In the light of a concerning study recently conducted on the after-school habits of 12-year-olds, which was published in the New Zealand Medical Journal, researchers from the University of Otago, Wellington, are urging immediate regulatory measures to protect children from the potential harm caused by excessive online screen time spent at home.
According to the research findings, children are devoting a significant portion of their after-school hours to screen activities, with more than half of that time occurring after 8 pm.
Dr Moira Smith, a senior researcher from the Department of Public Health, highlights that these findings surpass the current guidelines, which recommend less than two hours of screen time per day for school-aged children and adolescents.
The study employed the innovative Kids'Cam project, where 108 participating children wore cameras capturing images every seven seconds, providing a unique insight into their daily lives between 2014 and 2015.
Analysis revealed that children primarily engaged in playing games and watching programmes, with ten percent of their screen time involving the use of multiple devices.
Dr Smith emphasises the detrimental effects of excessive screen use on children's health and well-being. It has been linked to various issues such as obesity, poor mental well-being, disrupted sleep patterns, impaired cognitive function, decreased physical activity, reduced concentration, and difficulties in regulating behavior and emotions.
Furthermore, screen usage has become an integral part of children's daily routines, likely increasing since the collection of data from the Kids'Cam project.
Dr Smith acknowledges the rapid surge in screen use during the COVID-19 pandemic, with children spending more time online in 2023, particularly on smartphones.
According to the latest media use survey, YouTube and Netflix are the most popular platforms for watching programmes, and approximately one in three children under 14 years old use social media, primarily TikTok, which is rated R13.
Dr Smith expresses concerns about children's exposure to advertisements promoting vaping, alcohol, gambling, and unhealthy food, as well as their encounters with sexism, racism, and cyberbullying in the online environment. Notably, cyberbullying is prevalent among children in Aotearoa, with one in four parents reporting that their child has experienced online bullying.
Highlighting the inadequacy of the current legislation in New Zealand in addressing the online world to which children are exposed, Dr Smith commends the recent government proposal for increased regulation of social media, as outlined in the consultation document by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), which expresses concerns about children accessing inappropriate content online.
The researchers from Otago University are currently conducting a study on the online activities of children in Aotearoa using screen capture technology. The results of this investigation are expected to be published soon.
