Study finds teens are not damaged by screen time

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According to one study, there is little evidence of a link between the time spent by teens on devices and their overall well-being.

It counteracts claims that excessive projection time could affect the mental and physical health of adolescents.

Even before bedtime, being online, playing or watching TV does not harm the mental health of young people, said the study's authors.

They questioned the methodology of previous studies.

"While psychological science can be a powerful tool for understanding the link between screen use and adolescent well-being, it consistently fails to provide high-quality surveys to stakeholders and the public. , transparent and objective on growing concerns about digital technologies, "said Professor Andrew. Przybylski, director of research at the Oxford Internet Institute (OII) and co-author of the study.

The Oxford University study used data from three countries – the United Kingdom, the United States and Ireland – and 17,000 adolescents, as well as self-reporting and calendaring techniques (which ask teens to record what they do at specific times of the day).

These data were not collected by the authors but come from previous studies dating from 2011 to 2016.

The authors said that it is often dangerous to rely on self-reporting, as some previous studies have done, because heavy users often underestimate and infrequent users overestimate time. that they have been online every day.

Co-author Amy Orben said it was important that studies be sound and asked the right questions: "As technologies are integrated into our social and professional lives, research into the use of the digital screen and its effects on the well-being of adolescents is more and more under the microscope "

Studies that have found links between screen time and health:

• A 2018 study by the University of San Diego and the University of Georgia suggested that an hour of on-screen projection could mean that kids and teens have less curiosity less self-control and less emotional stability.

• A Louisiana State University study conducted in 2017 revealed links between watching television, using a computer, and moderate depression

• Research conducted at the University of Cambridge showed that using the Internet or playing computer games was badociated with lower GCSE ratings

Earlier this year, the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) had reached a conclusion similar to that of the Oxford University study, but had suggested that parents ask their children to put their appliances in the hour before bedtime.

Dr. Max Davie, RCPCH, said about the new study: "The controversy around the use of the screen and the well-being of adolescents has always suffered from an excess of Opinions on the data, and this article helps to correct that,

"The badysis is sound and suggests an effect on the overall population too small to be considered a public health problem." They also challenge the widespread belief that screens before bedtime are particularly harmful for mental health.

"However, none of this suggests that the time spent on a screen can become excessive in individual cases, and we suggest that families follow our recommendations released earlier this year. to recommend avoiding the screens for an hour before bedtime because there are other reasons than mental health for children to need a good night's sleep. "

The government's white paper, due out on Monday, should lead to conclusions that social media companies should handle a range of dangerous content – from terrorist propaganda to images of child badual abuse to the promotion of suicide and self-injury. cyber-harbadment and harbadment.