Abstract:

Information technology (hereinafter referred to as IT) is increasingly penetrating the everyday life of every family. This means that IT is becoming more and more important not only for adults, but also for children, as it is a tool that changes their daily activities and leisure time. The most common and most used devices during children's free time are TV, smartphones, tablets, computers, game consoles, etc. Research on IT usage conducted in Lithuania over the past few years has revealed that excessive use of screens can have a negative impact on children's health and sleep, cause anxiety, depression, weaken memory, and promote feelings of alienation and social exclusion. Children's active interest in information technology, cognitive need, curiosity, use of IT in the educational process lead to the inevitable necessity of managing this process. Therefore, it is important to find out what methods of solving problems arising from the use of IT are applied by parents.
The aim of the study is to investigate the problems of IT use by children aged 9-10 and to foresee solutions in the family. Prior to conducting an empirical study, the scientific and methodological literature and sources of information were analyzed. The quantitative method chosen for the study was a questionnaire survey. The study involved 102 (one hundred and two) parents. The study participants were selected by means of targeted selection, i.e. parents raising children aged 9 to 10 years. The educational background of respondents varies: half of the parents surveyed have a university degree and a quarter have a non-university degree.
The results of the empirical study revealed that parents are aware of the threats and the importance of prevention of unrestricted use of IT by children; they feel a responsibility for their child's education and health, but there is no evidence that children use IT less. Parents acknowledge that more active communication, being an example, daily physical activity, and mutual agreements, which unfortunately do not exist in all families, can help to control and limit a child's time using IT.

Keywords:

Information technology, children of younger school age, family, problems with IT.