Verbal contact is being eradicated by texts, tweets, and Facbook Like-based communication.
A fifth of UK university students won't speak to their parents on the phone between now and Christmas, according to a 2,000 respondent strong survey from Asda, with just a third of parents managing to engage their children in a weekly phone call.
Meanwhile, 71 per cent of parents say their offspring will never call home, while one in twenty kids won't receive a call from their parents in term time.
The decline of verbal comes as 91 per cent of parents text their kids instead, with 73 per cent texting on a weekly basis. This trend spikes for mums, who are three times more likely to message daily than dads.
However, speech isn't completely lost, with 40 per cent of parents using video calls to reach children, while 18 per cent do so every week.
Andrew Thompson, technology expert for Asda, said: "It’s no surprise that families are now less reliant on traditional phone calls. What’s interesting is that despite this trend, most families are talking more than ever.
"Texting, emails and social media allow us to leave messages all over the place. This can be really useful for parents who are trying to connect with students who, as we know, live in a different time zone."
The data complements another report from the supermarket, which showed 55 per cent of parents text their children from within the same building.
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