Preceding the development and integration of interface technology into households, many concerns and questions have arose as to how much, when, and what type of screen time and screen media should be accessed by young children. This review of screen time and young children evaluates evidence which challenges common ideas of approaches to reducing screen time in young children, and assesses the scope of potential effects concerning the plight of young children’s psychological wellbeing, physical wellbeing, and cognition.

There has been little evidence which discusses the harmful or harmless nature of exposure of screen time to children. Upon assessing empirical evidence, most research argues negative effects of screen time, however these cannot necessarily be viewed as harmful. This is particularly supported by Pryzbylski and Weinstein’s (2019) study which assessed the psychological well-being of children between the ages of 2 and 5 with screen time, based off telephone interviews with parents. The findings did not create a relevant association between screen time and psychological well-being. However, a core weakness of this study was the use of telephone interviews, which assessed the child’s wellbeing based off the caretaker’s response. The researchers made attempts to control for variables such as socioeconomic status, and the educational status of the caretaker.

However, this is not to discredit studies which have found associations between screen time, and poorer behaviour in regards to attentional skills. Cheng, Maeda, Yoichi, Yamagata and Tomiwa (2010) assessed the correlation between television exposure at ages 18 and 30 months, and its effects on behaviour and emotional status at age 30 months. Exposure at an early age was positively correlated with hyperactivity, and attentional issues, particularly when the children were exposed to daily viewing at 18 months. Wu et al., (2017) also concluded in their study of the amount of screen time children in China ages 3-6 years had on sleep and behaviour. The study concluded that a higher duration of screen time was associated with less sleep, and more behavioural issues. In addition to this, it has been found that use of screen med