Internet Addiction Linked to Strict / Unaffectionate Parenting

Strick parenting leads to Internet Addiction?

By Dr. Brent Conrad, Clinical Psychologist at TechAddiction.ca

A new study has found that young adults who remember their parents as being overly stick, demanding, and without being affectionate, tended to be more likely to have problematic Internet use (often referred to as Internet Addiction). 

As this is obviously a correlational finding (and we all know that correlation does not imply causation), the authors suggest that other factors may be at play.

For example, kids with very demanding parents who lack affection may experience mood problems, may have difficulty relating to peers in person, or may struggle to making friends in general…which may cause them to retreat to online games for comfort and support.

The study of 600 adults concluded that almost 2% of men and 0.6% of women could be classified as “severely addicted”.

The take home message is pretty simple isn’t it? Be an authoritative, not an authoritarian parent. Set reasonable expectations for your children, but don’t expect perfection and 100% obedience all the time. And always show that you care for them and love them.

Doing so may protect not only against Internet Addiction, but will likely prevent many (many) other problems as well.

Original Article: Parenting Style and Internet Addiction