Brandon T McDaniel

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Senior Research Scientist at Parkview Health

Technology use has proliferated in family life; everyday intrusions and interruptions due to technology devices, which we term “technoference,” will likely occur. We examine the frequency of technoference in romantic relationships and whether these everyday interruptions relate to women’s personal and relational well-being. Participants were 143 ma...

Social media provides one route to behaviors that may be potentially harmful to romantic relationships, such as communicating with alternative partners, which can sometimes create relationship conflict, breakups, or divorce. Limited empirical evidence exists concerning social media infidelity-related behaviors and marital relationships. This study...

The current article reviews the emerging research related to parent distraction with phones and mobile devices. From this review, it is clear that parent distraction with phones and mobile devices while around children has become common. This is concerning, as the evidence suggests links with parenting and child outcomes—such as lower awareness and...

We examined objective smartphone use (via a mobile sensing application) and self-reported desire to change phone use among a sample of 268 U.S. parents of infants. Using the Transtheoretical Stages of Change model as a conceptual foundation, we contextualized their attitudes and behaviors and explored how phone use and desire to change relate to pe...

Objective In this brief commentary article, we outline an emerging idea that, as conversational artificial intelligence (CAI) becomes a part of an individual's environment and interacts with them, their attachment system may become activated, potentially leading to behaviors—such as seeking out the CAI to feel safe in times of stress—that have typi...

Technoference” is a term that describes how parent media use (e.g., phone use) can interfere with parent–child relationships and interactions. Research has shown technoference effects on parents and children ranging in age from infancy to adolescence, such as decreased parent responsiveness and adverse child behavioral outcomes. However, potential...

Introduction. Bedtime smartphone use (SPU) is quite common among adults, and for parents this is also often a time when children are no longer present or are already asleep. Additionally, many parents find value in this use and may turn to SPU as an escape from parenting stress. However, bedtime SPU is associated with negative outcomes among adults...

Smartphone use during parenting is common, which may lead to distraction (also known as technoference). However, it is likely that some phone activities are less disruptive to parents and children. In this study, we explored smartphone use (via passive sensing across 8 days) within 264 parents of infants, measuring parents’ application use on their...

Introduction: Smartphone use during caregiving has become increasingly common, especially around infants and very young children, and this use around young children has been linked with lower quality and quantity of parent-child interaction, with potential implications for child behavior, and parent-child attachment. To understand drivers and conse...

Possible effects of parent phone use on parent–child interactions and child behavior are of concern, warranting research to understand parent phone use. In this survey study of 183 families with a young child (M = 2.89 years), we examined parents’ phone use for texting/calling, social media (SM) use, mobile gaming (MG), and perceptions of cutting i...

Given the prevalence of mobile device use, especially among parents of young children, the current study examines the impact of mobile device distraction ( technoference ) on toddlers’ physiological and emotional functioning. We suspected that toddlers’ would demonstrate difficultly maintaining physiological and emotional homeostasis when parents b...

Media use during childhood has quickly become a norm across the United States and in other countries. One area still not well understood is the development of problematic (or maladaptive and disruptive) media use in children. This research examines the role of attachment security as a central component in the development of problematic media use ov...

Background This study included evaluation of the effectiveness of vortioxetine, a treatment for adults with major depressive disorder (MDD), using patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) in a real-world setting. Methods This retrospective chart review analyzed the care experiences of adult patients with a diagnosis of MDD from Parkview Physician...

With many U.S. schools adopting 1-to-1 school device programs, research on the potential impacts of this device usage at home is critical. In this study, we examined elementary school parents’ perceptions of their child’s use of their school-issued device for academic skill-building and entertainment at home. We then examined the associations betwe...

Screen use is associated with a variety of potential impacts on child development, which has led to recommendations to regulate screen use. The current pilot study was conducted to explore potential effects of implementing screen free times (Screen Free Week) on parent and child screen use, parent feelings and well-being, and parent-child interacti...

Artificial intelligence (AI) isn’t necessarily new. For a while, we’ve had chatbots, self-driving cars, algorithms that guide web searches and recommend videos when we’re streaming, and more. However, we’ve entered an age of fast-growing conversational/generative AI, such as ChatGPT which is a conversational agent that generates human-like response...

