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Parenting in the Age of Attention Snatchers: A Guide to Balancing Your Child’s Use of Technology

‘Parenting in the Age of Attention Snatchers’ offers strategies and advice for for parents competing for attention in the digital age.

Don't let your child become an extension of their electronic devices
Don't let your child become an extension of their electronic devices

Parenting in the Age of Attention Snatchers: A Step-by-Step Guide to Balancing Your Child’s Use of Technology

by Lucy Jo Palladino, Ph.D. (Shambhala Publications; $15.95 paperback; $9.99 Kindle)

Lucy Jo Palladino, a practicing psychologist with more than 35 years of experience, tells parents why it is important to balance technology use by their kids and gives them a practical way to do it.

After an introduction to the science of attention, Palladino lays out seven steps to teach a child to pay attention, including sections titled “Get into the Right Mind-Set” and “Practice the 3Rs of Good Attention.” Central to all of Palladino’s tips is parents’ encouraging kids to practice voluntary attention — which originates in the prefrontal cortex — as much as possible. (Technology draws on involuntary attention.) As the book’s title says, balance is the key.