Technological Choices

Tables B.2—B. io all show responses to questions concerning the devices of connection, constraint, and surveillance (discussed in chapters 5—7). Once again I caution that because these tables build on qualitative responses, the categories are meant to be illustrative rather than definitive. In addition, not all respondents gave responses to all questions.

Devices of Connection

TABLE B.2 Baby Monitor Ownership by Social Class Working Class and Middle Class Professional Middle Class Total Didn’t have one 19% 22% 20% Would have wanted one 0% 6% 2% Had one 81% 72% nO O4 OO Total IOO% IOO% ioo% (N) (55) (34) (89) TABLE B.3 Cell Phone Ownership by Age of Child Age of Child No Cell Not Yet Phone Purchased Has Cell Phone Six to twelve 25% 78% 9% Thirteen to seventeen 50% 22% 51% Eighteen and older 25% 0% 39% Total IOO% IOO% 100% (N) (4) (9) (74)

TABLE В.4 Child’s Cell Phone Ownership by Social Class Working Class and Middle Class Professional Middle Class Total No cell phone 7% 3% 6% Will get cell phone n% 7% 9% Has cell phone 82% 90% OO vP O4 Total 100% IOO% IOO% (N) (56) (34) (90) Devices of Constraint TABLE B-5 Attitudes toward Child Locator by Social Class Working Class and Middle Class Professional Middle Class Total Might use; would have used 42% 19% 33% Would not use ^-/4 OO Vp o4 8l% 67% Total 100% IOO% 100% (N) (51) (ЗЗ) (84) TABLE B.6 Sofiware Filter Ownership by Social Class Working Class and Middle Class Professional Middle Class Total Had or currently have 60% 40% 52% Will get or might get 16% 16% 16% No interest in owning 24% 44% 32% Total 100% юо% 100% (N) (52-) (31) (83)

Devices of Surveillance

TABLE B.7 Attitudes toward Keystroke Monitor Ownership by Social Class Working Class and Middle Class Professional Middle Class Total No interest in owning 28% 53% 37% Conditional interest OO vP O4 44% 53% Would use or did use 14% 3% 10% Total IOO% IOO% 100% (N) (54) (ЗЗ) (87) TABLE B.8 Attitudes toward GPS Tracking Ownership by Social Class Working Class and Middle Class Professional Middle Class Total No interest in owning 48% 63% 54% Conditional interest 40% 30% 36% Would use or did use 12% 7% 10% Total IOO% IOO% 100% (N) (54) (ЗЗ) (87) TABLE B.9 Attitudes toward Home Drug Testing by Social Class Working Class and Middle Class Professional Middle Class Total No interest 25% 44% 32% Conditional no 68% 53% 62% Would or did use 7% 3% 6% Total 100% IOO% 100% (N) (52) (34) (86)

TABLE B. IO Attitudes toward Reading Diary versus Using Keystroke Monitoring System by Social Class Working Class and Middle Class Professional Middle Class Would never use key- stroke monitoring system 28% 53% Would never read diary 17% 10% Difference (preference for reading diary) H% 43%

[1] worry about my kids not having enough fun in their childhood. I worry about them being so achievement-oriented and goal-oriented that they don’t take time to reap the pleasures, smell the roses. I worry that they have too much homework. I’d like to see them have a hell of a lot less. That’s what I worry about. That’s what I try to monitor. I’m not worried about them being a success. I’m worried about them having fun.

[2] would have no idea [what was difficult for them] because financially it was okay. I don’t think we were extremely well off, but living on a farm, I do think they provided what we needed. And anybody went to college that

[3] think kids are living in a much more immediate kind of world, where there are scary things out there and we have more things we have to be vigilant about and help our kids understand. We don’t understand them— the Internet, the constant media pressure. Please, Paris Hilton! Is this really the most important news in the world? The space shuttle is taking off, and people are being killed in Iraq every day, and what’s happening in Africa.

I just think it’s harder to raise kids today because of all that. I just think there’s too much sensationalism.

[4] think it’s interesting because I think we as parents have tried—and I’m not just speaking of us but our friends in general and our culture today— to raise children so that they’re always occupied. Every activity has to be something that strengthens their skills—they’re in organized sports leagues, they’re in special programs for music or education or whatever—and so we’ve got our kids so booked into things that I think we don’t allow our kids to have enough free time.

[5] think for my kids in some ways our relative affluence is an issue because it makes things easy for them when they want to get money. I say no some­times, but a lot of times I say yes to things. That probably makes it a little bit too easy [for them] to get hold of things—clothes, electronic things,

[6] consider myself a friend to my children, but I’m a parent foremost. . . .

I’m kind of middle-of-the-road. I think it’s important to be somewhat of a friend with them, so you do have that open communication like we did, but I do think that you also have to be a parent foremost to set the bound-