Almost half of Brits have argued with a loved one over social media scrolling while 29% have been told off for using their phone in bed
Half of Brits have been asked to put their phone away by their partner or children so they can spend more time with them, new research reveals. Data from Openreach found that 48% of people have been told off for excessive phone use, with social media scrolling the most common trigger for rows at home.
Almost half of those surveyed had clashed over the time they spent on social media, while 32% had rowed over over-use of video games, and 31% had sparked a row by being immersed in work emails or messages. A third said they had triggered an argument with their partner by using their phone in bed.
The study also showed that poor connectivity and screen time habits are fuelling more spats than household chores and who has the TV remote. And it is not always the children spending too much time on their devices, as one in 10 (9%) parents admit it is THEM who have been told off by their children for spending too much time online.
They include Sarah Long, 28, from Worcester, who admits she has been told off by her three year old daughter for using her phone instead of playing with her. Sarah said: “We try to limit the amount of time we spend on our phones but picking mine up is like a reflex. I don’t even think about it sometimes, it just happens.
“It never really bothered me until my daughter Willow said to me recently: ‘Mummy just get off your phone’ when she asked me to play with her. She’d never said anything like that to me before and it literally broke my heart. At that moment she realised that I was giving my phone more attention than her. It was a huge reality check.
“Since then we have been looking at ways on how to be more present at home, especially as our girls are growing up so fast, but it is hard when your job demands you to be online. My partner Rob and I pull each other up a lot on how much time we’re spending online. We have conversations daily about putting our phones away and spending more time together.”
A third of people surveyed for the study admitted slow internet connections lead to frustrations at home, while a quarter said having faster and more reliable broadband would likely reduce the number of arguments at home.
The Openreach research also found disagreements over screentime are most likely to happen in Liverpool, with two thirds (68%) asked to get off their phone by their children or partner – closely followed by households in Leeds (60%) and Edinburgh (57%). Families in Southampton are least likely to fall out over spending too much time on their phone (11%), followed by those in Sheffield (18%) and Cardiff (24%).
Meanwhile, Londoners are frustrated the most by speed and reliability of their internet connection (40%), compared to only 27% of households in Newcastle.
Katie Milligan, Deputy CEO at Openreach, said: “Full Fibre is the UK’s most reliable broadband technology, and it helps households get what they need from the internet without the drama – less buffering, more bonding.
“We’ve now made Full Fibre available to 20 million homes and businesses – which is a huge achievement. If we’ve not reached your street yet, it’s very likely we’re coming soon – and if you can upgrade to Full Fibre, go for it. It’s not just faster and more reliable, it might improve your relationships too.”