Parents’ attitudes – and experiences – related to digital technology

In today’s digitally connected world, parents have to manage their own relationship with the internet and mobile devices, along with managing their children’s use of and exposure to the same technology. This brings with it a host of both benefits and challenges.

Parents, which includes those who have at least one child under the age of 18 but who may also have adult children, are far more likely to say that parenting is harder today than it was two decades ago than believe the opposite is true. Two-thirds of these parents say that parenting today is harder than it was 20 years ago for most parents. Just 7% say it is easier, and 26% say it is about the same.

The belief that parenting is harder today than in the past is common across demographic groups, but there are some differences by age. Older parents are more likely to say that raising children has grown more difficult, with 71% of parents 50 and older saying parenting is harder, compared with smaller shares of parents ages 18 to 49 (65%).