Screen Time and Parental Mental Health - Implications on Development in Childhood

Bui, Nghi Hoang

Screen Time and Parental Mental Health - Implications on Development in Childhood

Bui, Nghi Hoang

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Publication Type:: Thesis
Issue Date:: 2022

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Bui, Nghi Hoang
dc.date.accessioned	2022-09-12T04:58:16Z
dc.date.available	2022-09-12T04:58:16Z
dc.date.issued	2022
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/161760
dc.description	University of Technology Sydney. Graduate School of Health.	en_US.UTF-8
dc.description.abstract	This technological era has witnessed an increasing number of young children engaging in the use of handheld devices such as smartphones, iPads, and tablets; now widely accessible for both recreational and educational purposes. Parents shape screen habits and behaviours in children, and the subsequent effects of this device use on their developmental outcomes are unclear. This thesis aimed to examine: 1) the relationship between parental mental health and other parental characteristics and child screen time (ST), and 2) the effects of ST on the developmental outcomes of children. This thesis is structured around four studies, comprising an analysis of a secondary longitudinal dataset, a systematic review, a cross-sectional study and a longitudinal study. Study one consisted of an analysis of a secondary dataset namely “Growing Up in Australia: The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC)” (Soloff et al., 2005). This study investigated the temporal effects of television (TV), computer and gaming console use on the academic achievement of children aged 4-5 years on enrolment (N=2954). This study supported previous findings that TV, computer and gaming console use had a negative association with academic achievement across time. Study two was a systematic review of the existing literature in the field. Twenty studies were included in the review, of which 15 studies examined parental characteristics associated with child handheld ST and five studies investigated the effects of screens on developmental outcomes in children. Study three was a cross-sectional study of 214 parents with children aged 4.5-6 years, which examined the relationships between parental mental health, handheld ST and child outcomes. Finally, study four (N=101, Mage at T1=5.25, SDage=.44, Mage at T2=6.51, SDage=.52) utilised data from the previous study to capture the longitudinal effects of the key variables. Collectively, this thesis identified many parental characteristics that contribute towards children’s exposure to screens. In particular, this thesis was among the first to consider studies that examined specific symptoms of parental mental health in relation to ST. This research found that parents with poorer mental health are more likely to have children who engage in greater ST, as well being more likely to engage in more ST themselves. Overall, these findings can inform policy development and guidelines tailored to parents with poor mental health, where warranted. Future research may consider factors such as screen content, and the context and conditions under which ST is engaged in, rather than just the amount of exposure to ST.	en_US.UTF-8
dc.format	Thesis (PhD)
dc.language.iso	en_US	en_US.UTF-8
dc.relation	https://opus.lib.uts.edu.au/bitstream/10453/161760/2/02whole.pdf
dc.rights	The author owns the copyright in this thesis including all reproduction and reuse rights for the work. The work may not be altered without the permission of the copyright owner. Attribution is essential when quoting or paraphrasing from this thesis.
dc.rights	au.edu.uts.lib/ppc
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.title	Screen Time and Parental Mental Health - Implications on Development in Childhood	en_US.UTF-8
dc.type	Thesis
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*

Abstract:

This technological era has witnessed an increasing number of young children engaging in the use of handheld devices such as smartphones, iPads, and tablets; now widely accessible for both recreational and educational purposes. Parents shape screen habits and behaviours in children, and the subsequent effects of this device use on their developmental outcomes are unclear. This thesis aimed to examine: 1) the relationship between parental mental health and other parental characteristics and child screen time (ST), and 2) the effects of ST on the developmental outcomes of children. This thesis is structured around four studies, comprising an analysis of a secondary longitudinal dataset, a systematic review, a cross-sectional study and a longitudinal study. Study one consisted of an analysis of a secondary dataset namely “Growing Up in Australia: The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC)” (Soloff et al., 2005). This study investigated the temporal effects of television (TV), computer and gaming console use on the academic achievement of children aged 4-5 years on enrolment (N=2954). This study supported previous findings that TV, computer and gaming console use had a negative association with academic achievement across time. Study two was a systematic review of the existing literature in the field. Twenty studies were included in the review, of which 15 studies examined parental characteristics associated with child handheld ST and five studies investigated the effects of screens on developmental outcomes in children. Study three was a cross-sectional study of 214 parents with children aged 4.5-6 years, which examined the relationships between parental mental health, handheld ST and child outcomes. Finally, study four (N=101, Mage at T1=5.25, SDage=.44, Mage at T2=6.51, SDage=.52) utilised data from the previous study to capture the longitudinal effects of the key variables. Collectively, this thesis identified many parental characteristics that contribute towards children’s exposure to screens. In particular, this thesis was among the first to consider studies that examined specific symptoms of parental mental health in relation to ST. This research found that parents with poorer mental health are more likely to have children who engage in greater ST, as well being more likely to engage in more ST themselves. Overall, these findings can inform policy development and guidelines tailored to parents with poor mental health, where warranted. Future research may consider factors such as screen content, and the context and conditions under which ST is engaged in, rather than just the amount of exposure to ST.

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