DisneyFamily.com conducted an online survey with over 11,000 parents about digital gadget usage amongst children. Check this out:
• Forty percent of respondents’ children have cell phones. Of those, 36% are responsible for paying all or part of their cell phone bill.
• Forty-eight percent of respondents age 25 – 34 said their child(ren) began using a cell phone at age five or younger.
• While 80% of respondents are worried about online safety, 26% of respondents’ children age eight or younger are allowed to access the internet alone.
• Eighty-one percent of respondents’ children have provided a personal email address to register for a site online; 69% have uploaded a photo online and 59% have used online chat/instant messaging.
• Forty-nine percent of respondents identified the internet as their first source of information about online safety.
Call me crazy, but these numbers scare me. I've seen the look in my kid's eye when she sees my cell phone. "Can I play a video game on it?" She loves our babysitter because her cell phone is so cool and has the best games.
Oh my.
