UC Irvine recently hosted a panel discussion on September 8 addressing the challenges of raising children in an increasingly digital world. The event, part of the “Raising the Next Generation in the Age of AI” series, brought together researchers, a tech industry leader, and a youth advocate to offer parents practical strategies for navigating new technologies.
The discussion was co-presented by UCI’s School of Social Ecology, the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences, the Office of Research, the Connected Learning Lab, and CERES (Connecting the EdTech Research EcoSystem). Candice Odgers, UCI Chancellor’s Professor of psychology and informatics, moderated the panel, which included Yalda Uhls, founder and CEO of the Center for Scholars and Storytellers at UCLA; Melissa Mazmanian, UCI professor of informatics and organization and management; Vani Henderson, head of UX Research, Youth, Trust and Safety at YouTube; and Larz May, founder of #HalfTheStory and co-founder and CEO of Ginko.
Panelists focused on empowering parents with concrete, actionable advice. Yalda Uhls reminded the audience that parental anxiety over new media is not a new phenomenon, citing concerns from novels in the 1800s to Pac-Man in the 1980s. She stated, "What hasn’t changed is parental fear," and emphasized that research often presents a more nuanced picture. Uhls argued that a truly unique human brain and way of thinking cannot be replaced by technology and encouraged parents to help young people understand this. She also drew on decades of parenting research to suggest that effective offline parenting strategies, such as a combination of reasonable rules and genuine warmth, also apply online. Uhls advised parents to trust their instincts and noted the importance of teaching children media literacy, even if young people are more adept with specific tools.
Melissa Mazmanian shared insights from her research, which included spending significant time inside family homes. She found that the most effective media rules were those rooted in a parent's instincts about their specific child, rather than those imposed by schools or parenting groups. Mazmanian urged parents to reflect on the true source of their fears about technology: whether it stems from news reports, school directives, or concrete observations of their own child. Her study involving 100 parent-teen pairs also indicated that teens are more understanding of their parents’ screen time than parents are of theirs. Conflict, Mazmanian noted, was highest in families where teens felt their parents did not understand their online activities, whether for socializing, creating, or exploring hobbies.
Vani Henderson from YouTube highlighted the various parental controls already available within the platform’s ecosystem. She underscored the significant responsibility she feels in helping to develop products for children globally.
The panelists broadly agreed that outright bans—whether on phones or AI tools—serve as a starting point rather than a complete solution. Larz May, who works directly with students, addressed the current reality of technology use. She stated that regardless of parental preferences, children are already using AI, often outside of school. May warned that fear-based approaches risk driving teens towards apathy, which she identified as a greater danger than any single technology. She cited an example of a student so anxious about his school’s unclear AI policy that he records himself doing homework to prove he isn't cheating. May proposed that "behind every screen is a child’s superpower," and that AI should amplify these capabilities rather than replace them. She argued that genuine engagement, not more restriction, is the antidote to screen overuse, suggesting that investing in real-world interests and relationships can meaningfully compete with the pull of devices. May also encouraged parents to examine their own anxieties about technology, suggesting they might stem from their discomfort with a world they don’t fully understand. She recommended using technology as a way to engage with a child’s interests, such as using AI to help shape a reluctant writer’s narrated essay into a written draft, allowing the child’s authentic voice to lead.
Odgers concluded by noting that bans and existing cell phone policies are not consistently delivering on their promises, and that the goal is to find practical solutions with families.
