Effects of Home Computer Use on Fathers' Lives

Handbook of family communication

“…Indeed there is both anecdotal evidence and some evidence from research to indicate that digital media technology and especially networked computers may have a negative impact on marital relations. Research conducted among fathers engaged in computer clubs or user groups yielded a positive association between these fathers' home-computing time and the amount of conflict the men reported with their wives over the time the men spent on the computer (Bird, Goss, & Bird, 1990). Moreover, as fathers' computing time increased, they had fewer interactions with their wives, yet in their parenting role as fathers, they spent more time with their children (Bird et al, 1990).…”

“…Research conducted among fathers engaged in computer clubs or user groups yielded a positive association between these fathers' home-computing time and the amount of conflict the men reported with their wives over the time the men spent on the computer (Bird, Goss, & Bird, 1990). Moreover, as fathers' computing time increased, they had fewer interactions with their wives, yet in their parenting role as fathers, they spent more time with their children (Bird et al, 1990). Although these data are from the early 1990s, even more recent research suggests that computer use may still be a source of marital conflict.…”

“…This type of research describes parent-child interactions as gender specific and similar to story telling. Early research indicates that fathers are more likely to play video games and work with the computer with their children than are mothers (Bird et al, 1990;Mitchell, 1985;Tinnell, 1985). More recent research reveals that children are more likely to discuss computers with their fathers than with their mothers (Pasquier et al, 1998).…”