Archive · 7 Sep 2025
Parents Pay Kids to Avoid Social Media: Incentive or Bribe?
Some parents are paying their kids money, or offering gifts, to stay off social media.
One family offers money to wait until 18, while others want to delay phones altogether.
This practice has sparked a debate, with some viewing it as an incentive and others as a bribe.
Supporters suggest it's similar to incentivizing chores or healthy habits, while critics believe kids should learn internal rewards for self-care.
Some kids find it difficult to be excluded from online group discussions, and the long-term effects of these tactics are still uncertain.
Parents are offering financial incentives to discourage social media use among children.
Incentives include cash payments, and even the promise of a car.
Some parents aim to delay social media access until children are older.
Experts debate whether such incentives are helpful or detrimental.
Some children experience social exclusion by not using social media.
- Who
- Parents and children
- What
- Parents are offering financial incentives for kids to delay or avoid social media.
- When
- Ongoing
- Where
- Brooklyn, N.Y.; Leawood, Kan.; Olathe, Kan.
- Why
- To prevent dependency and buy time for kids to mature.
Arguments Against Financial Incentives
Arguments For Financial Incentives
Nature of the Reward
Arguments Against Financial Incentives
Offering financial incentives is viewed as a bribe that undermines the development of internal motivation for healthy choices.
Arguments For Financial Incentives
Parents are 'incentivizing' children in a similar way they reward chores, implying this approach is normal and beneficial.
Effectiveness of the Approach
Arguments Against Financial Incentives
Kids should not be bribed to do things good for their health.
Arguments For Financial Incentives
Financial incentives can delay social media use, potentially preventing problems and empowering kids facing peer pressure.
- Financial Incentive Examples
- Up to $1,800 cash or a Ford Bronco
- Advocates for Rewards
- Jamie Gordon, Susan Dunaway
- Advocates against Rewards
- Adrienne Principe
- Reasons for Delay
- Avoid social media dependency, gain maturity
- Alternative Incentives
- E-bike