Kids from poor families have most screen time
Study finds more than one hour’s difference depending on families’ incomes
LOS ANGELES — Children in lowincome families spend more time watching TV and using electronic devices than those in more affluent homes, according to a survey published Thursday.
The report by the American non-profit group Common Sense Media on the viewing habits of more than 1,400 children ages eight and under across the United States found that less-affluent youngsters spend nearly 31⁄2 hours a day watching TV and using devices including smartphones, tablets, laptops and video-game players.
By comparison, kids in higherincome homes spend just under two hours on such activities.
The offspring of bettereducated parents also spend less time with media (one hour, 37 minutes) compared with children of those with less education (two hours, 50 minutes).
“Before we can begin to understand the impact of media and technology on kids and families, we have to better understand their attitudes and behaviours,” James P. Steyer, the non-profit group’s CEO and founder, and Reveta Franklin Bowers, its chairwoman, said in a preface to the report. The survey found that Latino parents expressed the most concern about what their children are exposed to in media, including sex, violence and racial and gender stereotypes. African-American parents voiced less concern, with white parents expressing the least worry among ethnic groups.
But a majority of parents overall said their children’s use of digital media helps to boost learning and creativity.
The time youngsters spend reading or being read to has remained steady at 30 minutes daily, compared with previous studies in 2011 and 2013. But fewer than half (43 per cent) of children under two are read to each day, counter to the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation that reading to kids should begin in infancy to help to develop language and literacy skills.
Nearly half (49 per cent) of children are watching TV or using electronic media shortly before bedtime, contrary to the academy’s recommendation of a onehour gap between such activities and sleep.
According to its conclusion, the survey “should not be read as a judgment on the quality of children’s time with media. Rather, it is a snapshot of how media and technology are infused into daily life. Additional experimental and qualitative work is essential to better understanding the full implications of children’s media use.”
The report also found: • Children ages eight and younger spend an average of two hours, 19 minutes daily with screen media, about the same as in previous study years. Television gets the lion’s share, 58 minutes, but the use of mobile device has risen rapidly from five minutes daily in 2011 to 48 minutes this year. • The “digital divide” is narrower but still exists between more and less affluent families. Home computers and internet access were found in 72 per cent and 74 per cent, respectively, of low-income homes, compared with 97 per cent and 96 per cent for higher-income families. • In a surprising twist, children pick “old-fashioned” paper books over digital reading. Only three of the 29 minutes that kids spend reading each day are on electronic devices.