For us to truly understand why research is important when looking at screen use and the development of young children, we must look back at the history of screens and the socioeconomic context.
Child media engagement dropped to four months old from four years old in around 55 years.
(Muppalla et al.)
The jump from 100 thousand to 50 million in only one decade reflects a profound cultural shift towards screens, embedding media entertainment into daily life and making younger children more likely to engage with screens at an earlier age.
Around 1950, 100 thousand households had televisions, then 50 million a decade later, and "7 out of 8 U.S. homes" in the mid 2010s.
(Clair)
The globalization of electronics made the idea of screen time far more complex.
(Muppalla et al.)
Unlike the past, when TV was basically it, people use numerous screens at once, making screens a complex and integral part of daily life.
There isn't enough data to distinguish between beneficial and harmful screen use, but how can we change that?
A modern outline of different kinds of screen time and how they affect early childhood is essential cause of the constant evolution "of screen-based devices" (i.e, phones, computers, tablets, etc).
(Lakicevic et al.)
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Data recontextualized from a pediatric study, Screen Time, Sociodemographic Factors and Psychological Well-Being Among Young Children, shows multiracial and black children have an increased risk of excessive screen use.
(Kwon et al.)
These statistics are interesting and likely come from a place of coping with the symptoms of fatigue, lack of motivation, guilt over motherhood, and feeling hopeless which may impact parenting abilities.
There are notable positive correlations between symptoms of maternal depression, symptoms of depression that are moderate to severe, and prolonged depressive symptoms and increased screen use in young children.
(Veldman et al.)
Nearly 3/4 of young black children had high screen time in 2021, likely due to lockdown orders, and were at much higher risk of inflated screen use.
The rise and evolution of media engagement and the influences of demographics and mentality all contribute to the greater debate surrounding young adolescent screen consumption, painting a clearer pircture for anyone concerned or just trying to understand screen time's potential impact, both good and bad.