A hot potato: As for flat out addiction, 45 percent of parents said they feel addicted to their mobile device compared to just 39 percent of teens. Those figures are up from 27 percent and down from 50 percent, respectively, since 2016.
Technology addiction is a controversial topic but thanks to ongoing research, it is one that is beginning to be better understood by experts and families alike.
According to a recent report from Common Sense Media (CSM), parents are more concerned about the time they spend on smartphones compared to just a few years ago. Teens, meanwhile, are collectively less worried about their own usage than they were in 2016.
Specifically, CSM notes that 52 percent of parents feel they spend too much time on their mobile devices, up from just 29 percent in 2016. Conversely, only 39 percent of teens believe they spend too much time on their devices, down from 61 percent in 2016.
Teens aren't oblivious to their parents' usage, either. A full 39 percent of teens said they think their parent spends too much time on their device, up from just 28 percent who said the same in 2016.
More than half of parents and teens - 54 percent and 58 percent, respectively - feel distracted by their mobile device at least once a day.
Even more worrisome is that both groups keep their devices close by at night with nearly a third of teens saying they keep their phones in bed with them. One in four parents said they wake up at least once a night to check their phone for something other than the time; one in three teens reported doing the same.
Lead image credit: everybody zebra by haloviss. Second image: young sleepy tired woman by DimaBerlin