These digital activities top the number of respondents who cited other common bedtime activities like having sex or reading a book.
For better or worse, smartphones have made being plugged in an around-the-clock reality for many. In a September 2018 survey conducted by The Harris Poll for OpenX, 97% of fathers and 95% of mothers said they use their smartphone “regularly." And that carries over into their nightly routine: 58% of fathers and 57% of mothers use their smartphones to browse social media in bed. Thirty-three percent of mothers said they play mobile games every night in bed, while 31% of fathers said the same.
Parents aren’t on their devices before bed just for entertainment purposes, they’re also shopping. In the OpenX/Harris Poll survey, 46% of parent respondents said they use their phones in bed at night to research purchases more than once a week, and 20% said they transact in-bed purchases by phone that often.
“Shopping for a household with kids can often be one more chore that busy parents must perform—but doing some of it during this part of the day probably gives a more recreational feel to it, especially if they’re looking to buy something for themselves,” eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver said. “A marketer has a chance to get in sync with this mood by assuring parents that they’re entitled to a little self-indulgence at the end of a long day.”