Common Sense Media reports that the average teen spends 7 hours and 22 minutes in front of a screen (excluding homework time). What impact does this increase in screen time have on student empathy?
In your opinion why does screen time reduce empathy?
This is an interesting question…As a teacher and as a mom to teen girls I see this in two different ways. Kids, my own included, have more connections through social media than I did to other kids when I was growing up. A kid they may not interact with a lot at school or in social situations can still be a “friend” on social media. In some ways, this connects them to others more and to more people. In return, in some ways more connections doesn’t mean more deep, empathetic connections. I see my kids empathy come through when I see messages they send to console, or acknowledge someone’s pain. I see plenty of messages of support when a friend goes through a tough time, loses a pet or family member. I also see the connection on social platforms that connect kids to each other (faith based, sport based, etc). Of course, there is the other side of bullying, being left out of chats, seeing pictures of “everyone” doing something and you weren’t invited, etc.
I am also curious about the screen time average. I would love to see that broken down across socio-economic, race, and other areas. I wonder if kids who are active in other activities (sports, music, clubs, etc) have a lower amounts of screen time and a higher amount of face-to-face connections. I know we ask our own kids about their screen time reports on Sunday and sometimes it seems high, but we also know that they use it for so many things including at school so those hours are also included in those totals.
An increase in a teen’s screen time seems to connect to a decrease in student empathy. When social interactions take place behind a device, fundamentals and nuances of personal interaction are lost — the ability to make eye contact, read tone of voice, sense emotion, pick up on sarcasm, feel warmth. Conversations can be misconstrued. Students might feel more emboldened to make mean comments or post things they wouldn’t say in person because they can be anonymous or be hidden behind a false user name. It’s hard to see an immediate reaction of hurt, embarrassment or disappointment when one isn’t having a face-to-face disagreement or discussion with a friend which leads to a lessened degree of empathy in both parties.
With increased screen time students may also develop a skewed version of reality if their meaningful relationships are all on-line. Video games, movies, Youtube videos, Instagram posts and VBFs (virtual best friends) often feed into a narcissistic, empathy-barren depiction of perfect lives, fantasy families and flawless bodies — all of which are unattainable yet desirable in a teen’s eyes. Real life then may seem drab and depressing.
When kids use texting to communicate, they miss the face-to-face interaction that allows a person to see facial expressions, body language and voice tone. Without this face-to-face interaction or even a phone conversation a person could misinterpret the way a text was intended to be read.
Screen time reduces empathy in teens because they are not given the opportunity to learn how to discern different moods which hinders their ability to be able to “walk in someone else’s shoes” as well as being able to see the effect their behavior/conversation has with another person.
Screen time can be anti-social if people are sitting with their families or friends and are engrossed in their screens. It’s that simple: You won’t see your sister’s facial expression if you’re paying attention to something else. But in many situations, at restaurants, at work, people ARE engaged in conversations. In many work environments, there is a bit of shame for “talking” at work instead of doing “real work,” aka doing something on your computer.
I have to ask: Were people ever fully available (emotionally/empathetically) in previous generations? The old stereotypes of the dad working on the car, doing excessive lawn work, reading the paper, watching sports, mom folding laundry and making dinner…are these activities THAT different from escaping to your phone?
I recognize that phones are incredibly addictive and I switched over to a flip phone for 10 months to help me detox from the constant pull of it, but I still enjoy checking Twitter and seeing how the world reacts to news events. It’s a balance just like eating sugar, drinking coffee, or anything else addictive. Does it make us less empathetic? In many ways, the MeToo movement brought awareness via social media/screens to the harassment that women have been experiencing, so many individuals are more empathetic to the struggles of others because of the open platforms of social media.
Common sense media reporting that teens spend an average of 7 hours and 22 minutes on screen time is not surprising. It seems teens spend more time in front of a screen than face to face interaction. This is their main way of interacting with one another and being “connected” in their mind. The downfall in my opinion is they are not able to view facial expressions, tone of voice and read someone’s body language. This then can transfers over into their interactions with people, not behind a screen. I do think teens can show empathy to someone through social media when a loss or some major event has occurred through their comments. In some cases more willing to post it than say the comment to a person face to face. This can also go the other way and the willingness to say something behind the screen verse face to face can more often have a negative effect.
In my opinion, I think screens are probably contributing to a decrease in empathy for the reasons I stated above. However, I don’t think it’s fair to try and blame screens for this. A few questions I have are what is occurring in the other hours of the day the child is not on a screen to promote and model empathy? How can we use the screen in a positive way to increase empathy?
The increase in screen time takes away from the time that could be spent in human interaction. There is no substitute for people, it is inherent in our existence to want and need friends and family to share our time with. Sometimes I am just spent after talking with my best friend, she helps me figure out my crazy life. I know I am too old-school, but screen time is not real. Kids do not develop social skills playing video games and watching Youtube. We were created for one another and are better together than apart. Life is richer with more front porch time.
