Parental technoference and health and development in the early years: a systematic review
Abstract Overview
Background: Exposure to screen time and its associations with health and development have been widely investigated in early childhood. However, little is known about how parental use of technology during parent-child interactions, referred to as parental technoference (PT), may influence children’s health and developmental outcomes.
Purpose: To systematically review and synthesise current literature on associations between PT and 1) 24-hour movement behaviours (physical activity, sedentary behaviour/screen time and sleep), 2) motor skills, 3) cognitive development and 4) psychosocial health in children aged under five years.
Methods: The protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42023418164). Eight electronic databases were searched from inception to December 2023. Inclusion criteria were: 1) quantitative study published in a peer-reviewed journal; 2) PT during interactions with apparently healthy children aged from birth to <5 years; 3) examined an association with children’s 24-hour movement behaviours, cognitive, psychosocial, or motor development. Risk of bias was assessed using JBI’s critical appraisal tools.
Results: Twenty-six studies (7102 participants from 12 countries) were eligible for inclusion. The majority of included studies reported associations of PT with psychosocial health outcomes (n=20) while a few reported associations with screen time (n=6) and cognitive skills (n=5). No study examined associations with motor skills. There was variability in the findings; however, a negative impact of PT on children’s cognitive outcomes, screen time, emotions and affectivity was observed.
Conclusions: Most studies focused on PT’s impact on children’s psychosocial health, indicating a tendency for PT to trigger specific negative emotions in the early years. The findings underscore the need for further research with larger samples and encompassing additional health and developmental outcomes.
Practical implications: Given the ubiquity of technological devices, it would be pertinent to highlight the importance of parental awareness regarding the potential impact of technoference on their children.
Funding: Chilean National Scholarship Program for Graduate Studies.
Additional Authors
Name: Marcelo Toledo-Vargas
Affiliation: School of Health and Society and Early Start, Faculty of the Arts Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia.
Presenting Author: yes
Name: Claudia Maddren
Affiliation: School of Health and Society and Early Start, Faculty of the Arts Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia.
Presenting Author: no
Name: Kar Hau Chong
Affiliation: School of Health and Society and Early Start, Faculty of the Arts Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia.
Presenting Author: no
Name: Anthony Okely
Affiliation: 1 School of Health and Society and Early Start, Faculty of the Arts Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia. 2 Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway
Presenting Author: no
Information
Study Type: Epidemiology
Subtheme: Other (please specify)
Subtheme other Title: Parental screen time and children’s 24-hour movement behaviours, cognitive skills and psychosocial health
Population Group: Early Childhood
Setting: Not Applicable
Submitting Author
Marcelo Toledo-Vargas
PhD Candidate
University of Wollongong
Australia
