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Supervision fail – mobile phone use puts kids in the pool at risk

Friday, 19 February 2021

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  • A pool wearing goggles in a swimming pool

    New ECU research has shed light on caregiver supervision at public pools

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New Edith Cowan University (ECU) research has shed light on the quality of supervision at public swimming pools in Western Australia with almost one quarter of caregivers distracted by mobile phones, and women faring worse than men.

Public swimming pools in Western Australia are a well-used community resource with 10.3 million people visiting these facilities in 2019-20.

The ECU research, conducted in conjunction with Royal Life Saving WA (RLSSWA), is the first published study to identify links between mobile phone use among caregivers and inadequate supervision at public swimming pools.

Researchers observed 449 children and their carers at two Western Australian public swimming pools and conducted 10 in-depth interviews with parents about their own perceptions of their supervision responsibilities and the barriers to supervision.

Key findings

  • Children aged 6 – 10 years were significantly less likely to be provided with ideal supervision (26%) compared to younger children 0 – 5 (62%).
  • Of the caregivers observed using their mobile phones (22%), none provided ideal supervision.
  • Overall supervision levels differed with gender, with only 44% of female caregivers providing ideal supervision, compared with 72% of male caregivers.

Barriers to supervision

ECU lead researcher and honours graduate Nicole Wickens said the main distractions included mobile phone use, interacting with other adults, being responsible for multiple children, and the pool environment which could be busy and noisy.

“Parents who were responsible for one child, rather than multiple children were more than twice as likely to provide ideal supervision,” Ms Wickens said.

Social interaction with other adults was the second biggest distractor behind mobile phones.

“Public pools are great fun and provide a social atmosphere, however parents must be mindful of the dangers of being distracted by mobile phones and other parents while supervising young children at their local pool,” Ms Wickens said.

249 Australians lost their lives to drowning in 2019-2020 and it is estimated that a further 504 people also experienced a non-fatal drowning incident.

The research contributes to educational and awareness programs promoting safety at public pools,  such as the Royal Life Saving WA program Watch around Water.

The paper ‘Mobile phone use and social interactions among caregivers can reduce their ability to provide constant supervision to children at Australian pubic swimming pools’ was published in the Health Promotion Journal of Australia.

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