Majority of Moms Can't Go More Than a Day Without Using Internet

If you’re a mom, how long can you go without using the Internet? A recent survey of 1,000+ moms conducted by The Parenting Group (publisher of Parenting, Babytalk and Parenting.com), and BlogHer, Inc., the premium cross-platform media network and publisher for women, found that 71 percent can’t go more than a day and 40 percent can only go a few hours without satisfying their Internet urges. Going hand-in-hand with being always-on, 79 percent of moms also consider a cell phone a necessity over a landline – not to mention the device’s benefit of serving as a diversion or gaming device for kids, as many moms noted.

And like mother, like daughter (and son), children are adopting their parents’ tech habits and using gadgets at younger ages than ever before. The survey found that 1 in 4 moms allow their children to interact with a mobile phone by age 2. Other digital milestones for these parents and tech-savvy kids include use of the following technologies by the age of 4:

• 60 percent of children have used a computer
• 43 percent have used a digital camera
• 32 percent have used a smart phone
• 25 percent have used an iPod
• 14 percent have used a tablet computer

The survey also looked at how quality time is being spent nowadays. YouTube is increasing in popularity as a family pastime with 45 percent of moms reporting they watch videos together with their children. If your kid asks a question about the solar system, the opera, the mating habits of bees – anything they can come up with – there’s a very good chance a YouTube video (or many) is available on the topic. When monitored properly, YouTube can serve as a fantastic educational tool.

Finally, for some ‘me-time’ for moms and catching up with friends online, 81 percent turn to Facebook and 57 percent to blogs on a daily basis to communicate with each other. Two percent use family to communicate with their kids every day.

Elisa Camahort Page, Co-founder and COO of BlogHer, Inc. said, “Whether it’s seeking advice from other moms who blog, staying in constant touch with text messaging or delivering pure entertainment and play, parents have identified, particularly, the Internet and their mobile devices as their ‘desert island’, can’t-live-without technologies of choice.”

How reliant are you on your mobile device and the Internet?