ArticleBMC public health2023
Measuring effects of screen time on the development of children in the Philippines: a cross-sectional study.
Article in BMC public health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 32 citations in OpenAlex.
- Digital Intervention in Children With Developmental Language Disorder: Systematic Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Pooled it
- Digital Screen Time and Mental Health Difficulties Among Preschool Children in Western China: Cross-Sectional Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Article
- Screen Exposure and Childhood Adiposity in Socially Vulnerable Settings: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR pediatrics and parenting · 2026Article
- Article
- Parental Attitudes and Digital Parenting in the Early Years: Development and Validation of the PADTS Scale.Child: care, health and development · 2026Article
- Effect of Screen Time on Language Development Among Toddlers and Preschool Children in Al Qatif, Saudi Arabia.Cureus · 2026Article
- Associations Between Screen Time, Sleep, and Executive Function in School-Aged Children and Adolescents: The Moderating Role of Digital Content and Age.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Digital Media Use and Screen Time Exposure Among Youths: A Lifestyle-Based Public Health Concern.Cureus · 2025Review
- Screen Time Matters: Exploring the Behavioral Effects of Devices on Saudi Children.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Problematic Digital Technology Use Measures in Children Aged 0 to 6 Years: Scoping Review.JMIR mental health · 2025Article
- Association of digital media use with sleep habits in school children: A cross-sectional study.Sleep medicine: X · 2024Article
- Is There an Association Between Cesarean Section Delivery with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) or/and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)? A Cross-Sectional Study in Greek Population.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Screen Time and Its Health Consequences in Children and Adolescents.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Review
- The longitudinal impact of screen media activities on brain function, architecture and mental health in early adolescence.International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHPArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundScreen time in young children is discouraged because of its negative effects on their development. However, excessive screen media use has been rising, particularly during the global pandemic when stay-at-home mandates were placed on young children in several countries. This study documents potential developmental effects of excessive screen media use.
methodThis is a cross-sectional study. Participants were 24 to 36 month old Filipino children recruited through non-probable convenience sampling from August to October 2021. Regression analyses were performed to test the association between screen time and changes in scaled scores for skills and behaviors determined from the Adaptive Behavior Scale and to identify factors associated with increased screen media use.
resultsIncreased odds of excessive use of screen media of children by 4.19 when parents watch excessively and 8.56 times greater odds when children are alone compared to watching with a parent or other children. When adjusted for co-viewing, more than 2 h of screen time is significantly associated with decrease in receptive and expressive language scores. The effects on personal skills, interpersonal relationships and play and leisure skills were only statistically significant at 4 to 5 or more hours of screen time use.
conclusionThe study found that spending no more than 2 h screen time had minimal negative effects on development and that use beyond 2 h was associated with poorer language development among 2 year olds. There is less excessive screen media use when a child co-views with an adult, sibling or other child and when parents likewise have less screen time themselves.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.