Children are limiting phone use to protect their mental health

Children are increasingly taking breaks from their smartphones to better manage their mental health, personal safety and attention spans, research suggests.

- Rachel Hall

Experts say youngsters are reacting to growing concerns that too much time online can be harmful by taking control of their social media and phone use rather than relying on parents to enforce limits.

The number of 12- to 15-year-olds who take breaks from digital devices has risen to 40% – up by almost a fifth on 2022, according to the audience research company GWI, drawing on a survey of 20,000 young people and their parents in 18 countries.

Prof Sonia Livingstone, the director of the LSE's digital futures for children centre, said the findings would be echoed in a forthcoming research report that found younger people were trying various options to manage how their online lives affected their wellbeing.