Tantrums, toddlers and technology: Temperament, media emotion regulation, and problematic media use in early childhood

Coyne, Sarah M.; Shawcroft, Jane; Gale, Megan; Gentile, Douglas A.; Etherington, Jordan T.; Holmgren, Hailey G.; Stockdale, Laura

doi:10.1016/j.chb.2021.106762

Cited by 57 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Another possibility which merits further exploration in future research, is that high screen use disrupts sleep quality (Cheung et al, 2017 ; Janssen et al, 2020 ), which is important to cognitive development and regulation (Bernier et al, 2013 ). A further potential explanation of the association between screen use and regulation is that infants who are frequently exposed to screens as a soothing technique when they are distressed, bored or over‐aroused may not develop their own coping mechanisms (Coyne et al, 2021 ). However, notwithstanding lockdowns’ utility as an imperfect proxy for randomization noted above, again the observational nature of our data does limit our ability to make causal conclusions about the association between screen use and EFs, and relations are likely to be transactional to some extent.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Not all babies are in the same boat: Exploring the effects of socioeconomic status, parental attitudes, and activities during the 2020 COVID‐19 pandemic on early Executive Functions

Hendry

Gibson

Davies

et al. 2022

Infancy

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Early executive functions (EFs) lay the foundations for academic and social outcomes. In this parent-report study of 575 UK-based 8-to 36 month olds (218 followed longitudinally), we investigate how variation in the home environment before and during the 2020 pandemic relates to infants' emerging EFs. Parent-infant enriching activities were positively associated with infant Cognitive Executive Function (CEF) (encompassing inhibitory control, working memory, cognitive flexibility). During the most-restrictive UK lockdownbut not subsequently-socioeconomic status (SES) was positively associated with levels of parent-infant enriching activities. Parents who regard fostering early learning, affection, and attachment as important were more likely to engage in parent-infant enriching activities, yet there was no significant pathway from parental attitudes or SES to CEF via activities. Infant screen use was negatively associated with CEF and Regulation. Screen use fully mediated the effect of SES on CEF, and partially mediated the effect of SES on regulation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Not all babies are in the same boat: Exploring the effects of socioeconomic status, parental attitudes, and activities during the 2020 COVID‐19 pandemic on early Executive Functions

Hendry

Gibson

Davies

et al. 2022

Infancy

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“…Firstly, McHarg et al (2020a , 2020b) have primarily focused on passive forms of screen engagement (i.e., viewing content on TVs and touchscreens), whereas the current study focused on passive, active, and social forms of touchscreen engagement. The issue of background screen exposure, namely having the TV or attention-grabbing device playing in the background, may be more detrimental for EF development as this is likely to disrupt infants’ attentional processes ( Ribner et al, 2017 ) and their opportunity to practice regulation ( Coyne et al, 2021 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Another limitation was that the purpose of screen use (e.g., education, pacifying, seeing loved ones) and parental co-viewing was not assessed. While video chatting may facilitate more positive social engagement due to higher parental involvement ( McClure et al, 2015 ), using screens to “manage” emotional outbursts may hinder EF ( Coyne et al, 2021 ). However, the cross-sectional nature of our analyses prevents us from establishing the direction of causality, thus it is unclear whether bi-directional relationships are in play.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…With regards to associations between screen use and broader regulatory skills, some research indicates that frequent and early exposure to touchscreens may disrupt self-regulation in young children. Coyne et al (2021) found that toddlers (age 2–3 years) who are often given a media device to manage their difficult emotions tend to show poorer self-regulation. The authors speculated that the over-reliance on media may subsequently hinder their learning of positive emotion-regulation strategies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Associations between touchscreen exposure and hot and cool inhibitory control in 10-month-old infants

Lui

Hendry

Fiske

et al. 2021

Infant Behavior and Development

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Highlights No association between touchscreen exposure and inhibitory control at 10-months. Touchscreen exposure positively associated with Cognitive Executive Function score. Positive association found only after accounting for sociodemographic variables. Touchscreen exposure during infancy may be less detrimental than previously believed.

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“…Research has found that families facing higher levels of adversity and who have less personal, social, and financial resources, are likely to expose children to more screen time ( Hartshorne et al, 2021 ). Indeed, parents are likely to use more screens with children that are less-well regulated ( Thompson et al, 2013 ; Coyne et al, 2021 ; Parrish et al, 2022 ). In addition, children with a low level of effortful control may have greater difficulty regulating emotional and physiological responses to media as well as disengaging from media ( Clifford et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is the Association Between Early Childhood Screen Media Use and Effortful Control Bidirectional? A Prospective Study During the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2022

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Individual differences in effortful control, a component of temperament, reflecting the ability to use attention and other cognitive processes to self-regulate emotion and behavior, contribute to child academic adjustment, social competence, and wellbeing. Research has linked excessive screen time in early childhood to reduced self-regulation ability. Furthermore, research suggests that parents are more likely to use screens with children who have more challenging temperaments, such as low levels of effortful control. Since screen time by children between the ages of 0 and 18 has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, it remains timely to investigate the developmental pattern of association between child screen media use and effortful control. We hypothesize that higher levels of screen media intake at age 3.5 will be associated with lower effortful control at age 4.5 and that lower effortful control at 3.5 will contribute to more screen media intake at age 4.5. This study draws on participants followed longitudinally over the span of 2-years for an investigation of Canadian preschoolers’ screen media use during the pandemic (N = 316, Wave 1). A follow-up with this sample was completed in 2021 (N = 265, Wave 2). Analyses using a cross-lagged panel model revealed stability in child screen time and effortful control between the ages of 3.5 and 4.5. Child screen time at age 3.5 significantly contributed to decreased effortful control scores at the age of 4.5, whereas effortful control at age 3.5 did not contribute to screen time at age 4.5. Our results partially confirmed our hypothesis and indicated that higher levels of screen time intake were detrimental to the development of effortful control. These results suggest that screen media use, an exceedingly frequent activity, may play an enduring role in development by shaping young children’s temperaments.

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Tantrums, toddlers and technology: Temperament, media emotion regulation, and problematic media use in early childhood

Cited by 57 publications

References 39 publications

Not all babies are in the same boat: Exploring the effects of socioeconomic status, parental attitudes, and activities during the 2020 COVID‐19 pandemic on early Executive Functions

Not all babies are in the same boat: Exploring the effects of socioeconomic status, parental attitudes, and activities during the 2020 COVID‐19 pandemic on early Executive Functions

Associations between touchscreen exposure and hot and cool inhibitory control in 10-month-old infants

Is the Association Between Early Childhood Screen Media Use and Effortful Control Bidirectional? A Prospective Study During the COVID-19 Pandemic

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