Today's Kids Worse Off Than Those a Generation Ago?
Though the United States has progressed in many different ways in recent years, a new poll finds that the majority of Americans believe that the quality of life for children today is worse than it was for those a generation ago.
The poll, conducted by Rasmussen Reports, finds that 51 percent of Americans agree that things are worse for today's children. Only 30 percent of those interviewed say that the quality of life for kids today has actually improved, while 12 percent of people believe the two generations to be just about equal.
The results are based on a national telephone survey conducted June 29-30 on 1,000 adults.
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This year's statistics show a seven percent increase compared to a poll taken last year among those who say quality of life is worse for children today than a generation ago.
Last year’s poll found only 44 percent of respondents believed children's quality of life had worsen, while 34 percent believed it had improved for them since one generation ago.
Respondents who do not live with children, according to this year’s survey, are more negative about the quality of life for children today, with 52 percent of them saying it is worse, compared to only 27 percent saying the situation is better.
Among adults who have children living at home, 49 percent say the situation is worse for this generation of children, while 34 percent say it is better.
Older adults over the age of 50 and those under the age of 30 were generally more pessimistic on this issue than those in their thirties and forties. Also, women generally believe today's children to be worse off than men do.
The report also finds that the vast majority (83 percent) of parents believe that young children are spending too much time on computers and electronic devices.
Bob Waliszewski, director of the entertainment review website “Plugged In” at Focus on the Family, says the use of technology can be highly addictive, but it can also be healthy if one finds the right balance.
“I absolutely believe that today's technology is both a friend and a foe,” Waliszewki told The Christian Post on Wednesday.
Waliszewski pointed out that people sometimes let their use of technology infringe on personal devotion time, some people even look at their phones during church services to check for emails, texts, or Facebook posts.
"It is an adult problem too...it's definitely a cross-generational temptation," he said.
Parents need to be aware of their own use of technology and help their children find balance. In his Waliszewski household, he offered as example, the family uses an egg timer to limit the amount of time the children play video games.
"I think they have to be intentional about this whole issue of media, technology, and discernment, and not just let it try to happen in the home," he said.
"[T]he God of the universe actually cares about all these issues. He cares about technology. He cares about our own personal discernment.”
