About this paper symposium

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Panel information
Panel 14. Parenting & Parent-Child Relationships

Paper #1
The Impacts of Parental Phubbing on Parent-child Interactions: An Experimental Study
Author information	Role
Dr. Eva Y.H. Lau, Ph.D., The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong	Presenting author
Patricia Hok Sei Ng, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong	Non-presenting author
Ian Chun Bun Lam, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong	Non-presenting author
Abstract
The phenomenon of “phubbing” (Chotpitayasunondh & Douglas, 2016), which involves ignoring or snubbing real-life interactions in favor of smartphone use, has been shown to negatively impact the quality of interactions and relationship satisfaction in romantic and peer relationships (Büttner et al., 2022; Roberts & David, 2016). However, the effects of parental phubbing on parent-child interactions are not well understood. The limited existing literature suggests that parental phubbing reduces parental responsiveness and instructional behaviors while increasing negative affect in both parents and children. However, most prior studies have relied on naturalistic observational or survey-based methods, which are limited in their ability to establish causality and may be subject to self-report biases. Among the three existing experimental studies that have examined the impact of parental smartphone use, there is a consensus that parental phubbing reduces parental responsiveness and pedagogical behaviors; however, the relationship between parental phubbing and parent-child affect has yielded mixed results (Gaudreau et al., 2022; Konrad et al., 2021; Myruski et al., 2018). These discrepancies may stem from limited sample sizes, variations in children's ages, and the brief duration of smartphone distractions in experimental designs. To address these issues, the present study employs a larger sample size and increases both the length and frequency of audible smartphone notifications to better simulate the pervasive distractions typically encountered by parents. This study involved 126 Hong Kong upper kindergarteners (M = 66.3 months; 52.4% female) and their parents. Each parent-child dyad participated in a 10-minute memory card game to learn Chinese vocabulary under one of the two randomly assigned conditions: 1) Experimental (n = 65), where parents responded to instant messaging questions once per minute; and 2) Control (n = 61), where parents received no distraction cues. Parental behaviors (verbal and non-verbal instructions, positive and negative affect) and child behaviors (positive affect, negative affect, inappropriate behaviors) were coded in 10-second intervals. Reliability was ensured with intraclass correlation coefficients from a two-way mixed effects model with absolute agreement and a single-measures approach. A total of 16.7% of videos were double coded and all coded behaviors had intraclass correlation coefficients above .80. As the data for study variables did not follow a normal distribution, nonparametric tests were used in the data analyses. Results from the Kruskal-Wallis test and post-hoc Dunn’s test indicate that parental phubbing is associated with reduced verbal and non-verbal instructions, decreased parental positive affect, and increased child inappropriate behaviors. However, no significant differences were found for parental negative affect, child positive or negative affect, or word recognition scores. These findings suggest that parental phubbing during parent-child interactions can hinder parental instruction and diminish parental warmth during structured tasks, while children may exhibit more undesirable behaviors. Although children may have become accustomed to parental phubbing through daily interactions and adapted their emotional responses accordingly, they still tend to exhibit more undesirable behaviors during instances of parental phubbing. This study contributes to the expanding literature by providing experimental evidence on the specific effects of parental phubbing on parent-child interactions during structured activities.

