Screen time amongst children is becoming a major obstacle for kids in relation to the amount of physical activity that children are getting each day. The lessened amount of physical activity correlates to the rising issue with obesity in children. Studies have shown that reduced screen time along with increased physical activity and quality sleep patterns help to create healthier kids. “Screen-related physical activities like television watching are very common among adolescents particularly in modern societies; it is reported that adolescents spend about 3h per day on screen activities.” (Haghjoo, P et al., 2022) This screen time is the culprit for taking away time for daily moderate to vigorous physical activity for 60 minutes a day, which is proven to improve a child’s health and well-being across the board. This literature review aims to discover the correlation between screen time, physical activity, and obesity to unfold how much, and what type of screen time is detrimental to a child’s physical activity and overall health. Questions to be answered will address the amount of time that screens take away from PA, if socioeconomic status, age and location play a role, and which types of screen time are most directly correlated with reduced physical activity. Participating in a literature review aid in proving the problem hypothesis that more than 2 hours per day of screen time is directly correlated with inadequate amounts of daily moderate to vigorous physical activity in children ages 6-14, and is contributing to obesity in children. The specific problem lies in the fact that very few children aged 6-14 participate 60 minutes per day of moderate to vigorous physical activity, but a vast majority participate in excessive screen time. This contribution to a lack of physical activity leads to many health risk factors in childhood and through adulthood such as stroke, diabetes and heart disease.
The purpose of this literature review is to investigate the impact of excess screen time on children’s physical activity. The review examines recent literature that examines 3 main themes-(1) Amount of screen time, (2) Type of screen time, and (3) Socio-economic status/location.
· Amount of screen time
- Almaqhawi and Albarqi (2022) found 88 (31.8%) children reported up to 5 hours of screen time daily, while 189 (68.2%) reported 6 hours or more (Figure 1). Based on the CPAQ , 131 (47.3%) children recorded a low level of physical activity, 96 (34.7%) recorded moderate level physical activity, and 50 (18.1%) recorded high-level physical activity. This shows a negative correlation of increased screen time, and lessened physical activity.
- Korcs et al. (2023) found A total of 8% of children reported meeting PA guide lines of 60min on 7days per week. On average, children reported achieving at least 60min of PA on 3.3 ± 1.7days per week. This same study reported that only 22% of children met screen time requirements of less than 2 hours per day. This correlates the link between increased screen time and decreased amounts of PA.
- Dahlgren et al. (2020) reports that no correlation was observed between objectively measured smartphone screen time and objectively measured physical activity for the entire study population of children and adolescents (r= 0.15,p = 0.21. This data was self-reported by adolescents.
· Location/socioeconomic status/age
- Mollborn, S et al. (2020) found the total number of weekly hours spent using
technology did not vary significantly by social class in bivariate or multivariate analyses, with weekly averages falling between 25 and 29 h for all groups. This study mentioned that technology use saturated all groups in regards to socio-economic status, but higher SES groups had higher access to different types of technologies.
- Jain S. et al. (2022) found that that SVT among junior high school children was higher than that among elementary school children, and it decreased after 15 years of age. This is likely due to increased responsibilities in the form of school work, jobs, and extra-curricular activities. It was also found that “increasing age was found to be significantly correlated with excessive SVT (OR: 1.63,95% CI: 1.36–1.91;p< 0.001) in the present study (Table 3). The results are similar to those of a study conducted in rural Western India, which showed that the odds of excessive SVT are 1.3 and 1.9 times greater in children aged 3–5 years and 5–6 years, respectively, than in children aged 2–3 years. Multiple studies show that after pre-school years, screen time shows increases until about the age of 15-16.
· Screen time type
- Sanders T. et al. (2019) found that educational screen time (e.g., homework on electronic devices) showed the most benefits in unadjusted and adjusted models, with positive effects on children’s persistence and educational outcomes, and no significant effects on psychological or health outcomes. Interactive screen time (e.g., video games) showed similar trends as total screen time. However, unlike total screen time, interactive screen time was associated with positive educational outcomes. Passive screen time (e.g., TV) was associated with worse psychological outcomes, poorer health outcomes, and lower educational outcomes in unadjusted and adjusted models. These findings are of much value as they uncover which types of screens are the most detrimental to children. According to this study, TV time should be monitored by parents.
- Norozi, K. et al. (2020) conducted a study that demonstrated that select AVGs (Active video games) successfully elicited MVPA in children and determined that player engagement was important for attaining and maintaining MVPA. Several game design elements were identified that resulted in increased MVPA, leg movements, and freedom to choose movements in particular, as well as elements that negated MVPA, such as the ability to circumvent game mechanics. This study shows that engagement is an important thing to consider when trying to use screens to increase MVPA.
The most effective research methodology for this research proposal would be quantitative one with a correlational research design as it aims to measure and correlate screen time use and its effects on physical activity and obesity.
This literature review uncovered quality information in regards to screen time and physical activity. Many studies show that excessive screen time negatively influences physical activity levels in children. It was also found that there was a negative correlation between increased TV time and lower levels of MVPA. Finally, socio-economic status did not show a strong correlation to increased screen-time, but age definitely did as it was shows that from age 5-14 screen time increases, but then decreases after age 15. All of these studies help paint a clearer picture for educators and parents to allow children and students the right amounts of screen time on a daily basis
References
Almaqhawi, A., & Albarqi, M. (2022). The effects of technology use on children’s physical
activity: a cross-sectional study in the Eastern province of Saudi Arabia. Journal of Medicine & Life, 15(10), 1240–1245. https://doi.org/10.25122/jml-2022-0148
Dahlgren, A., Sjöblom, L., Eke, H., Bonn, S. E., & Trolle Lagerros, Y. (2021). Screen time and
physical activity in children and adolescents aged 10-15 years. PLoS ONE, 16(7), e0254255. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254255
Haghjoo, P., Siri, G., Soleimani, E., Farhangi, M. A., & Alesaeidi, S. (2022). Screen time
increases overweight and obesity risk among adolescents: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis. BMC Primary Care, 23(1), 161. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-022-01761-4
Hardy LL, Dobbins T, Booth ML, Denney-Wilson E, Okely AD. Sedentary
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Jain, S., Shrivastava, S., Mathur, A., Pathak, D., & Pathak, A. (2023). Prevalence and
Determinants of Excessive Screen Viewing Time in Children Aged 3-15 Years and Its Effects on Physical Activity, Sleep, Eye Symptoms and Headache. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20043449
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