percent allow their children to do the same.

It should be noted that minors whose parents regularly use the phone during lunch spend an additional 39 minutes a day with their own device than those who do not follow the example of their parents at this time.

The same goes for instant messaging applications, such as WhatsApp and Telegram, since 72 percent say they use them while having a conversation, although only 10 percent would accept that minors follow their example.

In relation to the use that is given to these devices, the social networks are the main motivation of many users. From that statement, the company specialized in cybersecurity has indicated that 37 percent of adults believe that it is normal to share photos of family members on social networks. However, only 24 percent accept that their children do the same.