SCREEN TIME AND LANGUAGE DELAY IN CHILDREN: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY IN A SOUTHEAST ASIAN COUNTRY

Received 2021-09-04; Accepted 2022-03-22; Published 2022-11-23

Authors

  • See Jing Kai Department of Paediatrics, Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital, Jalan Tanah Putih, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
  • Subhashini Jayanath Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
  • Mohamad Shafiq Azanan Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22452/jummec.vol25no2.17

Keywords:

children, language delay, screen time, Southeast Asia, speech delay

Abstract

Background: This questionnaire-based cross-sectional study aimed to ascertain the: (1) prevalence of excessive screen device usage among children with speech and/or language delay, (2) age of first introduction of screen device(s), and (3) association between children’s total screen time and media parenting practices.

Methods: 62 children aged 1-5 years who were referred for speech and/or language delay were recruited from a general paediatrics clinic. Data on children’s total screen time, age of exposure to screen device(s), parents’ total screen time and media parenting practices were collected.

Results: 56 children (90.3%) had excessive screen time. There was a high prevalence of excessive screen time with early exposure to screen devices. A significant positive relationship was found between parents’ and children’s screen time (p=0.010). Children’s screen time was negatively associated with parental encouragement of non-screen activities (p=0.006) and positively associated with parental reduction of screen time as punishment (p=0.015).

Conclusions: Parents should model good screen time practices and create opportunities for non-screen based alternative activities within the home environment. Usage of screen time as a means of regulating behaviour should be discouraged.

Author Biographies

  • See Jing Kai, Department of Paediatrics, Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital, Jalan Tanah Putih, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.

    Dr See Jing Kai, MD, is a Paediatrician at Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital. His main research interest is child health and child development.

  • Subhashini Jayanath, Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

    Dr Subhashini Jayanath, MPaeds, MD, BSc (MedSc), is a Consultant Developmental Paediatrician & Senior Lecturer at University of Malaya. Her main research interests are child development and autism spectrum disorder.

  • Mohamad Shafiq Azanan , Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

    Dr Mohamad Shafiq Azanan, BSc (Hons), PhD, is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Paediatrics, University of Malaya. He works in the field of paediatric research.

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Published

2022-11-23

Issue

Vol. 25 No. 2 (2022)

Section

Research article

License

All authors agree that the article, if editorially accepted for publication, shall be licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 to allow others to freely access, copy and use research provided the author is correctly attributed, unless otherwise stated. All articles are available online without charge or other barriers to access. However, anyone wishing to reproduce large quantities of an article (250+) should inform the publisher. Any opinion expressed in the articles are those of the authors and do not reflect that of the University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 

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