Have you wondered how your kids’ use of technology compares with their peers? Or what sort of impact this will have on their future? Is technology something we should avoid or embrace?
If you want some answers, you’ve come to the right place.
Lillian Zrim is the Associate Director of Cross Platform Custom Insights, Marketing Effectiveness at Nielsen.
That’s quite a tongue twister of a title, but it basically means that she knows her stuff.
Lillian and her team have spent the last year interviewing Australian parents and kids and dissecting and catergorising all the information. She has conducted some fascinating and in-depth research into how kids use technology today. It is the first of its kind and all the fascinating information has been broken down into manageable chunks, so parents can find out what they want to know without needing a masters degree in psychology and mathematics. (Phew.)
As a mum of a toddler, the report is particularly relevant to Lillian. It has helped shape the way her little girl, Lola, uses technology and has given her some great insights into Lola’s exciting future.
I had a chat to Lillian about her findings and how they have helped her use technology with her daughter.
How did you conduct the research and how long did it take?
The study provides a view of the way young online Australians aged 2-15 years consume online media, in the context of their overall media consumption habits (of which technology plays an important role). Conducted via an online survey, 1,620 parents and their children were interviewed.
The study was conducted toward the end of 2014 and took almost four months to complete factoring in ideation of the key lines of questioning parents and their children were asked.
Was there anything that really surprised you about the findings?
I knew going into this study that we would uncover a tech-savvy and digitally engaged audience among our youngsters. However I was really surprised at how comparative some of the behaviours were to adults.
Overall, adults still spend more time online in an average week than youth audiences (apart from teens who tend to spend more time than their parents), but other activities like watching video on demand and multi-screening (watching TV and using the internet at the same time) – even triple-screening - were either just behind or on par with adults.
As a mum, where do you stand on technology in your house?
I have a 16 month old daughter and she’s already had her first online experience via the use of apps which my husband and I appropriately selected and downloaded onto our tablet. We openly expose her to other various screens (smartphones, laptops and TVs) however they are all considered, timely, shared and interactive experiences that add to her enjoyment and development.
Technology is another tool for kids to experience and learn from - however like anything, particularly very early in life, usage should be monitored and structured so that it provides benefit and not just a distraction or replacement for other experiences that are essential for a child’s development.
What long term advantages/disadvantages do you see for our 'digital native' kids and their use of technology?
The world has changed and is increasingly digital. Exposure to online media is inevitable and already we see a push for use of emerging devices like tablets in school environments, so it plays not only an important role in the personal lives of kids and teens but increasingly in their education and ultimately work lives.
The fact that our young Aussies are born into this world will give them their kick start in our digital world which some of our older Australians have struggled with. However, there are also the risks involved with online media that should be managed.
As a parent and for educators, instructing our youngsters on how to get the most out of online media and technology, but also teaching them about potential dangers (cyber-bullying, online safety and overuse) are key to ensuring they benefit from the experience.
What rules around technology do you think parents should implement in their households?
Ensuring appropriate use of technology is vital for young minds as they learn about responsibility. Many parents do implement rules around internet usage; more than half (56%) of parents with online children aged 2-15 years have rules on duration, time of day and types of content that their child can access.
There are far less rules placed on kids and teens’ in terms of the devices that they are using for their online access (only 34% of parents) suggesting it’s the content they are more concerned with than the screen they are accessing it on. Other rules that parents are placing on their child’s use of the internet include supervised access (46%), reasons for use such as for school or entertainment and location of access (40%).
Just over a third of parents use monitoring software or site blocking technology to ensure appropriate and safe online use (35%). Rules tend to be the tightest for young school age kids (6-9 years) and tweens (10-12) and parents become more relaxed as kids reach their teenage years.
Check out another article about Aussie kids and tech use by Lillian here.
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