6 out of 6 editors voted in support of this editorial

Today’s parents use GPS systems, they track the location of cars and cell phones and they install video cameras in their teenagers’ cars.  They read text messages daily and follow phone calls online.  They even Facebook stalk their own kids.  As parents find more creative ways to bust kids, the kids find more creative ways to escape getting caught; it’s a continuous battle of outsmarting the opponent.  So who is going to give up first?

By reading texts or placing a GPS tracking device on a child’s phone, parents are completely invading their teen’s privacy.  Although parents have a right to know what their child is doing, teenagers also have a right to privacy.

In a perfect world, teenagers would not lie and parents would have no reason not to trust their kids.  But in reality, it is not uncommon for teens to sneak around their parents.

Once parents catch their teen in a lie, there is no way they can feel secure in trusting them the same way.  As a result, parents try to learn every detail of their teen’s life, sometimes by unreasonable means’”even spying.

However, parents simply cannot know every detail.  It does not matter how close of a relationship a teenager has with their parents or how much the parents think they know.  The fact is, they are never going to know about every friend, every relationship or every Friday night.

Teens typically have four years of high school, which is their only time to prepare for life on their own.  Once those four years are over, they must move out of their comfort zone and into a world where they do not have parents to protect them and make sure they stay safe.  Parents must allow teens to make mistakes and learn the values and street smarts needed for safety, which cannot possibly be learned with parents tracking their every move.  The process of dealing with the consequences and learning how to fix a problem are valuable lessons that can only be learned when parents give their kids freedom.

Parents have the right to know where their kids are, who they’re with and what they are doing simply because they are parents.  However, snooping and spying is never the best way to find information.  Spying is only going to further damage the relationship between parents and children as well as limit future trust and communication.  In order for both teenagers and parents to be happy, there needs to be a compromise between both parties.

Before invading their children’s privacy, parents should work on building a solid relationship.  Teenagers need to be more open with parents and tell them necessary information.  In return, parents should give teenagers more responsibility and freedom to lead their own lives and make their own mistakes.

There seems to be a fine line between what parents need to know and what parents want to know.  They need to accept that they need to give their kids space and avoid actions like reading texts or peeking at call logs.

The next time parents want to know something, they should try asking their teens instead of sneaking around.  If parents act a little less overbearing and teenagers act a little less hormonal, families will form healthy relationships, eliminating the need for snooping, sneaking and even spying.

The Bottom Line: Parents deserve to know what their kids are doing, but violating their teen’s trust with GPS systems and cell phone trackers only makes teens feel like they have no freedom or responsibility.