Paper #2
Digital Parenting and Children’s Self-Control: Longitudinal Associations Between Young Children’s Screen Time and Executive Function
Author information	Role
Eva E. Chen, Ed.D., National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan	Presenting author
Shaocong Ma, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong	Non-presenting author
Abstract
Globally, screen media use is widespread among young children, yet research on its impact on their executive function development has yielded mixed results. In addition, the role of parental engagement in influencing both children’s screen time and the development of their executive function needs further exploration. Most existing studies on related topics have focused on Western contexts, leaving a gap in understanding how these relations play out in non-Western societies. To address these gaps, this longitudinal study examined the trajectories of parental engagement, young children’s screen time, and executive function development in Taiwanese Chinese families from ages 3 to 5 years old. The study followed over 2,000 Taiwanese Chinese children across three time points (Time 1: N = 2037, Mage = 3.00 years; Time 2: N = 1788, Mage = 4.00 years; Time 3: N = 1752, Mage = 5.01 years). Parents completed the Parental Engagement Questionnaire (Chang, 2019), reporting both maternal and paternal engagement in caring for their children’s physical and psychological needs (e.g., “the child’s mother [father] plays games with the child”). They also reported their children’s daily screen time across all types of digital devices (e.g., televisions, computers, smartphones). Moreover, parents also assessed and reported their children’s executive function using the Behavioral Rating Inventory of Executive Function for Two- to Five-Year-Olds (Wang et al., 2015; e.g., “In public, when you ask your child to lower their voice, can they immediately do so and maintain it for a few minutes?”). Demographic information, including children’s age, gender, and family socioeconomic status, was also collected. Results showed negative associations between parental engagement and children’s screen time (p < .001), and positive associations between parental engagement and children’s executive function development (p < .001) across 3 to 5 years of age. Children’s screen time was negatively associated with their executive function from ages 3 to 5 years (p < .001; see Table 1). A cross-lagged effect model revealed that screen time negatively predicted children’s executive function one year later from ages 3 to 5 years. Finally, starting at age 4 years, children’s executive function negatively predicted their subsequent screen time (see Figure 1). These findings highlight the crucial role of parental engagement in young children’s screen media usage and screen media usage, and suggest that excessive screen time may negatively impact executive function development as early as 3 years of age. The reciprocal relation between executive function and screen time emerging at 4 years of age implies potentially more interactive and complex connections between the two factors as children grow older. These results underscore the need for educational policies and programs, in Asian societies and beyond, that promote frequent, high-quality parental engagement to reduce children’s screen time and foster executive function development from an early age.

Paper #3
Parental Digital Media Patterns and Children's Behaviors: Insights from Latent Profile Analysis
Author information	Role
Sha Xie, Shenzhen University, China	Presenting author
Zhiyi Han, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong	Non-presenting author
Abstract
This study aims to understand the influence of parental digital media habits on young children's behavior from the perspective of the Interaction of Person-Affective-Cognitive-Executive model, which highlights various individual factors that play a pivotal role in shaping individuals' digital media habits (Brand et al., 2014; Tikhonov et al., 2024), and Actor Partner Interdependence Model, which depicts how parents' role modelling of screen-related behaviours can shape children (Ruggieri et al., 2020). Given the under-explored associations between parental media use and children's behavior, a person-centered approach is particularly useful because it allows for the examination of heterogeneity among individuals and the identification of distinct profiles within the population. By focusing on how variables interact within individuals rather than across the population as a whole, this approach can uncover nuanced patterns of influence that a variable-centered approach might overlook (Li et al., 2017). Therefore, this study applies Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) methodology to explore the diversity of parental digital media habits in the home environment, factors shaping these habits, and the resulting impact on children's self-regulation and social-emotional behavior (see Figure 1). Thirteen kindergartens in Shenzhen, China, with a ratio of 8:5 between public and private institutions, were selected through stratified sampling based on the type of institution. From each K3 class (i.e., the third year of kindergarten), six children and their primary caregivers were randomly selected, resulting in an initial sample of 234 children. After data screening, 4 children were excluded due to missing data, resulting in a final sample size of 229 kindergarten children and their primary caregivers. The sample comprised 115 girls and 114 boys, with an age range of 64 to 88 months (Mage = 75.34, SD = 4.05). Parents filled in questionnaires concerning their digital media habits using the Surveillance of Digital Media Habits in Early Childhood Questionnaire (Chia et al., 2019), depression using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (Radloff, 1977), children's self-regulation using the Children's Behaviour Questionnaire (Rothbart et al., 2001), children's emotional and behavioural strengths and difficulties using the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (Goodman, 1997), as well as their family’s social economic status. Based on adult screen time, results revealed three distinct profiles of parental digital media habits: "entertainment-focused," "development-focused," and "balanced" groups (see Figure 2). Notably, socioeconomic status and adult depression emerged as significant factors influencing these habit patterns, with higher socioeconomic status linked to development-focused habits and adult depression associated with entertainment-focused habits. Moreover, we found that children whose parents exhibited entertainment-focused digital media habits displayed lower self-regulation abilities and higher emotional difficulties. This underscores the critical role of parental digital media habits in shaping children's behavioral outcomes. Our study contributes novel insights to the literature by elucidating the specific relationship between parental digital media habits and early child development. We highlight the importance of considering socioeconomic factors and parental mental health in understanding parents’ digital media use habit and how it influences children's early development.

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