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With more and more technology allowing parents to keep an eye on their children’s use of phones and social media, some experts say that parents have become more prone to monitoring their college-aged children even when they leave for college.
“If we’re constantly checking in on or tracking our children, we don’t allow them the opportunity to separate,” said Michelle Herman, a social worker.
According to Herman, when children are in middle or high school, keeping an eye on their social media accounts and whereabouts using apps like Find My Friends and Google Maps isn’t necessarily a negative, however once a child leaves for college, it is important for parents to allow their child to be independent.
Experts say explaining to children the benefits of tracking, for reasons of safety and convenience may help them realize it’s not so bad, but easing up on the obsessive tracking may help children in the long run.
“You want to give them room to develop skills, make healthy choices and find out who they are as an adult,” Herman said.