Duchess Kate says parents become 'emotionally absent' over phone – National

The Princess of Wales suggests to parents: Please put down the phone.

As it is commonly known, Kate has teamed up with adult development researcher Robert Waldinger to warn that technology is contributing to an epidemic of rupture that is damaging family relationships. In an essay published on the website of the Royal Foundation Center for Early Childhood Education, they say that the devices that promise to keep us connected often do the opposite.

The authors write, “We sit together in the same room, but our heads are scattered across dozens of apps, notifications, and feeds. We are physically present but mentally absent, unable to fully engage with the people in front of us.”

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The Princess has childhood development as one of its main objectives. She is currently teaming up with Waldinger, director of the Harvard Adult Development Study. The study, a longitudinal study of adult life and well-being, concludes that people with stronger relationships are more likely to live happy, satisfying, and healthier lives.

“Look into the eyes of your loved one and be there with all your might, because that’s where love begins,” they said.