Brief interruptions in interpersonal interactions between children and parents caused by digital technology use in the literature is termed as technoference (McDaniel & Coyne, 2016).
Although research on technoference is still not conclusive, there is evidence that interruptions due to parental smartphone use while with children have significant effects on child and adolescent development (e.g., McDaniel, 2019; McDaniel & Coyne, 2016; McDaniel & Radesky 2018; Merkaš et al., 2021). However, the nature of technoference has not yet been explored in detail. Theoretically, this phenomenon can be explained from various theoretical perspectives. According to the displacement hypothesis (Valkenburg & Peter, 2007), digital technology devices can "displace" significant face-to-face interactions and activities in the family environment. According to this hypothesis, the use of digital technology devices shifts signs of (non)verbal communication from face-to-face interaction to the device itself (e.g., Hiniker et al., 2015; Radesky, 2014). Using a mobile phone during interactions with others for a purpose not relevant to their current nondigital activity (e.g., scrolling through Facebook posts while dining with a friend) may lead participants to miss out on the benefits of face-to-face interaction. This research aims to examine the effects of technology interference in father-child interactions due to father’s mobile phone use on parental responsiveness, children’s attentionseeking behaviors, and the quality of father-child interaction. The advantage of the research lies in the use of experimental methodology and observational methods. The combination of these research methods enables conclusions about causality and, thanks to direct bservation of real behaviors, provides deeper insight into the behaviors studied.
Additionally, the contribution of this research lies in studying technology interference as a potential risk factor in the family environment that can contribute to the development of problematic behavior patterns in children. Previous research indicates a lack of knowledge about fathers' behavior in the context of technology interference in parent-child relationships. Therefore, studying the specifics of fathers' behavior in interactions with children represents an important contribution of this research, as most previous studies have focused on the behavior of mothers or caregivers. The results of this research can serve as guidelines in creating scientifically grounded family preventive programs aimed at reducing problematic behavior patterns in children and problematic mobile phone use by parents.