Early Television Exposure and Subsequent Attentional Problems in Children

Christakis, Dimitri A.; Zimmerman, Frederick J.; DiGiuseppe, David L.; McCarty, Carolyn A.

doi:10.1542/peds.113.4.708

Cited by 723 publications

(599 citation statements)

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“…We also found a negative influence on number knowledge, whereas that study did not. Also, consistent with another previous study addressing the relationship between early televiewing and attention skills (25), increases in early televiewing were linked with modest subsequent decreases in classroom engagement. This result suggests that early televiewing may slightly undermine later executive function processes that regulate task orientation, productivity and autonomy, being cooperative with classmates, and carefully following rules and instructions in the classroom.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

“…Identifying modifiable factors that identify a lack of readiness for the transition to formal schooling represents an important goal for social pediatrics (17). Using a population of typically developing children followed from birth, the current study sought to verify the findings from a handful of independent studies addressing the influence of early childhood televiewing on distinct school readiness outcomes (25)(26)(27) and offers a singular and consistent approach to the television exposure predictor, outcomes, and statistical controls.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several prospective independent investigations suggest associations between early childhood television exposure and school readiness characteristics. In one study, higher levels of early televiewing were related to increases in attention problems in first grade (25). Other researchers also found negative influences on verbal and memory skills at ages 6 and 7 for each hour of televiewing before 3 y of age (26).…”

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confidence: 94%

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Early childhood television viewing and kindergarten entry readiness

2013

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Background:Using a large population-based sample, this study aims to verify whether televiewing at 29 mo, a common early childhood pastime, is prospectively associated with school readiness at 65 mo. Methods: Participants are a prospective longitudinal cohort of 991 girls and 1,006 boys from the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development with parent-reported data on weekly hours of televiewing at 29 mo of age. We conducted a series of ordinary least-squares regressions in which children's scores on direct child assessments of vocabulary, mathematical knowledge, and motor skills, as well as kindergarten teacher reports of socioemotional functioning, were linearly regressed on early televiewing. results: Every SD increase (1.2 h) in daily televiewing at 29 mo predicted decreases in receptive vocabulary, number knowledge scores, classroom engagement, and gross motor locomotion scores, as well as increases in the frequency of victimization by classmates. conclusion: Increases in total time watching television at 29 mo were associated with subsequent decreases in vocabulary and math skills, classroom engagement (which is largely determined by attention skills), victimization by classmates, and physical prowess at kindergarten. These prospective associations, independent of key potential confounders, suggest the need for better parental awareness and compliance with existing viewing recommendations put forth by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 94%

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Early childhood television viewing and kindergarten entry readiness

2013

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“…Some of these hypotheses attribute this effect to its violent content (Zimmerman & Christakis, 2007). Other hypotheses attribute this effect to the fast pace of entertainment media (i.e., the frequent use of cuts, edits, and fast character movement; Christakis, 2009;Christakis, Zimmerman, DiGiuseppe, & McCarty, 2004;Geist & Gibson, 2000;Halpern, 1975;Jensen et al, 1997;Landhuis, Poulton, Welch, & Hancox, 2007;Levine & Waite, 2000) or to the overall amount of time children spent consuming media (Christakis, 2009;Zimmerman & Christakis, 2007). Therefore, in this meta-analysis, we included all studies investigating the effect of either violent, fastpaced, or overall screen media use on ADHD-related behaviors.…”

Section: Media Contentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Media use and ADHD-related behaviors in children and adolescents: A meta-analysis.

