‘There’s good and bad’: parent perspectives on the influence of mobile touch screen device use on prenatal attachment

The potential for human-computer interaction to have a substantial impact on adults is well documented. However, its potential importance prior to birth has rarely been reported. Parental use of smartphones and tablet computers could influence the relationship between parent and baby during pregnancy (prenatal attachment) and thus child development.

Citation:
Hood R, Zabatiero J, Silva D, R. Zubrick S, Straker L. ‘There’s good and bad’: parent perspectives on the influence of mobile touch screen device use on prenatal attachment. Ergonomics. 2022:65(12); 1593-1608.

Keywords:
Human–computer interaction; The ORIGINS Project; mobile touch screen device use; prenatal attachment; screen time; technology use; thematic analysis qualitative research

Abstract:
The potential for human-computer interaction to have a substantial impact on adults is well documented. However, its potential importance prior to birth has rarely been reported. Parental use of smartphones and tablet computers could influence the relationship between parent and baby during pregnancy (prenatal attachment) and thus child development.