Excessive smartphone use adversely impacting parent-children relationships in India: Study

The rise in dependence on smartphones and their excessive usage are adversely impacting relationships between parents and children in India, a survey commissioned by Chinese mobile devices company Vivo said on Wednesday.

The survey conducted by Cybermedia Research found that on average, parents spend more than five hours and children spend over four hours daily on their smartphones, with social media and entertainment accounting for the largest portion of usage for both groups.

“Excessive smartphone use has strained personal relationships, with both parents and children recognising it as a source of conflict between them. Sixty-six per cent of parents and 56 per cent of children notice negative changes in their personal relationships due to excessive smartphone usage,” the vivo Switch Off 2024 Survey report said.

As per the study, both parents and children yearn for closer relationships with each other but neither group is willing to curb their excessive and purposeless smartphone habits.

The survey found 73 per cent of parents and 69 per cent of children agree that excessive smartphone usage is a source of conflict between them.

Both parents and children are highly dependent on smartphones, as it has become an indispensable part of their lives. According to the survey, 76 per cent of parents and 71 per cent of children agree that they cannot live without their smartphones.

Sixty- four per cent of children going to the extent of stating that they feel addicted to their smartphones, spending the majority of their smartphone time on social media and entertainment activities.

“Two-thirds of children say that they would not use social media if their friends were not on the apps. Over 90 per cent of children wish that some or the other of the most popular social media apps had never been invented,” the report said.

The study covered 1,543 smartphone owners across Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Pune.

“While smartphones have seamlessly integrated into our daily routines, unmindful relationships with smartphones can create barriers in the real-life relationships that people care about the most. This year’s findings raise essential questions about how families can create meaningful connections in a world dominated by screens,” Geetaj Channana, Head of Corporate Strategy, vivo India, said.