Abstract
Portable screens such as smart phones and tablets are a normal part of children’s everyday lives, yet excessive media use presents a multitude of health and developmental concerns. Specifically, the impact of portable screen time on children’s attention is unknown, and screen time could potentially result in negative outcomes including poor school readiness and social difficulties. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between portable screen time and kindergarteners’ attention (the first research question), and to investigate learning content as a potential moderator (the second research question). Data were collected using the Preschool and Kindergarten Behaviors Scale, 2nd Edition attention subscales and questionnaires on portable screen time and content, and analyzed via hierarchical multiple regression. Results included a significant relationship between screen time and attention, where, as screen time increased, attention decreased, and insignificant findings for a moderating relationship between screen time and content on attention. It was recommended that adults monitor children’s portable screen time to ensure attention is not compromised, and that screen time be utilized for educational purposes using quality programming. Recommendations for future research include studies which address portable screen time and learning content, structure/pacing, interactivity, and context of children’s screen time.
Highlights
Today’s children are bombarded with media in most aspects of life
Portable screen time served as the independent variable and attention the dependent variable, with content as a potential moderator. 3.1 Study Design Portable screens were selected for this proposed study on attention, a component of executive function, due to the fact that they are widely available and used by young children (Pea et al, 2012), and research on the effects of these devices is largely missing from the literature (Radesky et al, 2015)
The first research question involved determining whether or not there was a relationship between portable screen time and children’s attention
Summary
Today’s children are bombarded with media in most aspects of life Portable media devices such as smart phones, tablets, and portable video games are essentially a normal part of children’s day-to-day routines (Lillard, Drell, Richey, Boguszewski, & Smith, 2015; Radesky, Schumacher, & Zuckerman, 2015). In spite of widespread smartphone and tablet use by young children (Radesky et al, 2015), the specific problem is that the relationship between portable screen time and children’s attention, a component of executive function, is unknown
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call