Canadian Research Team Expresses Concerns Over Increasing Tablet Use Leading to Rise in Anger and Frustration,
‘(Seoul=Yonhap News) By Lee Joo-young = A study has shown that as the use of tablets increases among 3.5- to 5.5-year-olds, expressions of anger and frustration also increase. Researchers warn that the increasing use of tablets and the rise in expressions of anger and frustration could lead to a vicious cycle, increasing the risk of emotional regulation disorders.
Canada’s Université de Sherbrooke research team led by Dr. Caroline Fitzpatrick published the results in the medical journal JAMA Pediatrics on the 14th, revealing the association between tablet use and expressions of anger and frustration over a three-year period involving 315 parents of preschool children.
The research team noted that while preschool children’s tablet use continues to increase and mobile device use is known to be related to emotional regulation disorders in children, there is a lack of clear evidence showing the association between tablet use and the development of self-regulation abilities.
In this study, the research team surveyed and analyzed the tablet use time and expressions of anger and frustration of 315 parents of 171 boys and 144 girls aged 3.5 to 5.5 living in Nova Scotia from 2020 to 2022.
The tablet use time of the surveyed children was found to be 6.5 hours per week at the age of 3.5, 6.7 hours at 4.5, and 7.0 at 5.5.
The analysis showed that children who spent an additional 1.15 hours on tablets at the age of 3.5 had a 22% increase in expressions of anger and frustration at the age of 4.5.
Furthermore, in the relationship between expressions of anger and frustration and tablet use time, children with more expressions of anger and frustration at the age of 4.5 were found to increase their tablet use time by 0.28 hours per day at the age of 5.5.
The research team explained that the study results demonstrate that as children’s tablet use time increases, expressions of anger and frustration also increase, and as expressions of anger and frustration increase, the tablet use time could extend, creating a repeating vicious cycle.
They emphasized that the ability to effectively control anger and frustration is crucial for school education and future health, urging parents to pay more attention to how tablet use during early childhood can interfere with their children’s ability to manage anger and frustration, potentially increasing outbursts of anger.
◆ Source: JAMA Pediatrics, Caroline Fitzpatrick et al., ‘Early-Childhood Tablet Use and Outbursts of Anger’, https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.2511?guestAccessKey=c061e62c-589d-4e07-8fff-5ed9233e5c78&utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_content=tfl&utm_term=081224