Screen Time Limits May Not Mean Much
There are many numbers to keep in mind when raising a child: height and weight. How many ounces of milk do they drink first, then how many fruits and vegetables they eat, how many outdoor games they get and, of course, how many minutes a day they spend sticking to the device. In 2016, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a screen time policy statement recommending that parents of children ages 2-5 should limit screen time to one hour per day for “high-quality” shows such as Sesame Street and set “ consistent restrictions “. for older children. They also noted that screen time should not replace sleep, play, or other rewarding activities.
But now a group of researchers from the UK have done their research on these recommendations and found that these restrictions may not matter much. Researchers conducted telephone interviews with nearly 20,000 parents and assessed “children’s psychological well-being in terms of attachment to caregiver, resilience, curiosity, and positive impact over the past month.”
After checking the ethnicity, age, gender, income, and educational level of the guardian, the researchers found that there was no evidence to support the hard limit of one hour per day. The study’s lead author, Dr. Andrew Prizbylsky, said in a press release : “Taken together, our results indicate that the theory that digital screen use itself is harmful to children’s psychological well-being has little or no support. well-being “.
Does this mean parents can let their kids watch Paw Patrol twelve hours a day? I doubt. As good as it is to incorporate numbers into an algorithm and make it produce the perfect child, I suspect good parenting is a much more subtle thing than that. Everyone knows fanatical parents who forbid all sweets, but simply limiting sugar does not guarantee good health – there are a million other factors at play. Does the child eat a lot of vegetables? Is baking a fun and educational activity with mom and dad? Is family food culture social, experimental, and instructive? All of this matters more than a single gram of sugar per day.
I guess the same can be said for the “screen culture” in our families. Dr. Prizbylsky notes that “our findings show that the broader family context — how parents set the rules for digital screen time and if they are actively involved in collaborative exploration of the digital world — is more important than original screen time.”
In other words, do you use your iPad to identify birds with your children? Do you use a computer to write code with them? Looking for poetry, watching good movies, learning how to properly cut carrots with a knife? Digital time can be edifying and social; Dr. Prizbylsky notes that “future research should focus on how using digital devices with parents or guardians and making them social time can affect children’s psychological well-being, curiosity, and children’s bond with their guardian.”
And lest you think it sounds holier than you – I also use an iPad as a nanny. Every day I need about twenty minutes to rest before I cook dinner, and the TV show gives me that time. Without screen time, I would be irritable while eating, which is no good for anyone. So in my opinion – and this is supported by research – it is perfectly normal that Sesame Street brought me a break.