Association between children's intended screen time use and behavior problems in Japan: the Hokkaido Study on Environmental and Children's Health.

Naomi TAMURA; Keiko YAMAZAKI; Chihiro MIYASHITA; Atsuko IKEDA; Ammara AJMAL; Satoshi SUYAMA; Takashi HIKAGE; Manabu OMIYA; Masahiro MIZUTA; Reiko KISHI

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Association between children's intended screen time use and behavior problems in Japan: the Hokkaido Study on Environmental and Children's Health.

Author: Naomi TAMURA ¹ ; Keiko YAMAZAKI ¹ ; Chihiro MIYASHITA ¹ ; Atsuko IKEDA ¹ ; Ammara AJMAL ¹ ; Satoshi SUYAMA ² ; Takashi HIKAGE ³ ; Manabu OMIYA ⁴ ; Masahiro MIZUTA ⁵ ; Reiko KISHI ¹
Author Information

1. Center for Environmental and Health Sciences, Hokkaido University.
2. Funded Research Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Hokkaido University Hospital.
3. Graduate School/Faculty of Information Science and Technology, Hokkaido University.
4. Information Initiative Center, Hokkaido University.
5. Center for Training Professors in Statistics, The Institute of Statistical Mathematics.
Publication Type:Journal Article
Keywords: Birth cohort; Children’s health; Cross-sectional study; Screen behavior; Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire
MeSH: Humans; Screen Time; Child; Japan/epidemiology*; Male; Female; Adolescent; Problem Behavior/psychology*; Surveys and Questionnaires; Child Behavior; Television/statistics & numerical data*; Video Games/statistics & numerical data*
From:Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine 2025;30():82-82
CountryJapan
Language:English
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Long screen time hours may be associated with behavioral problems in children. To better understand the relationship between children's behavioral problems and screen time, it the associated risk factors must be subdivided based on the purpose underlying screen use. This study examined the relationship between screen time based on intended usage and behavioral problems in Japan.
METHODS:This study included 3,332 children aged between 7-17 years from the Hokkaido Study on Environment and Children's Health. From October 2020 to October 2021, the children and their parents answered questionnaires on the children's screen use duration (never used, <30 min, ≥30 min & <1 hour, ≥1 h & <2 h, ≥2 h) based on seven intended usage categories: watching television/video, video gaming, reading books/comics, sending/receiving e-mail/messages, browsing/posting on social networking services, studying for classes/homework, drawing/editing pictures/photos/videos, along with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Logistic regression was used to analyze the association between screen time, purpose of children's screen use, and behavioral problems across the 13 SDQ total scores.
RESULTS:The mean ± standard deviation age of the participants was 12.4 ± 2.4-years-old, 487 (14.6%) children were determined to have behavioral problems, and the duration of screen time increased with their age. The children's primary purposes for screen use were watching television/video, video gaming, sending/receiving e-mail/messages, and browsing/posting on social networking services. Children who reported playing video games for ≥2 hours on weekdays had higher odds of problematic total difficulties scores than never user (Odds Ratio: 2.10, 95% confidence interval: 1.45-3.06).
CONCLUSION:Long video gaming screen time is associated with behavioral issues, hyperactivity/inattention, and prosocial behaviors in children. Conversely, watching television and videos for 30 min-1 h per day, using e-mail or messaging, and using social networking services were significantly association with reduced odds ratio for peer relationship problems as compared to children who never engaged in these activities. Longitudinal follow-up is needed to further examine screen time and problem behaviors.