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Parenting a teenager can be one of life’s most challenging jobs. If your child is strong-willed, setting limits can be especially difficult. If you have had trouble setting limits on your child’s computer use, you are not alone. So what is a reasonable limit on computer use? How do I know if my child is addicted to the computer? What can I do to help them and myself? This section of the web site is dedicated to providing some answers.

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A. There is no exact answer to this question as much depends on the child and how the computer is used. Computer gaming or socializing for more than 25 hours per week (3 hours on weekdays and 5 hours on weekend days) can be considered excessive. Much greater than that can have negative effects on their health, academic and social functioning.

Tips to moderating computer use

1. Don’t expect your child to be able to monitor and limit their own computer use without your help. This is not deliberate defiance. Give warnings (ideally 10, 5 and 1 minute) leading up to the time you want them to stop. Do not pull the plug, shut down the computer or physically pull them abruptly away from the computer.

2. Removing the computer from the house as a consequence of excess use may not make your child more responsible. It may result in escalating anger and frustration. Don’t take keyboards, mice or power cords and hide them as a way of moderating use. These can and will be easily and covertly replaced setting up a cat and mouse game between parent and child of who is in control.

3. Software and hardware tools are available to monitor and moderate computer use. For younger (<12 yrs) and less tech-savvy children, operating system (Vista) parental controls or parental control software can be installed or configured to limit use. The award winning PC Moderator can be used to moderate the use of older, tech-savvy teens that could easily defeat software solutions.

4. If you are finding it difficult to maintain limits on your child’s computer use even with tools such as the PC Moderator, or your child exhibits violence, drug and/or alcohol abuse, self-injurious behavior or threats of suicide, contact a mental health professional immediately.

Q. Is my child addicted to the computer/internet?

A. While long term consequences of problematic computer use have not been researched, academic, occupational and social functioning can suffer dramatically with excessive computer use. The adolescent or young adult may also be at risk for a host of health problems such as sleep deprivation, repetitive stress injury, depression, anxiety disorders and obesity. Answer the following questions to evaluate your child’s computer use:

Is your child using the computer 3 or more hours per day for non-essential use?

Has your child’s computer use been a source of regular arguments within the home?

Have you attempted to limit your child’s computer use with poor results?

Have you observed a decline in your child’s academic performance due to excess computer use?

Has your child cut back on time spent with friends or other activities in order to spend time on the computer?

Is your child irritable or depressed when unable to use the computer?

If you answered “Yes” to 2 or more questions above, seek professional help as your child may suffer from problematic computer use.

A. If your child is exhibiting 2 or more of the symptoms described to the left, you may need professional help. The professionals listed below specialize in problematic computer use and can help:

Computer Addiction Specialists

Hillarie Cash, Ph.D. - Internet/Computer Addiction Services
Redmond, WA. 98052
(425) 861-5504

Maressa Hecht Orzack, Ph.D. - Computer Addiction Services
Belmont, MA 02478
617-855-2908

Kenneth Woog, Psy.D. - Woog Laboratories
San Clemente, CA 92672
(949) 422-4120

Kimberly Young, Ph.D. - Center for Internet Addiction Recovery,
Bradford, PA 16701,
814-451-2405

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