From what I observe in my role is that increased screen time decreases empathy. Students feel like they can hide behind a screen and insult other students without social consequences. If students can’t see the other students they are being mean to, they assume it is not bothering the other student. Social media and cell phones have made it extremely easy to be mean and bully other students since they don’t have to have physical proximity to others. It also gives students a platform to be mean where they might not have the “guts” to do it if it were in person. It is always surprising to me that I have students who are friends on social media accounts and harass each other through that means, but when I speak with them about the conflict they never have spoken to the other student in person and may not even know who they are at school.
Increased screen time is preventing our students from opportunities to make real-time, human to human, face-to-face interactions. These interactions are beneficial for developing a child’s emotional literacy. In order to develop empathy, one must start by tuning in to another person: eye contact, focus on feelings. This would prove impossible if the student was immersed in his/her digital device. In order to walk in some else’s shoes, we must start by hitting pause on all those things around us (texts, emails, FB, SnapChat, etc) and giving our undivided attention to the person standing before us. Be an emotion coach. Someday you might find yourself “in their shoes”.
It’s hard to dispute the facts that kids today are “addicted” to all kinds of screen time, and it’s definitely a reason behind why they are less empathetic (and more out of shape as well).
Thankfully, human beings seem hardwired for empathy. It’s a trait that sets us apart from animals and it’s one that can be nurtured in children and young adults. That’s where parenting can be hugely rewarding, and, yes, exhausting at times. It takes a ton of work to raise good kids who care about other people.
Just as there’s no shortcut for parenting, there’s no quick solution for building up empathy. It takes a lot of conversation and role modeling and working on emotional skills. It takes commitment and intention. I would suggest finding a good balance with technology, and limiting screen time is a great place to start.
An increase in screen time has a huge impact on our students’ ability to think and/or feel outside of themselves. Kids are missing the direct interaction with others and therefore, aren’t able to understand body language, eye contact, emotions in order to feel empathy. Our kids today lack human interaction not only with their peers, but also at home. Parents are so busy and also on a device just as much as their kids. When kids aren’t able to have human conversation in order to learn how to see and/or feel someone else’s perspective, it makes it very difficult for them to be empathetic. Kids’ time is being spent behind a device, rather than engaged in authentic conversations and/or relationships. This results in them not understanding the effect their actions might have someone. All of the strategies and techniques discussed in our book on teaching empathy include human to human interaction, when this is limited due to the amount of time being spent on a device, our kids miss out on being taught these essential traits.
I’m not surprised with the statistic about the average amount of time teens spend on their screens. It’s easy for kids to stay “connected” to others through social media, video games, and chats. Unfortunately, using social media for a lot of their communication doesn’t allow students to have that face-to-face conversation that is so important. When social interactions are taking place behind a device, our teens are missing out on the important cues they get from others when interacting with them face-to-face.
It’s not a surprise that student empathy is decreasing because of this. The more time our students spend on their screens, the less likely they are to really understand what it is like to “walk in someone else’s shoes”. I have seen empathy shine through when individuals sympathize with another or console a friend on social media, but sometimes I think our teens make these comments because it is the “right thing to do”. I think the key to helping our teens really understand empathy to to talk about it. Currently, the 5th graders at our school are participating in community meetings to talk about empathy. There have been several situations at our school this year where our students have made poor choices and we needed to get to the heart of the problem. We discovered that many of our students were having trouble with the concept of empathy and I do feel that a lot of the problem stems from social media. Most of the parents were happy we are having these conversations with our students, but some of our parents don’t think these meetings are necessary. I believe we all have to work together to help young people understand empathy. While it’s important to embed these lessons into our school day, these types of conversations have to happen at home too.
Increased screen time is having a huge effect on Empathy! The more time a teen spends online the greater the effects it has on the development of their social and emotional well being. The online world creates such a false sense of what it real, and takes the natural human interactive emotion out of the equation. As a result it’s impacting teens relationships with others in the real world. Teens are becoming more and more insular and not noticing the world around them. Furthermore they aren’t appreciating what’s right in front of them, instead they have this I want/I need more or I’m not good enough, I’ve got to keep up with, mindset because of the often perfect world that is portrayed through posts, interactions, and what they observe online. As a result this is creating increased anxiety in teens.
Spending hours online interferes with how humans are wired to be empathetic. The digital worlds continuous feed of information sends the mind bouncing from thought to thought and swirling through a series of emotions. The mind never has the opportunity to turn off online. As a result it doesn’t allow teens (anyone for this matter) to just be, stop think and notice, so they in turn can build up their true sense of empathy.
As an adult with a fully developed brain, I can feel the effects of screens. It is so easy to mindlessly pick up my phone and time warp through social media memes, videos, and the like. I can tell when I’ve been on my phone too late into the evening because it’s hard to fall asleep. I have to actively remind myself not to play the comparison game when jealously kicks in while scrolling through friends’ feeds. These are all very real feelings for myself, and I consider myself a pretty well regulated adult. What must that be like for our teenagers who already believe the world is watching them?! What about their developing executive function skills and ability to empathize? I’m so interested to learn from the growing research on this topic!