Recent congressional attention has focused on the online risks of youth [1]. Parents, caregivers, and families are often unprepared to handle many of these risks, and parents/caregivers also experience some of these risks themselves. Although not an exhaustive list, risks can include cyberbullying, social comparisons, exposure to sexualized content...

Using daily diary data from 147 couples, we explore how the effect of daily technology interferences on may affect perceptions of one’s partner, one’s own tendency to respond to felt moral obligations to attend to one’s partner, and thus lead to reduced daily pro-relationship behaviors (responsible actions).

Mobile media proliferation throughout society has infused and complicated environments that formerly were interaction rich (e.g., waiting rooms, restaurants, and playgrounds) with the presence of smart devices. Ethnographic studies have indicated that parental use negatively impacts parent-child interaction quality. The current study reviews and ex...

Popular media attention and scientific research in both mindful parenting and technology use in the context of parenting has expanded in the 21st century; however, these two streams of research have largely evolved separately from one another. Thus, in this conceptual paper, we integrate the research on mindful parenting with that on parents’ techn...

Purpose The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine individual perceptions about the impact that social media use has on career satisfaction and perceived career benefits. We examined whether informal online learning through “typical” types of social media behaviors (e.g. liking a post or messaging another user) and “networking” types of so...

Often parents are discouraged from using media around their infants, particularly during feeding time, as media use is thought to harm the development of parent-infant attachment. Little research, however, has examined the relationship between parent media use during infant feeding and parent-infant dysfunction and attachment over time. This paper...

Technoference refers to incidents in which technology use interferes with interpersonal exchanges (e.g., conversations, playing). Although research on technoference is in its infancy, there is preliminary evidence that mothers believe technoference has a detrimental impact on the social-emotional functioning of their child. The current study invest...

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine whether work-related technology use outside of work and around family members could produce technoference or phubbing, where time spent with family members is interrupted by or intruded upon by technology use. The authors also examined its impact on work-to-family spillover, feelings of overload, life...

When a relationship ends, former partners must make decisions about their online, often public, connections and history, which involve a complex disentangling process. We examined post-breakup behaviors including monitoring, interacting, deleting posts/photos, deleting the former partner, deleting the partner's family/friends, stopping social media...

The landscape of modern parenting has shifted as an increasing number of parents have and utilize smartphones and other mobile devices throughout the day. A validated measure of parent distraction with these devices is needed in the field. It is important to have a validated measure of parent distraction with mobile devices (e.g., phubbing, technof...

In this study, we examined the prevalence of and communication with backburners (romantic alternatives) within a sample of both married (n= 188) and casually dating (n = 230) men and women in the United States. We also examined the roles of relationship length, commitment, sex, and marital status in the number of backburners reported and their comm...

In this study, we examined the typical and ideal bedtime routines of 289 Americans in cohabiting relationships who were recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk. Participants described their bedtime routines, indicated their frequency of sex with their partner, and completed surveys measuring their bedtime, sexual, relationship, and life satisfactio...

For American parents, smartphone ownership is nearly universal. The majority of parents report spending too much time on their phones and feeling distracted by them daily.1 The American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines encourage parents to be mindful of technology use around children, due to associations between parental phone use and less responsi...

With the rise in affordability of digital media and mobile devices, children under age 2 on average spend significantly more time with digital media than is recommended. Although concerns have been expressed about how parent and child media use might negatively impact parent–child attachment, there continues to be a scarcity of research on the topi...

Relationship difficulties are common during the transition to parenthood and may persist for years. Strategies that enhance couples' daily relational experiences early in the parenting years may serve a protective role. In general, engaging in a capitalization attempt (i.e., sharing personal good news) with one's romantic partner and perceiving the...

When someone focuses on their phone, rather than the person in front of them ("phubbing" or "technoference"), this can lead to feelings of exclusion and dissatisfaction. Few studies have examined this phenomenon experimentally using a confederate during face-to-face interactions, and to our knowledge the published research has yet to examine the ro...

The landscape of modern parenting has shifted as an increasing number of parents have and utilize smartphones and other mobile devices throughout the day. A validated measure of parent distraction with these devices is needed in the field. It is important to have a validated measure of parent distraction with mobile devices (e.g., phubbing, technof...

