Now HALF of families text each other in the same house: Experts say tech craze could have a ‘catastrophic’ effect on family life

• 45 per cent of people message somebody under the same roof on their phones
• In a third of households, people use their mobiles during their mealtimes 
• More than four in ten parents complain their children have ignored them 

Some will find it depressing. Others will recognise an all-too familiar snapshot of tech-obsessed modern life.

But nearly half of families with children now text each other when they are in the same house.

Just under a third of us (32 per cent) are guilty of tapping out messages on mobiles when we want to talk to someone under the same roof, according to research.

That figure rises to 45 per cent for households with children – suggesting the phenomenon is only set to get worse.

It’s not the only way mobiles get in the way of family time at home.

In a third of households, people use their mobiles during their mealtimes.

More than four in ten parents complain their children have ignored them at the table because they were so distracted by their phones. In fact, tablets and mobiles are so prevalent at home, they are also depriving us of rest.

A quarter of the 2,800 adults surveyed by Aviva admitted at least one person in their household was losing sleep because they were staying up too late on their phone, and one in five said that there was someone at home who just couldn’t ‘switch off’.

Last night campaigners warned the surge in mobile phone usage could be ‘catastrophic’ for family life. Dr Richard House, a psychologist, said: ‘These communication technologies are almost certainly having long-term and possibly dramatic impacts on family life.

‘It is potentially catastrophic for the human relational values that underpin family life at its best, with real, face-to-face communication being increasingly displaced and sidelined by the machine.’

However, it is not always the youngsters of the household who are to blame.

Last night campaigners warned the surge in mobile phone usage could be ‘catastrophic’ for family life. Dr Richard House, a psychologist, said: ‘These communication technologies are almost certainly having long-term and possibly dramatic impacts on family life.

‘It is potentially catastrophic for the human relational values that underpin family life at its best, with real, face-to-face communication being increasingly displaced and sidelined by the machine.’

However, it is not always the youngsters of the household who are to blame.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4233404/HALF-families-text-house.html