Nikkelen¹,

Valkenburg

Huizinga³

et al. 2014

Developmental Psychology

235

214

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There are several theoretical reasons to believe that media use might be related to attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or ADHD-related behaviors (i.e., attention problems, hyperactivity, and impulsivity). Although studies into the media-ADHD relationship have accumulated, they have yielded inconsistent results. Therefore, we still do not know whether children's media use and ADHD-related behaviors are related and, if so, under which conditions. To fill this gap in the literature, we first identified 6 different hypotheses that may explain why media use in general and viewing fast-paced or violent media content might be related to 1 or more ADHD-related behaviors. Subsequently, we conducted a meta-analysis of 45 empirical studies investigating the relationship between media use and ADHDrelated behaviors in children and adolescents. Our results indicated a small significant relationship between media use and ADHD-related behaviors (r ϩ ϭ .12). Finally, we identified several specific gaps in the existing literature and presented 5 crucial directions for future research. Keywords: ADHD, attention problems, hyperactivity, impulsivity, media useIn the past four decades, children's media entertainment (e.g., cartoons, TV shows, and computer games) has changed significantly. It has become more fast-paced, violent, and arousing (Allen, Livingstone, & Reiner, 1998;Bushman, Jamieson, Weitz, & Romer, 2013;Koolstra, van Zanten, Lucassen, & Ishaak, 2004), and it has become abundantly accessible to ever younger children. These same four decades have also witnessed a significant increase in the diagnosis rate of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; Akinbami, Liu, Pastor, & Reuben, 2011;Kelleher, McInerny, Gardner, Childs, & Wasserman, 2000;Visser et al., 2014). ADHD is a behavioral disorder characterized by a cluster of three symptoms: attention problems, hyperactivity, and impulsivity (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th The parallel between changes occurring in children's media environment and ADHD diagnosis rates have led to a concern among some authors that use of media entertainment may influence ADHD-related behaviors (e.g., Christakis, 2009;Jensen et al., 1997;Nigg, 2006;Sigman, 2007). Although studies into the relationship between children's media use and ADHD-related behaviors have accumulated, they have yielded mixed results (also see Kirkorian, Wartella, & Anderson, 2008;Schmidt & Vandewater, 2008). It is essential to gain more understanding of the media-ADHD relationship in order to design adequate prevention and intervention strategies aimed at children displaying behavioral problems. To date, no attempt has been made to integrate the inconsistent findings in the current literature using meta-analysis. To fill this gap, we conducted a meta-analysis of studies investigating the relationship between the use of screen entertainment media (i.e., television viewing and video game playing) and ADHD-related behaviors in children or adolescents under the age of 18.For this ...

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“…Both discourses did not evolve in parallel: the psychodynamic understanding was dominant in the early 2000s while the biomedical model dominated during the most recent years (2009–2012). Finally, the scientific literature has widely documented the environmental risk factors that strongly contribute to ADHD prevalence: exposure to heavy metals and other chemicals (Froehlich et al, 2011; Needleman et al, 1979), premature birth (Linnet et al, 2006; Szatmari, Saigal, Rosenbaum, Campbell, & King, 1990), maltreatment, parents suffering from mental disorders, poor interactions between parents and children (Biederman, Faraone, & Monuteaux, 2002; Biederman et al, 1995; Galera et al, 2011; Schneider & Eisenberg, 2006; Tallmadge & Barkley, 1983), low economic status of the family, low educational level of the parents, young maternal age at birth (Froehlich et al, 2007; Galera et al, 2011; Schneider & Eisenberg, 2006), and excessive exposure to television and video games (Christakis, Zimmerman, DiGiuseppe, & McCarty, 2004; Swing, Gentile, Anderson, & Walsh, 2010). Unfortunately, these risks are never mentioned in French specialized journals and TV programmes (Ponnou et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How French media have portrayed ADHD to the lay public and to social workers

Ponnou

Gonon

2017

International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well

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Two models of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) coexist: the biomedical and the psychosocial. We identified in nine French newspapers 159 articles giving facts and opinions about ADHD from 1995 to 2015. We classified them according to the model they mainly supported and on the basis of what argument. Two thirds (104/159) mainly supported the biomedical model. The others either defended the psychodynamic understanding of ADHD or voiced both models. Neurological dysfunctions and genetic risk factors were mentioned in support of the biomedical model in only 26 and eight articles, respectively. These biological arguments were less frequent in the most recent years. There were fewer articles mentioning medication other than asserting that medication must be combined with psychosocial interventions (14 versus 57 articles). Only 11/159 articles claimed that medication protects from school failure. These results were compared to those of our two previous studies. Thus, both French newspapers and the specialized press read by social workers mainly defended either the psychodynamic understanding of ADHD or a nuanced version of the biomedical model. In contrast, most French TV programmes described ADHD as an inherited neurological disease whose consequences on school failure can be counteracted by a very effective medication.

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Early Television Exposure and Subsequent Attentional Problems in Children

Abstract: Early television exposure is associated with attentional problems at age 7. Efforts to limit television viewing in early childhood may be warranted, and additional research is needed.

Cited by 723 publications

References 34 publications

Early childhood television viewing and kindergarten entry readiness

Early childhood television viewing and kindergarten entry readiness

Media use and ADHD-related behaviors in children and adolescents: A meta-analysis.

How French media have portrayed ADHD to the lay public and to social workers

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