What Age Should a Child Get a Cell Phone? The Truth About Phones for Kids Every Parent Needs to Hear with Dr. Rupa Robbins
Does the question, “what age should a child get a cell phone?” keep you up at night? You’re not alone - and you’re not overthinking it. In this episode, I sit down with child psychologist Dr. Rupa Robbins, founder of Tech Positive Parenting, to cut through the chaos around phones for kids. Together we unpack the research, the realities, and the practical phone rules that help busy families decide not just when to say yes, but how to do it well. If you’ve wondered “should kids have smartphones?”, wrestled with all of the reason’s why not to give your child a phone yet, or need a script for setting phone rules, this conversation is your roadmap.We’ll help you decide: what age should a child get a cell phone, when to delay, and how to scaffold access. We talk about alternatives to full internet devices (yes, there’s a middle path for phones for kids), and the exact phone rules that keep your child safer while protecting family culture. In this episode, we cover:The age question, answered: what the research says about what age should a child get a cell phone - and why each year of delay matters more than you think!Smart alternatives before smartphones: how to meet safety needs with kid-safe devices and watches, so you can say “yes” to phones for kids without saying “yes” to the internetYour family’s “driver’s ed” plan: the core phone rules that make first phones feel manageableCapacity and timing: a quick gut-check for parents - because sometimes the right answer to should kids have smartphones is “not until we have bandwidth,” and that’s a valid reason for why not to give your child a phone yet.If you’ve been Googling what age should a child get a cell phone, debating should kids have smartphones, and trying to write phone rules that actually work, this episode is for you. WATCH THE FULL VIDEO EPISODE HERE!RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:Sapien Labs study: Age of First Smartphone/Tablet and Mental Wellbeing OutcomesLET'S CONNECT:Thriving Child CenterPCIT ExpertsCalm and Connected ProgramInstagramLove having expert tips you can actually use? Join our newsletter and get a beautifully designed PDF of each episode’s top 3 takeaways - delivered straight to your inbox every week.Are you a provider? Subscribe here for professional insights and parenting resources!CONNECT WITH DR. RUPA ROBBINS:Tech Positive Parenting WebsiteInstagram @techpositiveparentingTech Positive Parenting Substack
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