ATTITUDE OF PARENTS TOWARDS SCREEN USAGE FOR CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF SIX YEARS

Author Name: 1. Mr. Utsav Jain, 2. Dr. M. U. Mansuri, 3. Dr. Shobha Kundgol

Volume/Issue: 12/05

Country: India

DOI NO.: 08.2020-25662434 DOI Link: https://doi-ds.org/doilink/05.2025-85539771/UIJIR

Affiliation:

1. Ph.D. Nursing Scholar, Sai Tirupati University, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India
2. Dean, Department of Nursing, Sai Tirupati University, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India
3. Professor, Venkateshwar College of Nursing, Sai Tirupati University, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India.

ABSTRACT

Background: Children and teenagers spend a lot of time in front of screens, such as computers, game consoles, televisions, tablets, and cell phones. Controlling screen time is essential to preventing the negative health effects of extended screen time. Objectives: Assessment of parents’ attitude on screen usage among preschool children. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on a convenience sample of 225 parents of children under 6 years of age in Udaipur. Data were collected by using questionnaire. The data were analyzed using SPSS software. Results: The study included 225 parents from the Udaipur. Most of the participating parents were female (64.3%), aged 26-30 years (34.8%), and had completed their university education (56.1%). This study found that 76.4% of parents had adequate knowledge, 73.1% had a positive attitude, and 69.8% had adequate practice of screen time regulation for their children under six years of age. Furthermore, highly educated parents showed more positive attitudes than others (p-value = 0.004). Finally, better practice of screen time regulation was noted among highly educated parents (p = 0.011). Conclusion: Parents of preschool children in this study had a positive attitude and generally good knowledge, but they did not actually practice regulating their children's screen time. This was especially true when it came to monitoring the content that their children watched, making sure they were getting regular exercise, and using technology to reward or discipline their kids. Sociodemographic traits like marital status, occupation, and level of education also contributed to this problem. Pediatricians, family physicians, general practitioners, and other medical specialists can warn parents of young children under six about the negative effects of excessive screen use. To comprehend the long-term impacts of young children's screen time exposure, more longitudinal study is required. Additional qualitative research based on this study might help us better understand how parents’ attitudes, and practices affect their kids' screen time.

Key words: Attitude, parents, computers, televisions, screen time, children