Research shows that parents ‘do’ have power over their tweens’ screen use

For many parents, it may seem like reducing children’s screen use is a losing battle. But new research from UC San Francisco (UCSF) has found the parenting practices that work best to curb screen time and addictive screen behaviors: limiting screens in bedrooms and during meals and modeling healthy practices at home.

Researchers asked 12- to 13-year-olds how often they used screens for everything other than school, including gaming, texting, social media, video chatting, watching videos and surfing the Internet; and whether their screen use was problematic.

They then asked parents how they used their own screens in front of their children, how they monitored and limited their children’s screen use, and whether they used it to reward or punish behavior. They also asked about the family’s use of screens during meals and about the child’s use of screens in the bedroom.

Screen use in bedrooms and during meals was linked to longer duration and addictive use. But usage dropped when parents monitored and limited their children’s screen time, and when they modeled healthy behaviors themselves.

“These results are encouraging because they provide parents with some concrete strategies they can use with their teens and preteens: set screen time limits, monitor your children’s screen use, and avoid screens in bedrooms and during mealtimes,” says Jason Nagata. MD, a pediatrician at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals and first author of the study, published June 5 in Pediatric research. “Also, try to practice what you preach.”

Refinement of the AAP guidelines

The study analyzed the effectiveness on tweens of parenting strategies recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) for children and adolescents ages 5 to 18 years old. It is one of the few studies examining how parenting practices influence screen use in early adolescence, as children become more independent.

“We wanted to look especially at young adolescents because they are at a stage where cell phone and social media use tends to increase and sets the course for future habits,” says Nagata.

The researchers collected data from 10,048 U.S. participants, 46% of whom were racial or ethnic minorities, from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study.

Parents were asked to indicate on a scale of 1 to 4 how much they agreed with statements such as, “My child falls asleep using a screen-based device.”

The researchers then looked at how the level of agreement between parents predicted the children’s daily screen time, and found that it increased by 1.6 hours for each additional point related to screen use in the bedroom. The same applied to the use of screens during meals, which added an extra 1.24 hours. Poor modeling by parents added 0.66 hours.

Limiting and monitoring their children’s screen time reduced it by 1.29 hours and 0.83 hours respectively. But using screen time as a reward or punishment was ineffective, resulting in 0.36 additional hours and more problematic video game use.

When used in moderation, screens can help maintain social bonds and promote community, but for children especially, problematic use can lead to mental health problems, as well as physical inactivity and sleep problems.

“Screen time before bed displaces sleep time, which is essential for the health and development of young adolescents,” says Nagata. “Parents may consider placing screens outside their children’s bedrooms and turning off devices and notifications at night.”