How to Take Away a Teenage Daughter's Phone and Computer for Punishment

Discuss the Infraction

• Discuss the infraction, offense or misconduct before you take away cell phone and computer privileges. Ensure your teenager is safe, unhurt and emotionally stable before you issue technology-related punishments. Your teen daughter needs to know that despite her conduct, your concern for her well-being is paramount, suggests psychologist and author, Carl Pickhardt, at PsychologyToday.com. Tell her that you want to discuss what happened before you determine what, if any, punishments you plan to enforce. It's important for your daughter to reflect on her mistakes so she's less likely to repeat them in the future.

Ensure the Punishment Fits the Crime

• Make sure technology-related punishments fit the crime, advises CBS News "Early Show" contributor and child psychologist, Dr. Jennifer Hartstein. For example, you might take away cell phone privileges if your daughter stayed up late talking to or texting friends and didn't get her homework done. Alternatively, you might take away computer privileges if you warned her not to visit websites that weren't appropriate for her age and she did so anyway. Keep cell phone and computer punishments short -- a few days or one week, rather than weeks or months -- suggests Pickhardt. It's important to remain an authoritative parent in your teenager's life and create appropriate consequences when she disobeys your instructions.

Take Away Cell Phone Privileges

• Consider the negative implications of taking away your daughter's cell phone privileges before you make a final decision about her punishment. For example, if you take her cell phone away completely, she won't be able to contact you or other family members in an emergency. She also won't be able to call 911. Contact your cell phone provider to see if you can block all numbers on your daughter's phone, except those you specify. That way, removing her cell phone privileges is still a punishment because she can't use it to talk to her friends. Alternatively, ask your cell phone company to turn off your daughter's texting option. As of 2014, expect to pay about $5 a month to turn it off, says Regina Lewis, AOL consumer advisor at CBS News.

Limit Computer Access

• Limit your daughter's computer privileges rather than taking them away entirely. You still want her to be able to use the computer for schoolwork. You can change the password so she has to ask to use the computer. That way, you will be able to monitor her usage and keep a close eye on the websites she visits. Another suitable punishment is to allow her to use the computer for schoolwork but disallow any social networking or Internet surfing. Consider taking your daughter's computer out of her bedroom and putting it in a more public place, such as the living room or kitchen, so you can monitor her more closely. Most importantly, follow through with any technology-related punishments you issue, or you may lose credibility as a disciplinarian.