The increase in the prevalence of smartphones and mobile devices has spurred changes in the caregiving environment of infants and young children, as phones and mobile devices are used at times during caregiving and in caregiving spaces. This use could create disruptions and cause distractions during parenting (termed technoference). This article su...

In this study, we examined parents' (n = 260) perceptions of their own and their children's use of social media and other types of communication technologies in the beginning stages of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) related sanctions (e.g., social distancing) in the United States. We also examined associations between social media and technolo...

An online survey was created and deployed from July 2 to July 20, 2020. Respondents received an invitation to participate in the survey from school districts, Parkview Sports Medicine, parent-teacher organizations, and via social media. Respondents were 18 years or older and had one or more children under 18 years in their household. A total of 947...

The landscape of couple leisure time has shifted to include and, in some relationships, rely upon technology use. Technology has the potential to intrude upon face-to-face interactions and quality time together—i.e., technoference, phubbing. However, it is also likely that couples engage in shared technology use, which could lead to bonding. In the...

Limited research has examined bidirectional associations between modern media (e.g., smartphone, tablet) use and behavior in early childhood. This study aimed to test the hypotheses that, over 6 months, (H1) child externalizing behavior would predict later media use, mediated by parenting stress, and (H2) media use would predict later externalizing...

Parents often must manage their children’s media use, and many decide to set media limits. There are possibilities for disagreements on media use and limits between parents within a family. We examined reports of coparenting of child media use (in 587 parents) and how this coparenting is related to the consistency of child media limits and child ti...

Although the tracking or passive sensing of mobile device use is not new, passive sensing applied specifically to parents, children, and families is a frontier not yet fully explored. Passive sensing data has the potential to expand our views of individual, child, and family media use and the moment-to-moment processes involved, lending itself usef...

The current abundance of technology in daily life creates opportunities for interruptions in couple interactions, termed technoference or phubbing. The current study examined reports from both partners in 173 romantic relationships who completed daily surveys on technoference and relational well-being measures across 14 days. By using daily diary d...

Previous research has suggested that Facebook use can lead to adverse romantic relationship outcomes due to interpersonal conflicts, interactions with potential romantic alternatives, and jealousy. However, these associations have been explored mainly with undergraduates, focusing primarily on conflict rather than emotional disengagement. The curre...

Fathers are more than social accidents. Research has demonstrated that fathers matter to children's development. Despite noted progress, challenges remain on how best to conceptualize and assess fathering and father–child relationships. The current monograph is the result of an SRCD‐sponsored meeting of fatherhood scholars brought together to discu...

To understand new fathers' experiences and well-being, we examine links between fathers and their partners' replenishing and stressful daily experiences-exercise, sleep, work, chores, general stress, and parenting stress-and their own and their partners' well-being and family relations. Fathers and mothers of ten-month old infants (N=143/140 mother...

The couple and coparenting relationships are demonstrated to be prospectively and bidirectionally associated over months to years during the early parenting years. However, little is known about these associations at the daily level within the first year of parenthood, when coparenting first emerges. The goal of the current study was to examine the...

In this study, we examined problematic mobile phone use, depression, and technology interference among 223 mothers of children aged 1 to 5, who were recruited from Amazon’s mTurk. As an extension of previous work on the topic, we also examined the time mothers reported spending in each of the parenting domains. Most mothers (76.7%–100%) reported th...

Research has shown the potential for relationship dissatisfaction, conflict, and loss of connection when devices interrupt or interfere in couple interactions. One aspect of relationships that is also intimately tied to relationship satisfaction is sexual satisfaction. Thus, in the current study we examined whether the interference of technology in...

Food neophobia has been associated with a poorer diet quality and higher weight status among children, and parent‐child mealtime interactions can influence a child's willingness to try to new foods. Because many US adults own mobile devices, it is important to consider the role technology can play in parent‐child mealtime interactions. Therefore, t...

The purpose of the current study was to examine contextual (daily relationship quality, daily stressors, daily work hours), parent (daily negative emotions, gender), and child factors (daily child-induced parenting stress) as predictors of mothers’ and fathers’ perceptions of daily coparenting quality. Mothers and fathers from 174 families complete...

Background and objectives: Heavy parent digital technology use has been associated with suboptimal parent-child interactions and internalizing/externalizing child behavior, but directionality of associations is unclear. This study aims to investigate longitudinal bidirectional associations between parent technology use and child behavior, and unde...

