Background Television in the Homes of US Children

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: US parents were surveyed to determine the amount of background television that their children are exposed to as well as to isolate demographic factors associated with increased exposure to background television. After this, we ask how certain home media practices are linked to children’s background television exposure. METHODS: US parents/caregivers (N = 1454) with 1 child between the ages of 8 months and 8 years participated in this study. A nationally representative telephone survey was conducted. Parents were asked to report on their child’s exposure to background television via a 24-hour time diary. Parents were also asked to report relevant home media behaviors related to their child: bedroom television ownership, number of televisions in the home, and how often a television was on in the home. RESULTS: The average US child was exposed to 232.2 minutes of background television on a typical day. With the use of multiple regression analysis, we found that younger children and African American children were exposed to more background television. Leaving the television on while no one is viewing and children’s bedroom television ownership were associated with increased background television exposure. CONCLUSIONS: Although recent research has shown the negative consequences associated with background television, this study provides the first nationally representative estimates of that exposure. The amount of exposure for the average child is startling. This study offers practitioners potential pathways to reduce exposure.

Infant Self-Regulation and Early Childhood Media Exposure

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Masked Speech Perception Thresholds in Infants, Children, and Adults

“…Understanding how masked speech perception develops is important because infants must learn about speech and language in natural environments that often contain multiple sources of competing sounds. For instance, a number of studies have shown that infants tend to spend more time in environments containing competing sounds than they do in quiet (e.g., van de Weijer 1998; Barker and Newman 2004; Lapierre et al 2012; Ambrose et al 2014). …”

Cyber Babies: The Impact of Emerging Technology on the Developing Infant

“…Background TV refers to adult media content that is on while children are in the room but is unintelligible to them (Lapierre, Piotrowski, & Linebarger, 2012). Parents can often leave the TV on in the home regardless of whether someone is watching it or not (Parenting in the Age of Digital Technology: A National Survey, 2013; Roberts & Foehr, 2004).…”

“…Parents can often leave the TV on in the home regardless of whether someone is watching it or not (Parenting in the Age of Digital Technology: A National Survey, 2013; Roberts & Foehr, 2004). According to Lapierre, Piotrowski, and Linebarger (2012), on average, US children are exposed to 232.2 minutes of background TV on a typical day. Research has found that rapid visual and auditory changes can distract young children from exploration and toy playtime as their attention is directed towards the screen numerous times during a play session (Schmidt, Pempek, Kirkorian, Lund, & Anderson, 2008).…”