Power Down & Parent Up: Screen Dependence and Raising Tech-Healthy Children
Holli Kenley, M.A., LMFT
“Many parents sense intuitively that electronic screen activity has unwanted effects on their children’s behavior and mood, but are unsure what to do about it.”(Dunkley, 2015). “Parents and teens are both affected by the influences of our screen-saturated lives, but young people experience the effects with ferocious intensity.”(Koch, 2015). With a thorough investigation of electronic consumption and of current research validating the consequences of interactive and passive screen-time on developing children as well as on adult populations, participants will also examine effective interventions.
Program Goals: Based on current research and published works on screen dependence, this workshop will:
- Present background knowledge on the following: introduction to how and why this topic is of clinical relevance and therapeutic importance; explanation of new clinical vocabulary and review of related terminology; identification of limitations of research
- Present research-based evidence of neurological, physiological, emotional, psychological, relational and behavioral manifestations as the result of both interactive and passive screen time.
- Present tools for assessment and intervention with individuals, with an emphasis on children, and with families.
Learning Objectives:
- Participants will be able to describe and discuss background knowledge on screen dependence including the following: clinical relevance and therapeutic importance; new clinical vocabulary as well as a review of terminology in association with presenting pathology and symptomatology; and limitations to research.
- Participants will be able to describe and discuss the most common neurological, physiological, emotional, psychological, relational or social, and behavioral manifestations as the result of interactive and passive screen-time.
- Participants will be able to identify and articulate how the following occurrences are directly correlated to interactive and/or passive connectedness with electronic devices: frequent misdiagnosis of presenting symptomatology, the exacerbation of existing pathology, and the creation of new pathology.
- Participants will be able to compare and contrast the symptoms/manifestations of Electronic Screen Syndrome (Dunkley, 2015) with presenting symptomatology of other clinical disorders and evaluate their respective therapeutic implications and considerations.
- Participants will be able to describe research-based interventions for addressing health consequences and concerns of screen dependence for individual clients and families.
Diversity
There is consistency in the research supporting where this is access or exposure to or consumption of technology, either passive or interactive, there are presenting health concerns and consequences. Factors which may discriminate or influence access or exposure could include socio-economic limitations, religious beliefs, cultural traditions, or age vulnerabilities. These will be addressed within the presentation.
Sensitive material
Although there is no sensitive material within the workshop, participants may feel “uncomfortable”. As we explore degree of dependence on screens and their ensuing consequences, participants may discover problematic behaviors or emotions and/or maladaptive beliefs or practices within their own lives, within their families, and within their relationships with technology. I will note and validate such feelings as well as maintain a pulse on their presence throughout the presentation.
References
Alter, A. (2017). Irresistible: The rise of addictive technology and the business of keeping us hooked. New York, NY: Penguin Press.
Bosker, B. (2016, November). Tristan Harris believes Silicon Valley is addicting us to our phones: And he’s determined to make it stop. The Atlantic, 56-65.
Dunckley, Victoria L. (2015). Reset your child’s brain: A four-week plan to end meltdowns, raise grades and boost social skills by reversing the effects of electronic screen-time. Novato, CA: New World Library.
Grossman, D. Lt.Col., & DeGaetano. G. (2014). Stop teaching our kids to kill: A call to action against tv, movie, and video game violence. New York, NY: Harmony Books (Crown Publishing Group).
Kardaras, N. (2016) Glow Kids: How screen addiction is hijacking out kids – and how to break the trance. New York, N.Y: St. Martin’s Press.
Kersting, T. (2016). Disconnected: How to reconnect our digitally distracted kids. USA: Thomas Kersting.
Koch, K. (2015). Screens and teens: Connecting with our kids in a wireless world. Chicago: Moody Press.
Bio:
Holli Kenley is a California Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a California State Licensed Teacher. She holds a Master’s Degree in Psychology with an emphasis in Marriage, Family, and Child Counseling. She has worked in a variety of settings: a women’s shelter, a counseling center, and in private practice. Counseling with adolescents, teens, young and older adults, Holli’s areas of specialized training and experience include sexual trauma, abuse, addiction, codependency, domestic violence, betrayal, and cyber bullying. Holli is the author of five recovery books including “Breaking through Betrayal: And Recovering the Peace Within” (2010); “Cyberbullying No More: Parenting a High Tech Generation” (2011); and her powerful memoir “Mountain Air: Relapsing and Finding the Way Back…One Breath at a Time” (2013). Holli’s first novel, “Another Way” (2015) offers tweens to teens (and their parents/guardians) an empowering message of discovering, defining, and determining self-worth. New, in her Second Edition of “Breaking through Betrayal” (January 2016), Holli addresses relapse as an issue of self-betrayal with a healing process for self-discovery.
In addition to her work as a therapist and an author, Holli enjoys speaking at workshops and conferences. Over the past six years, Holli has been a five-time peer presenter at the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists’ Annual Conferences speaking on the topics of betrayal, relapse, cyberbullying and sexual abuse recovery. Holli Kenley has been a guest on over 100 podcasts as well as on Arizona’s TV show Morning Scramble speaking on issues of wellness. Prior to and during her career as a therapist, Holli taught for thirty years in public education