With the growing use of technology in the home, the way parents interact with their children may be shifting. Some studies suggest that technological interruptions and intrusions (i.e., technoference) in parent-child interactions are associated with child problem behaviors. However, no known studies have directly examined the potential changes in p...

Previous research on attachment orientations has focused on how attachment is associated with levels of relationship quality; however, the nature of associations with variability over time (volatility) on relationship quality remains unclear. Couples who are higher in volatility have poorer relationship outcomes, thus it is important to understand...

Recent advances in mobile technology have allowed individuals to engage in sexting (i.e., sharing sexual words and images via technology). Researchers have examined the prevalence and correlates of sexting, but differences in samples and definitions make it difficult to develop a cohesive picture of adult sexting. This study extends our understandi...

Grounded in systems theory, coparenting has been posited as a key relationship that links parenting, couple relationships, and child outcomes (Feinberg, 2003). Although conceptual models have linked parenting with coparenting and some research has demonstrated this link (Bonds & Gondoli, 2007), less is known about how parent’s parenting styles comb...

Drastically different samples and definitions of sexting have contributed to a mixed picture of the prevalence of adult sexting and associated individual and relationship characteristics. In this study, we extend work on adult sexting by using a nationally-representative sample of U.S. and Canadian adults, using a more nuanced statistical approach...

Technology devices are widely used today, creating opportunities to connect and communicate with distant others while also potentially disrupting communication and interactions between those who are physically present (i.e., technoference or phubbing). These disruptions in couple and coparenting relationships have the potential to negatively impact...

We describe the development and validation of the Daily Coparenting Scale (D-Cop), a measure of parents’ perceptions of daily coparenting quality, to address the absence of such a daily measure in the field. A daily measure of coparenting can help us to better identify specific mechanisms of short-term change in family processes as well as examine...

We use interdependence theory and the inertia model to examine how gender and daily relational sacrifices predict daily variability in relationship commitment across a week in 43 U.S. couples who are unmarried cohabitors expecting their first child together (total of 455 days of data). We examined three variants of daily relational sacrifices: freq...

Heavy parent digital technology use has been associated with suboptimal parent-child interactions, but no studies examine associations with child behavior. This study investigates whether parental problematic technology use is associated with technology-based interruptions in parent-child interactions, termed "technoference," and whether technofere...

The present paper reports on longitudinal associations between parenting stress and sexual satisfaction among 169 heterosexual couples in the first year after the birth of a first child. Actor Partner Interdependence Modeling (APIM) was used to model the effects of the mother’s and father’s parenting stress at 6 months after birth on sexual satisfa...

Social comparisons on social networking sites can be problematic for some individuals. However, this has never been examined in a parenting context, where the pressure for mothers to portray themselves as “perfect parents” may be high. The aim of the current study was to examine associations between making social comparisons on social networking si...

Character traits (Goddard et al., 2016) and virtues (Fowers, 2000) are key predictors of couple relationship satisfaction. Individuals’ way of being (Fife, 2015)—or selflessness towards others (Knapp, 2015)—may be key determinants of family relational outcomes (Goddard et al, 2016). Little research has explored how these factors may be related to o...

The majority of U.S. adults now own and use cell phones, computers, tablets, and more. This abundance of technology likely results in brief interruptions in family interactions, which has been termed “technoference” (technology interference). Researchers who examine technoference in couple relationships have found that those who report greater tech...

Sexual satisfaction is an important predictor of relationship satisfaction and well-being. Therefore, it is important to identify factors that contribute to sexual satisfaction. With daily diary data, we examine how daily desire for sex is associated with daily sexual satisfaction, while also distinguishing between days in which the couple had sex...

The current presentation is Part 2 of a two part workshop. This segment focuses on correctly assessing the basic reliability and basic multilevel factor structure of intensive longitudinal data (e.g., daily diary data, etc.) in SPSS, SAS, and Mplus. Family researchers are interested in studying relations between family members, changes within relat...

While recent research has documented a rapid increase in the use of new technologies such as touchscreen tablets early in life, little is known about how young children use tablets, what activities they engage in, and whether family demographic and maternal well-being are associated with early use. Guided by Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory of...

