Every minute toddlers spend glued to screens at home results in them hearing fewer words, speaking less, and having fewer conversations with their parents, according to new research.
Researchers from the Telethon Kids Institute monitored 220 Australian families over two-and-a-half years, during which toddlers wore a device capturing 16 hours of audio daily in their homes.
Listening to over 7,000 hours of recordings, researchers found that toddlers aged 18 to 36 months spend about three hours a day on screens and miss out on important, language-rich interactions at home during their critical early years.
The biggest decline in language skills was seen at 36 months, with a decrease of 6.6 adult words for each additional minute of screen time, adding up to a loss of 1,139 adult words, 843 vocalisations, and 194 conversations per day.
Senior researcher Mary Brushe said screen time disrupts the crucial amount of talking and interaction necessary for children’s language development.
“Because we haven’t been able to capture parents’ silent screen-related activities, such as reading emails, texting, or quietly scrolling through websites or social media,” she explained.
“The devices only picked up noise associated with screen time—for example, TV shows, videos or games.”
Families in the study were unaware that screen time would be measured during recording, and the analysis was conducted afterwards with parental consent.
Screen Time Tops Parents’ and Teachers’ Concerns
It comes as parents and teachers say that their biggest health worry for children is too much screen time, according to the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS).A deeply concerned parent noted that their 3-year-old daughter was strictly prohibited from using any tablet or phone under any circumstances.
However, some parents, while not entirely approving of screen time, resort to placing their children in front of the TV to get tasks done, highlighting a common struggle in handling daily to-do’s while dealing with screen time concerns.
“We have a 14-month-old and only use... the TV when we really need a break. We have no family nor friends nearby, so sometimes, for example, if one of us is showering and the other one has to make dinner, we use the TV,” a parent said.
“It’s easy to say ‘let the toddler play with you in the kitchen meanwhile then’ or whatever, but sorry, our son is super demanding and wants to be held A LOT. So no, sometimes we need to use the TV to be able to function.”
Meanwhile, teachers’ comments suggest that children and teens who use screens excessively from their pivotal years lack social skill development.
University of the Sunshine Coast psychology lecturer Rachael Sharman added research is showing a link between increased screen time and social skill problems at increasingly younger ages.
She explained that brain imaging studies indicate increased screen time is linked to reduced white matter tracts in the brain, which are crucial for language and cognitive abilities.
Educational Screen Content for Language Learning
Yet, it’s not all doom and gloom.Ms. Brushe mentioned screen time is expected in daily life, and there are ways to lessen its potential effects on children.
“It might be that they [parents] opt for interactive co-viewing as a way to reduce the burden of screen time, or make a point of engaging in conversation when a screen is on,” she explained.
“This might include singing along with theme songs, repeating phrases or questions from the screen, and using the content of a show as a conversation starter after the screen has been turned off.”
She also mentioned that efforts to encourage early language development should include assistance in managing screen time.
“Interventions designed to support parents can educate them on high-quality educational screen content that is age appropriate for their child and can support language learning and interaction.”
