According to a leading Australian psychologist, parents who allow young children to use mobile phones are “stupid” and allowing such behaviour is “insane”.
Psychologist Dr. Michael Carr-Gregg, who is a high-profile expert on adolescent behaviour, says parents who allow children to take mobile phones to bed with them and let them text friends late at night are stupid.
A survey of 257 parents of 517 children for the Generation Next health and well being seminar series has revealed that almost 70% of children under 18 have a mobile phone - this includes children as young as 4 - and as many as one in four primary school children with a phone, take it to bed with them.
Dr. Carr-Gregg says that almost 1.6 million children under 18 were allowed mobiles in their room at night and this is leading to a generation of overtired "zombies".
According to Dr. Carr-Gregg too many parents give young children phones and 40% of such children were sleep-deprived on school nights and 69% of 12 to 18 year-olds were sleep deprived.
Dr. Carr-Gregg says due to peer pressure it has become normal for Year 5 and 6 pupils to have phones and 6 and 7 year olds are staying up until the early hours 'texting' messages to their friends and many also have unabridged internet access.
He says 'time-poor' parents have largely been to blame and often attempt to compensate by allowing phones at a young age, as well as TVs and computers in bedrooms.
Dr. Carr-Gregg says many are incapable of saying no and despite luxurious homes many children grow up in emotional silos and he believes the economic recession will exacerbate the problem - he says no child should be allowed to own a phone until high school, and depending on the child's age, all technology should be off by 10pm at the latest.
Dr. Carr-Gregg says young brains can only function if they are rested and replenished and he predicts a future generation of zombies who arrive at school sleep-deprived.