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Would U Bribe Your Kid To Stay Off Social Media? This Mom Did!

mom bribes teen to stay of social media with $1800

Could this be the answer to every parent’s social media fears???

We don’t need to tell you that social media can be really toxic for young kids (and for everybody else, frankly). There’s plenty of research, evidence, and anecdotes out there about how it can affect a child’s development. Not to mention the occasional shocking true crime story!

But with so many app options out there — Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok, and surely plenty more to come — it’s pretty hard to keep a kid sheltered from it all.

Related: Kim K Tells Judge Kanye’s Social Media Posts Are Causing ‘Emotional Distress’ 

Minnesota mom Lorna Klefsaas’s solution? Plain and simple bribery! She recently paid her son Sivert Klefsaas $1,800 for staying off social media in his formative years. Calling it the “18 for 18 challenge,” she promised her then-12-year-old son a big payday if he could resist the temptation until he came of age.

Of course, Gen Z is pretty plugged in, so you’d think it would be a tall order to keep a kid offline. But as it turns out, Sivert wasn’t difficult to convince! He told KARE 11:

“Being 12, I didn’t really have that great of a concept of money yet. So, I was like, ‘Oh sick, yeah, absolutely!'”

Speaking with CNN, he added:

“I wouldn’t say there was ever a time where I thought I was about to break. As it went on, it was more of a pride thing.”

His momma agreed:

“He’s so competitive, it was definitely more for proving a point.”

The challenge was inspired by a similar “16 for 16” social media challenge Lorna heard about on the radio. But more personally, it stemmed from watching one of her older daughters deal with social media drama, which led to Lorna confiscating her phone. She explained to KARE 11:

“She got so obsessed with keeping up her Snapchat streaks that really it was affecting her mood. It was affecting her friendships. … I mean, it was like an intervention. She was really, really upset, but it was not even three weeks later that she thanked us and said she was so happy to not have her phone.”

Sivert had a positive experience with his social media abstinence, noting to CNN that he avoided “all the unnecessary drama that was on there.” To KARE 11, he proudly stated:

“On the whole I would say totally worth it. I mean, I would do it again.”

Of course, once he got his reward, he did download Instagram. But “[there’s] definitely a learning curve,” he admitted to CNN. He joked to KARE 11:

“It’s hilarious. I feel like I’m like 80. It’s pretty embarrassing. I’ll be with my friends, and they are like, ‘what are you doing?'”

Related: Shaq’s Generous Blessing To This Massive Family Will Bring You To Tears!

Lorna asserted to CNN that her son will now have a “different perspective” on the apps than he would if he’d been using them all along. She said:

“We are certainly not against social media, but it’s the healthy using of it. It’s about not letting yourself get weighed down by it, or addicted to it, or affected by things that people post.”

We certainly understand where she’s coming from. But is paying your kid a solution? Not every parent has $1,800 to shell out to their children, so it’s not a one-size-fits-all answer. (Plus, what if the kid is savvy enough to be hiding a finsta somewhere? LOLz.) But what do U think, Perezcious readers — do you agree with Lorna’s methods? Or do you look down on this kind of bribe? Let us know your thoughts in the comments (below)!

[Image via ABC/YouTube]

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Feb 24, 2022 10:43am PDT