Emotion work (EW; activities to enhance significant others' emotional well-being) is an important construct in predicting divisions of household labor, childcare and relationship satisfaction, and contributions to family life (Erickson, 2005). From a systemic framework, the degree to which partners or family members share common perceptions about t...

Technology devices and their characteristics have become more pervasive and enticing. The use of these new devices is common, and interruptions due to these devices are likely. This study examines the frequency of technology interference in (a) coparenting relationships—the relationship between parents as they parent their children together—during...

The couple and coparenting relationship are theorized to influence each other in a reciprocal manner over time. Empirical evidence demonstrates cross-sectional associations between the 2 as well as prospective predictions of coparenting by relationship quality and vice versa. However, less is known about the longitudinal reciprocity between the cou...

Family researchers are interested in studying relations between family members, changes within relationships and across time, and the resulting outcomes of various family processes. Our methods and research designs must match our research questions and theory (Collins, 2006). Intensive longitudinal data (ILD) designs (longitudinal studies with many...

The current presentation is Part 2 of a three part workshop. This segment focuses on the basic analysis of ILD studies in SAS. Family researchers are interested in studying relations between family members, changes within relationships and across time, and the resulting outcomes of various family processes. Our methods and research designs must mat...

This study examined the prevalence and correlates of sexting (i.e., sending sexual messages via mobile phones) within a sample of married/cohabiting couples (180 wives and 175 husbands). Married adults do sext each other, but it is much less common than within young adult relationships, and consists mainly of sexy or intimate talk (29% reported eng...

The current chapter examines what I term “technology interference” or “technoference,” which includes times when and ways that technological devices intrude, interrupt, and/or get in the way of couple or family communication and interactions in everyday life. I begin this discussion first by examining individual characteristics that predict individ...

Sexual satisfaction is an important contributor to relationship functioning that is not well understood among first-time parents, at a time when relationship functioning is important for the well-being of parents as well as the child. The current study examined how several dimensions of individual and relationship functioning among first-time paren...

We use the gender relations perspective from feminist theorizing to investigate how gender and daily emotion work predict daily relationship quality in 74 couples (148 individuals in dating, cohabiting, or married relationships) primarily from the southwest U.S. Emotion work is characterized by activities that enhance others’ emotional well-being....

This chapter focuses on parenting practices, or what parents do, and parenting quality, or how competently parents do what they do. We discuss the relative impact of bedtime/nighttime practices on nighttime infant sleep quality as well as interlinkages between parenting quality and practices. We then broaden the focus to discuss bedtime/nighttime p...

Although parents' structuring of infant sleep is complexly determined, little attention has been given to parents' marital and personal adjustment in shaping sleep arrangement choices. Linkages were examined between infant sleep arrangements at 1 and 6 months and mothers' marital adjustment, co-parenting quality, and depressive symptoms. The final...

Introduction: Prior research finds that maternal depression is related to worse infant sleep. The direction of effects between these is likely bidirectional. Infant night waking can cause distress and fatigue for mothers, and distressed mothers may engage in inappropriate infant sleep practices causing poor sleep outcomes. Prior research also show...

Many women have turned to the internet to express themselves and for support. The current project surveyed 721 married/cohabiting mothers about their blogging and social networking use, their feelings about their use, and their well-being. On average, mothers felt positive about using these sites. They reported feeling more connected to others via...

The transition to parenthood can be stressful for new parents, as parents must learn to take on new roles and responsibilities. Sleep disruption-which has been linked in prior research to parent distress and fatigue-is common in the early months. The current study is the first to our knowledge to examine infant sleep and its potential indirect infl...

Drawing on Bronfenbrenner's ecological theory and prior empirical research, the current study examines the way that blogging and social networking may impact feelings of connection and social support, which in turn could impact maternal well-being (e.g., marital functioning, parenting stress, and depression). One hundred and fifty-seven new mothers...

The purpose of the current study was to briefly explore what creates a better adjustment for men’s transition to fatherhood in terms of expectations of the division of tasks, feelings of appreciation, feelings of support, and communication with spouse. The perceptions of marital satisfaction across the transition to fatherhood of 54 Brigham Young U...

The electronic age is creating what could be called a new race of individuals, but what sort of an effect will such an age have on them? In fact, many are beginning to call them Generation M, M standing for media, because the world that they are growing up in is completely different from the world their parents knew and understood (Roberts). They s...