Mobile device use when caring for children 0‐5 years: A naturalistic playground study
Open accessAbstract
Issue addressed: Over the past decade, mobile device use has increased significantly. Adults are now using their mobile device whilst undertaking a range of work and social activities. This naturalistic study aimed to understand parents/carers’ use of mobile devices and their associated beliefs about mobile device use whilst caring for children aged five and younger in playgrounds. Methods: A mixed methods approach was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from parents/carers. Data were collected by observations (n = 50) and interviews (n = 25) in playgrounds on the North Coast of New South Wales, Australia. Results: Of the 50 observed parents/carers, 76% (n = 38) used their mobile device, with usage time extending to 17.2 minutes of the 20 minute observation period. Text‐/type‐related mobile device use was most often used (69.6%), followed by voice‐related (23.7%) and camera‐related mobile device use (6.7%). The 25 interviewed parents/carers beliefs on mobile device use were centred on three themes: diversity of mobile device use, child relationships and mobile device use and the physical environment and mobile device use. Conclusion: This study adds to the limited research into parent/carer mobile device use, which has become an integral part of peoples’ lifestyle. However, research is required to better understand how parent/carer mobile device use may impact on child supervision and interaction. So what?: Mobile device use is increasing. We need to better understand its public health impact.
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It seems harder for children to get parents' attention when parents are busy with their smartphones than when they are occupied with nondigital activities.
“Generally, it seems to be harder for children to get parents’ attention when parents are busy with their smartphones than when they are occupied with nondigital activities (Lemish et al., 2020; Mangan et al., 2018; Vanden Abeele et al., 2020).”
From Smartphones in the nursery: Parental smartphone use and parental sensitivity and responsiveness within parent–child interaction in early childhood (0–5 years): A scoping review (2021) · cites this paper as Mangan et al., 2018
The percentage of parents using smartphones while spending time with their children at playgrounds varied greatly across studies, ranging from 42.6% to 79%.
“The percentage of parents using their phones while spending time with their children at the playground varied greatly and ranged from 42.6% (Vanden Abeele et al., 2020) to 48% (Wolfers et al., 2020), up to 76% (Mangan et al., 2018), and to a maximum of 79% (Elias et al., 2020).”
From Smartphones in the nursery: Parental smartphone use and parental sensitivity and responsiveness within parent–child interaction in early childhood (0–5 years): A scoping review (2021) · cites this paper as Mangan et al., 2018
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- Authors
- Mangan, E., Leavy, J. E., & Jancey, J.
- Affiliations
- Curtin University (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Jancey, Jonine
- Venue
- Health Promotion Journal of Australia
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2018-03-05
- Volume
- 29
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 337-343
- ISSN
- 1036-1073 (ISSN-L)
- 2201-1617
- OpenAlex
- W2794356050
- Cited by
- 51
- References
- 15
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 3
- FWCI
- 16.25
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Health Promotion Journal of Australia (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- eSpace (Curtin University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Curtin University of Technology
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Education › Child Development and Digital Technology
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Social Sciences › Education › Educational Methods and Impacts
- Keywords
- mobile device use, parents, caregivers, children under five, playgrounds, child supervision, parent-child interaction, text messaging, voice calls, camera use, physical environment
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Child, Preschool, Female, Humans, Infant, Interviews as Topic, Male, New South Wales, Parent-Child Relations, Parents, Photography, Play and Playthings, Caregivers, Cell Phone, Young Adult, Social Media
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