- A systemwide approach is needed For healthier digital environments for children.
- Digital media can offer benefits but companies often prioritize profit over child well-being.
- Parents are advised to monitor content, not just screen time, for children's media use.
The nation’s largest pediatrician group is warning parents that setting limits on screen time is probably not enough to make the “digital ecosystem a healthier, safer place for children.”
What’s needed, per a new policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics, is a systemwide approach and support for families as they figure out how to guide children who may even be more comfortable with tech than their parents are. Screens are everywhere: phones, tablets, TVs, apps, games and AI assistants “woven into everyday life.”
Most platforms, the group notes, are designed to make profits, not enhance a child’s health or development.
“Digital Ecosystems, Children and Adolescents” was just published in the journal Pediatrics. It replaces previous guidance from the organization on communications and media, the group said in a news release.
Navigating the terrain well is not as simple as banning social media, which can help children if used properly, per the academy.
“When digital media are designed with children’s well-being as the north star, young people can experience benefits, such as learning and social connection,” said Dr. Tiffany Munzer, lead author of the policy, which was written by the AAP Council on Communications and Media. Munzer is a developmental-behavioral pediatrician and digital media researcher at the University of Michigan.
“But many platforms are guided by an underlying business model to keep users engaged for as long as possible, which can disrupt child sleep, learning, physical health and mood. Our focus should be on designing high quality digital media while supporting families at multiple levels to address their digital media concerns and set kids up for success,” she said in the written statement.
Navigating the screens
The group’s socioecological modeling of media use for kids can be pictured as a set of circles, the group explained, the innermost circle being the child, complete with personality, age and needs. The circle around that one includes family, school and neighborhood. The one surrounding that one includes outside influences like culture, laws and the media companies themselves.
“Each layer influences how digital media affects children’s well-being,” said Dr. Joanna Parga-Belinkie, one of the policy co-authors, quoted in the release. “There are many opportunities in each of these areas to improve how children use digital media so they can grow, learn, connect with others and manage their emotions.”
The academy encourages families to come up with a family media plan based on the “5 Cs of Media Use,” as described by the Center of Excellence on Social Media and Youth Mental Health. The 5 Cs are:
- Context of each child individually
- Content of the media
- Calm or self-regulation
- What’s crowded out
- Communication
Parents are encouraged to pay attention to what children are doing with digital media, not just how much time they’re spending. Families are encouraged to designate media-free spaces. The academy suggestions include in the car, at dinnertime or on weekends for activities, with more based on family habits and needs. Parents need to model good digital media behavior themselves.
Besides paying attention to what their kids are doing and viewing with digital media, parents and children should have lots of conversations about it.
Issues extend beyond parental control
Product manufacturers, policymakers and the industry have a role in seeing that children are not overconsuming or being harmed by media, per the guidelines. Among the recommendations: “Differentiate child users. Platforms used by minors should have child safety teams and a governance structure in which these teams have power and report directly to company leadership.”
As for policymakers, they need to provide families with some alternatives to digital media, the pediatricians said. “Invest in pro-social spaces such as adequate child care, extracurricular opportunities and paid parental leave. Greater investment and access to third spaces, such as libraries, green spaces and community centers can provide enrichment, social activities and physical activity and crowd out digital experiences.”
They also encourage policymakers to fund child-centered media and consider evidence-based school phone policies that prevent distraction during school.
Potential dangers outlined
Munzer blogged about the policy on the academy’s Healthychildren.org site. She noted specific dangers for children from digital media, including a business model designed to:
- Keep kids using the screens for extended periods of time through algorithms
- Collect data from kids “with short, tasty bites of content that can quickly learn about kids’ preferences”
- Sell the latest products
- Offer kids tips to be more popular or successful
Munzer breaks down the harm of unfettered digital media access, looking specifically at different age groups.
She notes that infants up to 5 years old all need actual interaction. Without enough of that, they can have delayed language, thinking, social skills and fine motor development. They can have unhealthy sleep, more angry outbursts and less chance to learn to self-regulate and develop patience, among other issues.
Kids ages 6 to 12 can develop poor sleep patterns, have trouble in school, suffer from less attention control, lose ground on language and thinking and spend less time with friends and family. Those with vision problems may see them get worse. Too much digital media can lead to less exercise, more exposure to calorie-dense foods and higher risk of unhealthy weight gain and the health risks which may come with that.
Teens can suffer sleep loss, feel the pain of peer pressure, get less exercise and have less time with real people including friends and family. That can lead to trouble in school, mental health challenges and being picked on online, including sexual harassment and hate speech based on “religion, social class, looks, body size and more.”