In the 1980‘s when my children were young, my son would run into the house after riding his bike and playing for hours with his friends at the creek and proclaim, “I’m starving, what’s for dinner?” Spring forward three decades, and the call to dinner is quite different. All too often, the conversation might be the following: “Alex, quit playing Minecraft; put down your iPad, and wash your hands for dinner!” After many commands from Mom, Alex begrudgingly obeys and comes to dinner somewhat agitated. What should a parent do? Are digital devices and electronic media good for children?  What is a healthy amount of time children should be interacting with digital devices?

What is digital media and how prevalent is its use? “Digital Media can be defined as any means of communication, entertainment or information that is generated or distributed using digital technologies” (http://www.teachdigital.org/digital- media-2/). In James P. Steyer’s book, Talking Back to Facebook, he reports that by the age of two years, “more than 90 percent of all children have an online history, and have figured out how to take pictures and watch cartoons on their parents’ smartphones. At five, many are typing on a computer keyboard, downloading and playing games on cell phones and tablet computers” (pg. 3). Should parents and educators be concerned when their children are so hooked on digital devices?

What concerns are related to digital media? In his book, Mr. Steyer discusses the positives and negatives of using digital media and the effects that digital media can have on relationships, attention/addiction problems and privacy, which he refers to as RAP (pg. 8 - 12). Gentile, Lynch, Linder & Walsh (2004) provided evidence to support possible negative effects for young people who played violent video games for an extended time. They found that youth were more confrontational with their teachers, had more fights with peers, and had poorer academic performance. This team of researchers believes that the reason video games may have more negative effects than television is that they are interactive rather than passive, which is believed to contribute to more acts of violence. They report that the repetitive nature of these games may also increase the likelihood that they will become learned behavior.

Gentile and his colleagues from Singapore (2011) completed a two-year longitudinal study of over 3,000 third- through eighth-grade students in Singapore. Results showed that depression, anxiety, social phobias and lower school performance seemed to be outcomes for pathological gamers. Based on this study, questions arose that questioned the possibility that addiction to digital media could be an issue for many children and youth.  

Another possible negative effect was reported in the August 28, 2014 edition of the nprEd Report. The author, Juana Summers, reported on a study out of the University of California that found a strong correlation between excessive time in front of the screen and inhibition in recognizing emotions in others.  (Go to http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2014/08/28/343735856/kids-and-screen-time-what-does-the-research-say for a review of this research.)

How much time should a child spend engaged in digital media? Not only should there be concern about the number of hours spent with all digital media but also the content of the media. Below are consolidated recommendations from The American Academy of Pediatrics (2001), the Mayo Clinic (2010) and Common Sense Media (Steyer, 2012):

•Children younger than two years of age are discouraged from watching television, viewing videos or using other forms of digital devices. In order to promote proper brain development in young children, the preferred activities should be interactive, such as talking, playing, singing and reading together. 

•For children between three and 18 years of age, parents should limit their children’s total entertainment media time to no more than two hours per day. 

•Parents are encouraged to remove televisions and digital devices from children’s bedrooms. In the Kaiser Family Foundation survey (2010), 36% of those surveyed had computers and 71% had television sets in their bedrooms. Children with electronic devices in their bedrooms watch more than those who do not have them in their rooms. Kaiser reported as much as four hours each day.

•Common Sense Media recommends that not only should parents limit media use, but they should also be very selective in what they allow their children to use or view. Parents should decide what is high quality and worth viewing. 

Understand the rating system and use these as guides before allowing children to play or watch. However, just because a show is rated “TV-Y” (suitable for all children) does not exclude the possibility of negative effects. Even the noisy, fast-paced, bright images found on some educational shows may have a negative impact on brain development of young children. Parents must be aware of the content of what is presented, even if it is rated for children. Bronson and Merryman (2009, 181 - 182) reported the findings of Scheibe (2007) in their book Nurture Shock. Scheibe revealed that “96% of all children’s programming includes verbal insults and put-downs, averaging 7.7 put-downs per half-hour episode.” 

In conclusion, we know there is a plethora of electronic and digital media and just reducing the quantity of what is played and viewed is not the total answer. The greater our understanding of the role of digital media, the greater the likelihood that it can have a positive effect on the health and development of children. Digital media is an integral part of our lives; it isn’t going away. However, careful attention to this increasing entertainment source must not be ignored.  Ensuring that children have sufficient face-to-face social interaction time is essential to maintaining a healthy media diet, and if you have noticed an increase in anger or agitation in your child, parents are encouraged to significantly reduce or eliminate digital media for a while, especially on school nights.

References:
American Academy of Pediatrics (2001). American Academy of Pediatrics Children, Adolescents and Television. Pediatrics: 107: 2. pp. 423-426.

Bronson, P. & Merryman,, A. (2009). Nurture Shock. New York, NY: Hachette Book Group.

Gentile, D.A., Choo, H., Liau, A., Sim, T, Li D., Fung, D., Khoo, A., (2011). Pathological Video Game Use Among Youths: A Two-Year Longitudinal Study. Pediatrics, 127, 2, 319-329.

Gentile, D. A., Lynch, P., Linder, J. & Walsh, D. (2004). The effects of violent video game habits on adolescent hostility, aggressive behaviors, and school performance. Journal of Adolescence, 27, 5-22.

Rideout, V.J., Foehr, U.G. and Roberts, D.F. (2010), Kaiser Family Foundation. Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year Olds. (For a copy of the full report, go to http://www.kff.org/entmedia/upload/8010.pdf

Steyer, J. P. (2012). Talking Back to Facebook. New York: Scribner