TY - JOUR
T1 - Children’s screen and problematic media use in the United States before and during the COVID-19 pandemic
AU - Eales, Lauren
AU - Gillespie, Sarah
AU - Alstat, Reece A.
AU - Ferguson, Gail M.
AU - Carlson, Stephanie M.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors. Child Development © 2021 Society for Research in Child Development.
PY - 2021/9/1
Y1 - 2021/9/1
N2 - This mixed methods study examined parent-reported child screen media use before and during the COVID-19 pandemic by examining 2019–2020 changes in parent perceptions of media, screen media use (SMU), and problematic media use (PMU) in children aged 2–13 years (N = 129; 64 boys, 64 girls, 1 nonbinary; 90.7% White, 4.6% Hispanic/Latino, 0.8% Black, 8.5% multiethnic; primarily middle-to-high income). Quantitative analyses showed a significant SMU and PMU increase (medium effect size). There was a steeper increase in PMU among school-age (older) children. Together, the qualitative and quantitative results suggest that the PMU and SMU increase were influenced by distal, proximal, and maintaining factors including the COVID-19 pandemic, distance learning, child behaviors, other children, parental mediation, and positive media reinforcement.
AB - This mixed methods study examined parent-reported child screen media use before and during the COVID-19 pandemic by examining 2019–2020 changes in parent perceptions of media, screen media use (SMU), and problematic media use (PMU) in children aged 2–13 years (N = 129; 64 boys, 64 girls, 1 nonbinary; 90.7% White, 4.6% Hispanic/Latino, 0.8% Black, 8.5% multiethnic; primarily middle-to-high income). Quantitative analyses showed a significant SMU and PMU increase (medium effect size). There was a steeper increase in PMU among school-age (older) children. Together, the qualitative and quantitative results suggest that the PMU and SMU increase were influenced by distal, proximal, and maintaining factors including the COVID-19 pandemic, distance learning, child behaviors, other children, parental mediation, and positive media reinforcement.
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U2 - 10.1111/cdev.13652
DO - 10.1111/cdev.13652
M3 - Article
C2 - 34486721
AN - SCOPUS:85113325378
SN - 0009-3920
VL - 92
SP - e866-e882
JO - Child development
JF - Child development
IS - 5
ER -
