A (Potentially) Better Use for Spector and Other Internet-Monitoring Software

Following up on my previous post about Spector and other Internet-monitoring software, this one will discuss a potentially better use for this new technology. Some parents have come up with the idea of installing the software on their children's computers as a time-management teaching tool. The reasoning goes that the detailed feedback the software provides will allow kids to see just how much time they're spending (read: wasting) on various Internet-related activities (surfing, chatting, and so on).

At first glance, this use of the spyware appears to have some merit. Today's students are busy and often complain about not having enough time to do all the things their schedules necessitate—including, for many, massive amounts of homework. At the same time, kids may truly be unaware of how many hours per day their on-line activities eat up. Viewing the software's records can be a revelation and may indeed inspire some students to cut back.

The problem is, parents' motivation behind installing the software ostensibly for this purpose may not be as pure as it initially seems, even to themselves. Particularly with uncommunicative teenagers, the software offers parents a window into their children's "secret lives," and the temptation will be very strong to peer through the glass—to monitor, or spy on, what exactly their kids have been doing on line.

Moreover, the sort of time-management feedback the software can provide is likely to have limited use. Although some teens might, just out of curiosity, be open to monitoring their on-line time for a day or two, few will choose to continue doing so over an extended period to see whether their time-management skills are improving. On the contrary, most will likely see through this attempt (however well-intentioned) to "help" them and refuse to participate in the endeavor.

So if you've been considering using Internet-monitoring software as a time-management teaching tool, should you abandon the idea? Not necessarily. If you can promise yourself and your child that you won't look at the software's detailed records—in other words, that what your child does on line will remain private—and if you have the money to invest in what is almost certain to be a very short-lived time-management lesson for your child, then going ahead and installing the software may not be problematic. Just be sure to think long and hard beforehand about whether you'll really be able to resist opening up that Pandora's box once it's there.