Large global study reveals impact of screen time on children’s wellbeing

Large global study reveals impact of screen time on children’s wellbeing The study looked at the impact on almost three million children across 64 countries - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments Become an Independent member to bookmark this article Already a member? Log in Increased screen time can have a wide-ranging impact on a young person’s wellbeing, according to one of the largest studies ever conducted on the subject. Researchers stated that the impacts are "similar in magnitude to or larger" than other key drivers of child development and mental health, including household wealth, parenting practices, and whether or not a child was born prematurely. Heavy use for video games, social media and streaming services can lead to poorer academic attainment and language development issues, the study indicates. Children spending more time on devices were also found to exhibit greater "socioemotional" and psychological difficulties, according to experts. Academics conducted an umbrella review, which compiles data from previous major systematic reviews on the topic. Published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, the study evaluated findings on more than 2.8 million children across 64 nations. Researchers noted that longer periods of digital and social media consumption were tied to "less favourable outcomes across multiple (although not all) measured domains of children’s developmental health". They discovered that higher screen exposure was associated with lower overall school marks. When looking at specific subjects, screen time did not show an association with attainment in maths, reading or science, though academics noted these are "among the least studied" areas, meaning the outcome could reflect limited data. Led by academics at the University of Calgary in Canada, the team found that high screen use was also tied to impaired language skills. Examining mental health, experts found higher screen exposure was connected with emotional and "peer problems", "internalising behaviour" – which includes anxiety and depression symptoms – and externalising issues, such as aggression and ADHD symptoms. "Our review revealed that higher so-called doses of screen exposure are associated with lower overall academic achievement and poorer language development, as well as higher internalising and externalising behaviour, emotional problems and peer problems," the authors wrote. They added: "Notably, these effect sizes are similar in magnitude to or larger than those reported for other well-established predictors of children’s outcomes, such as socioeconomic status, parenting behaviour and preterm birth." They concluded: "This umbrella review provides quantitative evidence indicating that longer durations of digital and social media exposure were associated with some aspects of development and mental health, including lower academic achievement and language development and higher socioemotional and mental health problems, but not other aspects (eg, executive functioning, pro-sociality, and reading, math, and science). "Taken together, the findings suggest that screen use may represent one potentially modifiable factor associated with children’s well-being across multiple domains." Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments