The Effects of Young Children's Smartphone Use Experience on Their Parents' Perceptions and Needs and Their Self-Regulation

Abstract

The results of this study were as follows. First, young children are using a smartphones at around the age of 25 months. Most of them are frequently using it for about 60 minutes once a week whenever they can. Second, most parents have high expectations for their perceptions and needs. They have high perceptions and expected needs for their young children's smartphone use. They have a high air of encouraging their young children to use it because they have higher expectations and needs for their young children than the demerits of its use. Third, young children's smartphone use experience don’t have a big effect on their perceptions of emotional intelligence related to their self-regulation. Fourth, in the effect of parents' perceptions and needs for smartphone on their young children's self-regulation, their emotional expression and empathic ability have no effect on their young children's selfregulation. Their emotional control reduced the demerits of their young children's smartphone use, and it has a little effect on their young children's inhibitory regulation. As for the results stated above, young children's smartphone use is expanding to the age of 2. Especially, parents have high expected needs for encouraging their young children to use a smartphone early.