7. It Models Disrespectful and Uncaring Conduct
What we model will come back to bite us. Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine found that parents had 20% fewer conversations with their children when using a smartphone or other device at the dinner table. Just as significantly, 39% fewer non-verbal interactions took place. How is a parent to know what’s going on in their child’s life when they aren’t observing body language or facial expressions, and the child is not opening up because they see your distraction and disinterest. It’s ironic that we’ve dissed the rude behavior of teenagers to put away their devices when we’re talking to them and to come to the dinner table without them, but more and more, it’s becoming acceptable behavior for everyone. Once it was answering the telephone on the wall and taking a business call as the family sat and watched. Now it’s never-ending. The little gems of high-tech scientific know-how have become indispensable and follow us everywhere we go. Have we forgotten how disrespectful it is to the people we’re with to put our attention elsewhere? How uncaring does it feel when someone is oblivious to how you’re feeling even though the visual cues are there?
