Tech-Savvy Parenting by Nikki Bush

Author:Nikki Bush
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: BIC: VFX: Advice on Parenting
Publisher: Bookstorm

MULTI-TASKING LEADS TO PARENTAL INATTENTIVENESS

If we want our children to be media savvy – to manage the plethora of media in their lives responsibly – then we have to show them how, by managing our own arsenal of smartphones, organisers and electronic gadgets. We constantly allow these gadgets to interrupt the time we spend with our children; we find ourselves multi-tasking just to keep up. With the rapid pace of information assaulting our brains, is it any wonder that our ability to pay full attention to any one thing at a time is challenged?

This poses a problem to parents, quite simply because children require a whole lot of time, focus and attention – all in short supply in our multi-tasking lives. When our children pop into the study while we are answering emails, searching for the latest prices on a new car and downloading a podcast at the same time, do we stop what we are doing, make eye contact with our children and give them our undivided attention? Nine times out of 10 the answer will be no. This does nothing to build our relationship with our child.

It’s interesting to note that, when we divide our attention and multi-task, we think we can get more done, but we are not necessarily being more efficient. Neuroscientists at the University of Michigan have found that switching back and forth between two tasks may decrease brain efficiency by as much as 50%, compared with separately completing one task before starting another one.1

There is mounting evidence that multi-tasking leads to stress and anxiety if not managed, and it also impairs our memory ability because it distracts us from paying full attention to what we need to learn and recall later. Interestingly, the coping strategies for managing your technological multi-tasking, reducing the stress caused by it, and improving your attention are fairly low-tech, including:

•Use a simple, low-tech, handwritten to-do list and prioritise what’s on it.

•When your children are around, set time limits for tasks and don’t get carried away. After X minutes, schedule to play a game with your child and show up. This is one way of demonstrating how you control your use of technology.

•Avoid task switching where possible and try and complete a task without distraction (adult ADHD is seriously on the increase). It’s okay to tell your children that you don’t want to be interrupted for the next half an hour if you are then going to be able to focus on them.

•Avoid interruptions when you are spending quality time with your children by putting your cellphone on silent for a period of time and switching off your email-alert function – or close the email app on your phone so that you are not watching for mails landing.

•Take power naps. They help us to refresh our multi-tasking neural pathways. They also help us to parent better, because we have more energy to pay attention, to listen and to make better choices – particularly in how we respond to our children.

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