How Screen Time Affects Kids (and What Parents Can Do)

Keeping children safe online has become one of the biggest challenges facing parents today. But online safety now means more than protecting children from cyberbullying or online predators. More and more, parents are asking: How does screen time affect kids? They’re also wondering whether growing up online is changing their children’s mental and physical health.

One study found that teens who spend a great deal of time online each day are more likely to experience symptoms of depression and anxiety than those with moderate or lower screen use.

The question isn’t just how much time kids spend on their devices. It’s also what they’re doing online, when they’re doing it, and how those habits may be affecting their well-being. As kids scroll, they’re exposed to a constant stream of photos, videos, ads, messages, and social feedback, with little time to process one thing before the next appears. Many parents don’t recognize the warning signs until a problem has already taken hold.

How Screen Time Affects Kids: What Parents Should Know

Aura Parents is one tool designed to help families better understand those patterns. Rather than focusing only on the number of hours a child spends on a device, it looks at behaviors such as late-night use, compulsive scrolling, and changes in digital habits that may signal emerging concerns.

Sometimes, the first signs of a problem appear offline. A child’s mood, behavior, sleep, or school performance may begin to change before parents understand why. Combined with insights into online activity, these changes can help parents connect the dots and start a conversation sooner.

But how can parents stay informed without making kids feel like they’re being watched?

Dr. Scott Kollins, a clinical psychologist and leading ADHD researcher believes the answer is shifting from control to collaboration. Rather than watching children “like a hawk,” he encourages parents to be transparent about how monitoring works and to give children a sense of ownership in the process.

Dr. Kollins also stresses that tools like Aura Parents should support—not replace—active parenting. Used thoughtfully, they can help families better understand how online habits relate to sleep, mood, and stress over time, making it easier for parents and children to navigate the digital world with greater confidence and less anxiety.

“The key is shifting from surveillance to transparency and collaboration.”

—Dr. Scott Kollins

We asked Dr. Scott Kollins what parents should know.

Looking Beyond Screen Time: Why Patterns Matter More Than Hours

Varda Epstein: From what you’ve seen in research and in practice, how is growing up online affecting kids’ ability to focus, manage their emotions, and connect with others? What might this look like in a child’s behavior?

Dr. Scott Kollins: Growing up online is fundamentally reshaping how kids develop attention, emotional regulation, and social connection. Many kids are spending their days in environments that are constantly switching stimuli and optimizing for engagement, which can make sustained focus harder and contribute to a more fragmented attention span.

A big driver of this is constant connectivity. Kids are continuously plugged into social feeds, messages, and algorithm-driven content throughout the day. That ongoing connection means they are also constantly taking in social cues and feedback, which can heighten emotional reactivity and blur the line between real connection and performing for peers.

What parents often notice is not one specific behavior, but a broader shift. Kids may seem more distracted, more emotionally reactive after being online, or more withdrawn from offline activities, especially when these patterns persist over time.

Varda Epstein: Many parents look at total screen time as a way to gauge whether their child’s screen habits are becoming unhealthy or out of balance. But Aura looks more closely at patterns like late-night use, scrolling habits, and changes in behavior. Why do those patterns give a clearer picture than just the number of hours kids spend online?

Dr. Scott Kollins: Total screen time is a useful starting point, but it doesn’t capture what actually matters: how that time is experienced and how it affects a child’s wellbeing.

Two kids might both spend three hours online, but have completely different experiences— one could be video chatting with friends or creating something, while the other is caught in passive, late-night scrolling. Those underlying patterns— like late-night use, compulsive checking, or getting pulled into endless algorithm-driven feeds— are much more closely linked to issues like low mood, poor sleep, stress, and difficulty disconnecting.

What makes patterns more revealing is that they show when and how screen use happens, not just how long. For example, spikes in usage late at night or during emotionally vulnerable moments can be a sign that screen time is interfering with rest or being used as a coping mechanism, which can have a bigger impact than the total number of hours alone.

That’s why Aura focuses on behavioral patterns through tools like the Digital Wellbeing Score, to help parents understand not just how much time their kids spend on screens, but whether that time is healthy, balanced, and supportive of their overall wellbeing.

From Research to Digital Wellbeing

Varda Epstein: You spent many years in clinical work and academic research before moving into digital health. What made you decide to make that shift?

Dr. Scott Kollins: There’s been a long-standing question about how technology affects kids’ wellbeing, but the research hasn’t always kept pace with how quickly digital experiences are evolving. That gap made me want to shift my focus.

At the same time, rates of anxiety, sleep disruption, attention issues, and depression among kids have been rising. Over time, it became clear, both in the research and more broadly, that digital environments were playing a meaningful role. But by the time kids showed up in clinical settings, we were already working downstream, managing symptoms rather than addressing the underlying drivers.

I moved into digital health to work closer to where these behaviors are actually forming. Instead of treating issues after the fact, I wanted to help build tools that give families visibility into what’s really happening and support healthier habits from the start—which is what drew me to Aura Parents.

Varda Epstein: After working in both clinical research and digital health, what made Aura—and its focus on kids and families—the right next step for you?

Dr. Scott Kollins: There’s a very real need to give families better tools and stronger, more actionable research to understand how growing up online is impacting kids’ wellbeing. Right now, parents are often left with incomplete signals like screen time, without clear insight into what actually matters.

Aura is uniquely positioned to address that gap by combining real-world behavioral data with a focus on digital wellbeing, helping translate complex online patterns into something families can actually understand and act on.

Varda Epstein: Aura Parents is built by clinicians and digital safety experts. How do you decide what information parents really need to know—and what would just create unnecessary worry or confusion?

