The relationship between screen time, socio-economic background and adolescent wellbeing: A time diary study of 14-year-olds

Grace Chang , University of Southampton

Rapid technological advancement in our daily lives has led to concerns about adolescent screen time and their wellbeing. However, less discussed is variations in these relationships by types of screen activities, and factors which determine inequalities in these relationships. Using time diaries of 14-year-olds in the UK, I examine how time spent on four types of screen activities – social screen time, internet browsing/audio content, video games or watching TV or DVDs – relate to several domains of adolescent wellbeing. Using linear regression estimates, I find that social screen time and internet browsing/audio content are negatively associated to all domains of adolescent wellbeing, but to a lesser extent for playing video games or watching TV or DVDs. Girls report lower self-reported wellbeing scores in association to screen time, but these sex differences are less pronounced when comparing parent-reported scores. Adolescents of higher educated parents seem to have larger negative wellbeing associations to social screen time, especially if the activity was performed on a weekday. Conversely, internet browsing is more negatively associated to adolescent wellbeing from lower educated parents if performed on a weekend. I show that not all screen activities are detrimental to adolescent wellbeing, with variations by how wellbeing is reported, adolescent characteristics and when the activity was performed.

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 Presented in Session P1. Postercafe