Your phone habits may be exposing your children to mature content, new study finds

CNN

04-02-2025

You might not think twice about spending extended time on your phone around your children, but a new study suggests that parents' screen-time habits are associated with children accessing more age-inappropriate content.
Parental screen usage in front of children and family rules around devices are significantly linked to higher odds of kids watching R-rated movies and playing mature-rated video games, according to a new study published Tuesday in the journal BMC Pediatrics.
'We wanted to explore parent rules and adolescents' exposure to mature content because there's a lack of research to guide parents of young adolescents on media use,' said lead study author Dr. Jason Nagata, associate professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, via email. 'While the American Academy of Pediatrics provides general recommendations for ages 5 to 18, young adolescents are at a unique developmental stage — they're not little kids anymore, but they're also not fully independent teens.'
Nagata and other researchers analyzed data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, including more than 10,000 adolescents aged 12 to 13.
Parents responded to a 14-item questionnaire, rating their agreement with statements such as, 'I try to limit how much I use a screen-based device when I am with my child' on a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree).
Adolescents also self-reported their exposure to mature content by answering two questions, 'How often do you watch R-rated movies?' and 'How often do you play mature-rated video games?' on a scale from 0 (never) to 3 (all the time).
The study found that with each unit increase in parental screen use — based on the 1 to 4 scale — there was an 11% increase in the likelihood of children engaging with both mature video games and R-rated movies.
'This (study) offers strong encouragement for us as parents to keep on monitoring and limiting our kids' use of screens, even when doing so is difficult and unpleasant because we get a lot of pushback from our kids,' said CNN contributor Dr. Kara Alaimo, associate professor of communication at Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey and author of 'Over the Influence,' via email.
Frequent screen use during meals and high levels of bedroom screentime in adolescents were also notably associated with increased exposure to mature content, according to the study.
How parents can limit screen time
For parents uncertain about navigating their child's screen time, a good starting point is modeling healthy device habits.
Children tend to mirror their parents' behavior, so if adults frequently use their phones, adolescents will be inclined to do the same.
'Parents should practice what they preach,' Nagata said. 'If parents make a family rule to not text at the dinner table, they should follow it.'
Alaimo encourages parents to reflect on their own phone usage around their kids, asking whether the activities they do on their phones are truly meaningful or mindless scrolling that provides little value.
While she acknowledges it's not always possible, she also suggests that parents try to spend time on their devices when their children are at school or asleep to maximize quality in-person family time.
If parents take the time to initiate a conversation around efforts to manage their personal screen time, it can provide more thoughtful and relatable examples for kids to follow, Alaimo said.
Navigating screen-time boundaries with your child
Nagata emphasized that adolescent bedroom screen use had the strongest correlation with exposure to mature content. To effectively limit access to inappropriate media, families should establish clear screen rules during meals and before bedtime, he added.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends creating a family media plan to set specific, practical guidelines tailored to each household.
To initiate device guidelines, parents should promote frequent conversations around appropriate phone use, which can include eliminating any screens during certain times of the day.
Since every family's media plan will differ, Nagata said it's important for parents to adjust screen-time rules as children grow. That may include reassessing what content is appropriate, which devices are used and how much time is spent on screens.
The study also found that using screen time as a punishment often led children to seek out more mature content, which Nagata attributed to adolescents who are craving independence and may react negatively to restrictive measures.
'I've seen that when kids fear that their parents will take away their screens, it can discourage them from coming to their parents when they end up in trouble online and need help — for example, if they're being blackmailed for money,' Alaimo said. 'Tempting though it can be for all of us, this study gives parents another reason to think twice before wielding such punishments.'
However, children who were rewarded with screen time tended to consume less mature media. Nagata suggests that positive reinforcement strategies with screens can be effective in encouraging other healthy device habits.