Abstract:
Despite the clear restrictive guidelines about the use of modern handheld devices among children
younger than 2 years, parents are seen to extensively use these devices with their infants. However,
parents’ perceptions in this regard remain unclear and underexplored especially in the context of
Pakistan, thus needing further exploration. This qualitative study aims to explore parents’
perception regarding their infants’ use of mobile devices and how this perception situates the use
of mobile devices in child rearing practices. By the use of purposive sampling technique, 10
couples (i.e. 20 parents) from Pakistan were individually interviewed using a semi structured
interview guide. Parents with at least two children including one infant (0-2 years) were included.
Single parents and parents of children with special needs were excluded. Findings revealed
negative outcomes of use of mobile devices among infants, which were categorized into
internalizing problems, emotional problems, social interaction problems and issues in cognitive
processing. Whereas positive outcomes included learning outcomes and increased cognitive
abilities. While having sufficient knowledge about the potential negative outcomes associated with
the excessive use of these devices, parents appeared to be challenged in limiting the screen time.
Parents are seen to use mobile devices with their infants either as a time management technique or
as a parenting practice in daily routine. This study can be made useful among clinicians to consider
this aspect while making a neurodevelopmental diagnosis. It can also be useful in promoting
learning among infants in day care/childcare centers, in developing parenting manuals and
developing screen time policy or guidelines.
