Smartphones can have a negative impact on children’s language development. This is the result of a recent study from Australia. According to the study, too much screen time would cost up to 1,000 words a day.
Many parents hand their children a smartphone to keep them occupied. But if adolescents spend too much time in front of screens instead of playing games, they miss out on important moments of conversation. Too much screen time can even impair language development, warn researchers from Australia in a recent study.
Smartphones impair language development
According to the results of the study, children hear fewer words from adults, interact less with them and are less aware of conversations while spending time on their smartphones. However, language development is based on precisely such moments.
In order to find out how digital media affects linguistic interactions within the family, the researchers collected data from a total of 220 families every six months over a period of almost four years. On an average 16-hour day, they recorded the screen time of twelve to 36-month-old children and examined their linguistic environment.
Screen time: children miss out on up to 1,000 words a day
The researchers came to the conclusion that parent-child conversations declined continuously the more screen time was used. As a result, the children took part in fewer conversations, heard fewer words and spoke less themselves. The researchers observed the greatest decline in language use among three-year-old adolescents.
According to the study results, children aged 36 months would miss an average of around 1,000 words with 172 minutes of screen time per day. Based on the maximum recommended screen time of one hour per day by the World Health Organization (WHO), children would still miss 400 words per day.
The researchers advise reducing screen time to avoid negative effects on educational progress. However, it is unrealistic to completely do without digital devices. Instead, families should be encouraged to use screen time as an opportunity to interact with children.
