Princess of Wales suggests parents should put down the phone to combat social discontent

LONDON — The Princess of Wales has a suggestion for parents: Please put down the phone.

Kate, as she is commonly known, collaborated with adult development researcher Robert Waldinger to warn that technology is contributing to an epidemic of disconnection that is hurting family relationships. Devices that promise to keep us connected often do the opposite, they say in an essay posted on the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood website.

“We sit together in the same room while our minds are scattered across dozens of apps, notifications, and feeds,’’ the authors wrote. “We’re physically present but mentally absent, unable to fully engage with the people right in front of us.’’

The princess has made early childhood development one of her primary causes. She has now teamed up with Waldinger, who is the director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a long-term study of adult life and happiness that concluded those with stronger relationships were more likely to live happy, satisfying and healthier lives.

“Look the people you care about in the eye and be fully there — because that is where love begins,” they said.