Parents, Kids & Technology
Here are some books to help you navigate issues around children using technology—video games, cell phones, social media. They don’t all say the same thing, but they all take seriously the impact that technology can have—for good or for ill—on the development of children. You will be sure to find some helpful ideas here for your own families.
In this easy-read book, Crouch bases his advice on experiences in his own family (the Forward is written by his daughter) and on research from the Barna Group. He develops his views around the use of technology in the home on three foundations: (i) we build character by cultivating wisdom and courage; (ii) we need to shape spaces in the home to foster creativity; and (iii) we need to structure time to that we create a rhythm of work and rest. These are the first three of his “ten commandments for a healthy family life with technology,” each of which is expounded in a separate chapter. He writes, “Technology is only very good if it can help us become the persons we were meant to be.”
Schut, Kevin. Of Games & God: A Christian Exploration of Video Games (Brazos Press, 2013).
This book is written for both gamers and non-gamers. It is an exploration of video gaming in light of a theology of play, fantasy, and cultural engagement. Keven Schut, an avid gamer and Associate Professor of Media and Communication at Trinity Western University, provides an informed and appreciative critique of the video-game culture, looking for what we can learn about faith, humanity, and spirituality. Dispelling various misconceptions of gaming—e.g., they are too violent, too addictive, too pointless—he goes on to show how game-playing can foster healthy creativity and intellectual exploration. Both fans and critics of gaming will find much to consider here.
A fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center—a conservative Christian think tank seeking to address matters of law, culture, and politics, located in Washington, D.C.—Morell argues that “social media is clearly a cause … of the increase in depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts among teens.” In light of this, she boldly proposes “no smartphones, social media, tablets, or video games during childhood.” She further argues that the release of dopamine that engagement with social media produces makes moderation especially challenging. In contrast, Morell suggests parents promote real-life activities for their children—e.g., cooking, serving, hiking, talking, riding bikes, making music—as ways of fostering self-control and the development of virtuous character. Even if readers cannot accept all of Morell’s proposals, The Tech Exit will provide help for parents looking for a better strategy for the use of technology.
Loechner, Erin. The Opt-Out Family: How to Give Your Kids What Technology Can’t (Zondervan, 2024).
Formerly an high-powered social media influencer with millions of followers, a few years ago Erin Loechner made a radical change: She quit. Now she subverts the tech’s “playbook” to create a new playbook that will foster activities to better nurture families. She talks about giving children space to play, to solve problems, to explore, and to relate with others free of the burden of technology. She concludes: “Becoming an opt-out family isn’t all about clenching our fists and teeth and plans as we strategize 101 ways to conquer the gods of tech…. It is, simply, opening the door wide to something better. It’s the quiet recognition that every time we opt out of technology, we opt in to life…. It’s pausing to notice the things technology begs us not to: the soil beneath us and the cardinal above us, but mostly the beating hearts before is. It’s offering a thank you, and a prayer, as we lift our eyes to see the bigger picture that awaits on the other side of the screen.”