Dr. Scott Kollins: Parents don’t need to see everything—the challenge is separating meaningful signals from noise. A single message or isolated behavior rarely reflects what’s really going on.

We focus on patterns that are sustained and clinically relevant, like changes in sleep, mood, social withdrawal, or compulsive device use, because those are much more indicative of a shift in a child’s wellbeing. The goal is to surface what’s actionable, not overwhelm parents with every detail or create unnecessary alarm.

Just as importantly, Aura Parents is designed to support connection, not restriction. The aim is to give parents the right insights at the right time so they can have informed, constructive conversations with their kids and help them navigate both their online and offline worlds.

Recognizing the Warning Signs of Unhealthy Screen Time

Varda Epstein: Kids and teens go through normal emotional ups and downs. How do you tell when a change in behavior is just typical—and when it’s something a parent should be alerted to?

Dr. Scott Kollins: It’s completely normal for kids and teens to have emotional ups and downs. The question isn’t whether behavior changes, but how persistent, intense, and out of character those changes are.

What really helps distinguish typical development from something more concerning is looking at patterns over time. A short stretch of irritability or increased screen use can be part of normal development, especially depending on age. But when you see sustained shifts like ongoing sleep disruption, social withdrawal, or escalating emotional reactivity tied to device use_, that’s when it may warrant closer attention.

Age and developmental stage also matter. An 11-year-old’s engagement with technology is very different from that of a 16-year-old, which is why at Aura Parents, we consider behavior in age-based groups like 8–12, 13–15, and 16–17. That context helps set a more accurate baseline for what’s typical.

Ultimately, it’s less about any single moment and more about whether a child is drifting away from their usual patterns in a way that persists or interferes with daily life. That’s what signals when a parent may need to step in.

Varda Epstein: Parents often worry that monitoring will feel like spying to their kids—and that it could lead to resentment. How can they stay informed without undermining trust?

Dr. Scott Kollins: That concern is valid, kids can feel resentful if monitoring feels like spying. The key is shifting from surveillance to transparency and collaboration.

The most effective approach is to think of this process like applying scaffolding. For younger kids, that might mean clearer boundaries and more structure. As kids get older, it should evolve into trust-building conversations and shared expectations. Involving kids in setting those boundaries– getting their input and agreeing on guidelines together— helps them feel a sense of ownership rather than control.

Timing also matters. It’s much easier to set expectations before a child gets a device than to introduce rules after habits are already formed. And as kids demonstrate they can handle that responsibility, those guardrails should gradually ease.

Ultimately, when kids understand that the goal is their safety and wellbeing, not control, they’re far more likely to stay engaged and trust the process rather than push back against it.

“Parents don’t need to see everything—the challenge is separating meaningful signals from noise. A single message or isolated behavior rarely reflects what’s really going on.”

–Dr. Scott Collins

Building Trust Instead of Surveillance

Varda Epstein: Aura focuses on identifying patterns and warning signs rather than giving parents full access to every message. What is the thinking behind that approach, and how does it support a healthier parent-child relationship?

Dr. Scott Kollins: Aura Parents takes a pattern-based approach focusing on signals over time. Those patterns are far more meaningful in understanding a child’s wellbeing than any single message. Ultimately, the goal is the same as parenting in the offline world: you’re looking out for your child while also coaching them to become a responsible, independent adult. You’re not able or meant to know every single thing they do in real life, and the same principle applies online.

It’s also about respecting kids’ privacy and autonomy while still keeping them safe. The goal is to give parents awareness without surveillance, surfacing what’s actionable and a deviation from a child’s usual behaviors, rather than everything, so they can stay informed, preserve trust, and have more open, constructive conversations.

Varda Epstein: In addition to using a tool like Aura Parents, what can parents do to help their children build healthy online habits and make good decisions when they’re on their devices?

Dr. Scott Kollins: Tools can help, but they are not a substitute for active parenting. The most effective strategies tend to be consistent over time, with parents modeling healthy device use, setting clear expectations early, and building offline routines that make screen time less central.

Equally important is open, non-judgmental conversation. Kids need space to talk about what they are seeing and feeling online without fear of punishment or dismissal. That is often what determines whether they seek help when something feels off.

Looking Ahead: The Future of Children’s Digital Wellbeing

Varda Epstein: As kids’ digital lives continue to evolve, what’s next for Aura Parents? How do you see the platform adapting to meet new challenges facing children and teens online?

Dr. Scott Kollins: Technology is evolving quickly, and kids are often the earliest adopters— which means the risks and behaviors are constantly shifting. That’s why Aura Parents is focused on helping families keep up in a way that’s both practical and meaningful.

For example, we recently launched AI monitoring across 250+ apps, many of which parents may not even be aware of yet, to help flag potential risks as they emerge.

More broadly, the platform is moving from reactive monitoring to proactive understanding. With tools like the Digital Wellbeing Score, we’re translating everyday digital behaviors into a simple, ongoing signal that helps parents understand how online activity may be affecting things like sleep, mood, and stress based on patterns over time, not isolated moments.

Looking ahead, Aura will continue building more context-aware insights as new behaviors and risks emerge across social platforms, gaming, and AI. The goal is to help parents not just see what’s happening on the surface, but truly understand what it means— so they can respond in a way that supports their child’s long-term wellbeing.

***

For parents interested in exploring Aura Parents, a 14-day free trial is available.

Found what you just read useful? Why not consider sending a donation to our Kars4Kids youth and educational programs. Or help us just by sharing!

Reader Interactions

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.