Are Your Tween's Mobile Devices Affecting Their Attention Span?

Today’s adults worry that their children’s attention spans are being reduced by smartphones, tablets, digital music players, and the internet in general. But are they right? Here’s what you need to know about mobile devices and attention spans.
Do Mobile Devices Reduce Attention Spans?

Research suggests that the human attention span really is on the decline. Advertisers, who must understand what kind of attention span they’re working with in order to sell products, note that they have less time than ever to grab the audience’s attention and make a point. If they take more than a few seconds, they lose the attention of the intended audience.
And what affects the general public affects children too. Teachers report that their students are more easily distracted than ever and that what’s distracting them is their digital devices. So it seems clear that mobile devices are, in fact, having a negative effect on children’s ability to pay attention for longer periods of time.
Is There Good News?

It’s important to note that the news is not all bad. Surveys of teachers indicate that digital technology has also improved their students’ approaches to research and that internet-connected devices increase students’ abilities to switch between tasks. In other words, today’s students are great at finding information and multi-tasking.
One might theorize that children’s brains are adapting to a world where a long attention span is less useful than the ability to locate needed information quickly and juggle several tasks at once. And many of today’s working adults might agree that those skills are important in today’s job market. Children may be learning just what they need to be successful adults in a world where mobile devices and the internet are indispensable work tools.
Finding A Balance
Obviously, you still want your child to have a reasonably long attention span. At the same time, you want them to get the benefits that come from being comfortable with mobile devices and the internet. The key, of course, is moderation.
Your children should use their mobile devices for educational and entertainment purposes, but they shouldn’t overuse them. And when they aren’t using them, they should do things that help build a healthy attention span.
For example, exercise is good for cognitive control as well as physical fitness. Encourage your child to join a sports team or engage in physical play. There are lots of benefits to that, and an increased attention span is just one of them. Classical music is also believed to improve your ability to pay attention – consider encouraging a musically-inclined child to learn an instrument and join the school band or orchestra.
Mobile devices aren’t going anywhere, so it’s up to you to help your child get the benefits from them without absorbing the negative aspects. Parental control software can help you set limits and encourage healthy balance and boundaries in your child’s internet use. To find out how, try it for free.