When Screen Time Isn’t Screen Time: Tensions and Needs Between Tweens and Their Parents During Nature-Based Exploration
Citation
Kawas, S., Kuhn, N. S., Sorstokke, K., Bascom, E., Hiniker, A., & Davis, K. (2021). When Screen Time Isn’t Screen Time: Tensions and Needs Between Tweens and Their Parents During Nature-Based Exploration. In Proceedings of the 2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-14). doi.org/10.1145/3411764.3445142
Researchers explored how 15 parents and their tween children (ages 8–12) experienced using NatureCollections, a mobile app designed to help kids connect with nature. Over two weeks, families used the app during outdoor activities. Researchers gathered insights from parent interviews and short audio recordings tweens made within the app.
Researchers found that tweens’ experiences with NatureCollections were shaped by the ongoing tensions many families feel around screen time and technology use. Even so, the app successfully encouraged tweens to explore nature outdoors, and parents appreciated the opportunities it created for shared family moments. Parents said they wanted the app to help strengthen family bonds and give them a clearer sense of how their child was using it.
The findings show that apps designed to enrich young people’s experiences — especially during the tween years — must account for family dynamics around technology. Researchers offer suggestions for designing digital tools that support family needs while reducing screen-time conflicts.
Abstract
We investigated the experiences of 15 parents and their tween children (ages 8-12, n=23) during nature explorations using the NatureCollections app, a mobile application that connects children with nature. Drawing on parent interviews and in-app audio recordings from a 2-week deployment study, we found that tweens’ experiences with the NatureCollections app were influenced by tensions surrounding how parents and tweens negotiate technology use more broadly. Despite these tensions, the app succeeded in engaging tweens in outdoor nature explorations, and parents valued the shared family experiences around nature. Parents desired the app to support family bonding and inform them about how their tween used the app. This work shows how applications intended to support enriching youth experiences are experienced in the context of screen time tensions between parents and tween during a transitional period of child development. We offer recommendations for designing digital experiences to support family needs and reduce screen time tensions.