It is scary to think about what is happening to our childrens’ brains that are spending over seven hours staring at a screen.
Empathy is a skill that takes time to cultivate. Our brains need time to understand the emotion of another and then to formulate an appropriate response. The fast pace of social media doesn’t allow for this to happen in the same way that face to face interactions do. Social media also distorts our perceptions because we tend to fill our feeds with those who think similarly to us. Soon, these thoughts can become more and more reinforced, and it becomes difficult to understand others’ views that are different than ours. It also worries me that surrounding ourselves with so many people that are so similar to us can reinforce extremist views, and therefore less empathy.
When students are spending so much time behind screens, they lose human connection, which decreases empathy. Empathy is built on relationships and face to face interaction. When students are on screens, they are in their own world and missing out on the reality of life that is happening around them.
In my opinion, this withdrawal from the real world and connecting with humans around them has a huge impact on empathy. What they see and experience on a screen is filtered and anything but reality. Students miss the ability to see reality, interact at a level where emotions are experienced beyond words. In face to face interactions, we experience emotions through words, body language, facial expression and energy.
I loved reading everyone’s comments and perspectives on this topic! I do think that when kids are disconnected from face-to-face interactions, they can lack empathy. When they are not seeing someone’s emotions and how things over a screen effect another person’s feelings, it can lead to a disconnect between the impact of their actions on another person. However, if parents are providing their kids with open discussions on how to have empathetic interactions over screens and social media, I do think that there are opportunities for kids to still build empathy. Talking to them about cyber bullying, feeling left out, comparison, and how good it feels to have meaningful interactions with people face-to-face will hopefully help them to create mindfulness and empathy despite the fact that they are spending more time on screens than previous generations.
I have noticed the more time young adults spend on a screen the more they struggle with uncontrollable circumstances, situations, etc. As a school counselor, father of three young boys, and basketball coach at the high school level, 5th grade level and 2nd and 3rd grade level, I believe I am constantly taking in data (informal yes, but I believe insightful and far more often reflective of being accurate) across many different age groups. In many circumstances, the students who struggle the most with situations they do not have control over and/or the outcome is not favorable are the same students who tend to spend the most time in front of a screen. Example: the players who struggle the most to recall plays, anticipate a situation, etc. are the same players who I see on their phone or generally distracted in comparison to other players.
I believe screen time provides a block between perception and reality (at times) and one of the many outcomes this can create is a lack of empathy that we perceive and feel naturally when in the presence of others.
We have learned in our discussions so far that screen time does have an affect on empathy in people, but especially young people. Without a face-to-face interaction, it makes it more difficult if not impossible to read emotions, tone and body language. I can definitely see how increased screen time can make kids and teens more likely to say things they wouldn’t normally say because they don’t have to worry about the immediate reaction of the other person/people. Overall, I think increased screen time makes kids less empathetic because they just aren’t talking to each other and learning communication skills that will help them create empathy with others in the long run. Empathy is also something that we’ve learned has to be modeled for kids. If kids are spending all their free time on their screens, they probably aren’t interacting or observing the adults in their life who should be showing them what empathy looks like. The lack of human interaction/observation overall could be decreasing empathy in our students/kids.
I worry about the implications of this stat daily. With two teenagers at home, I struggle with the amount of time they spend and wonder how much of it adds to their lives, versus how much of it is “wasted” time or even destructive. I know a large part of their online time is social, which is appropriate whether it is 2020, or 1920. I have seen how large their social networks are, and wonder how much anxiety the social media creates. Growing up in an affluent area, I feel my children are exposed to peers who are overindulged. They know about lavish vacations, clothing, shoes, cars, and possessions of their peers due to social media. They know about embarrassing moments, break ups, and very little is kept private. I feel that it can perpetuate keeping up a facade which leads to less empathy and less of a real connection to one another and a focus on self. I know they do support one another as well, and I am always happy when I hear my children on an actual phone call or on Facetime with a friend. I saw them doing more texting in middle school, but now that they are in high school, I see an increase of Facetime. Both teens wanted to get their licenses right away so they could go and spend more time with friends. I think isolation is the most damaging to empathy, so if they are staying connected, staying in this world, versus playing video games in a virtual world for hours talking to strangers, I think it isn’t all bad and not too different from the hours I spent talking on the phone.
First, I love Common Sense Media and use it as a parent and student resource all the time! It is so powerful showing parents and students the data about screen time. I use the 7h22m data when talking to my 5th graders! They are SHOCKED and don’t believe me. It’s quite alarming to be honest. I see the impact on kids more and more as I listen to them putting their screens and social media on a pedestal. It’s so easy to be mean behind a screen, which is why I find it so worrisome. I see the struggle that parents have with creating boundaries, and although I don’t have my own kids, I see empathy taking a hit.
When kids aren’t spending face-to-face time with others, they are missing out on tone of voice, facial expressions, body language, the push and pull of compromising, and understanding perspective. I start talking to my students beginning in KG about balance, whether it’s with our screens, our food, our health, or our time with friends and family!