Recreational Screen Time Behaviors during the COVID-19 Pandemic in the U.S.: A Mixed-Methods Study among a Diverse Population-Based Sample of Emerging Adults

Abstract

Understanding how screen time behaviors changed during the COVID-19 pandemic is important to inform the design of health promotion interventions. The purpose of this study was to quantify and describe changes in recreational screen time from 2018 to 2020 among a diverse sample of emerging adults. Participants (n = 716) reported their average weekly recreational screen time in 2018 and again during the pandemic in 2020. Additionally, participants qualitatively reported how events related to COVID-19 had influenced their screen time. Weekly recreational screen time increased from 25.9 ± 11.9 h in 2018 to 28.5 ± 11.6 h during COVID-19 (p < 0.001). The form of screen time most commonly reported to increase was TV shows and streaming services (n = 233). Commonly reported reasons for changes in screen time were boredom (n = 112) and a desire to connect with others (n = 52). Some participants reported trying to reduce screen time because of its negative impact on their mental health (n = 32). Findings suggest that screen time and mental health may be intertwined during the pandemic as it may lead to poorer mental health for some, while promoting connectedness for others. Health professionals and public health messaging could promote specific forms for screen time to encourage social connection during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.

Changes in Families’ Leisure, Educational/Work and Social Screen Time Behaviours before and during COVID-19 in Australia: Findings from the Our Life at Home Study

“…Screen time has been shown to be negatively associated with social development [5], social quality of life [6] and social connectedness in youth [7] and adults [10]. However, COVID-19 lockdown restrictions resulted in screens being one of the only methods for people to communicate with others outside their house, and the desire to connect with others has been noted as a driver for this change in screen time [29]. Importantly, the magnitude of differences in screen use for social communication between pre-lockdown and during lockdown restrictions was larger amongst children compared to adolescents.…”

Stress, Mood, and Smartphone Use in University Students: A 12-week Longitudinal Study

“…Considerable attention has focused on screen time as a source of elevated distress during the pandemic (Browning et al, 2021;Richtel, 2021;, punctuated by numerous anecdotal reports of people experiencing shock at the increase in their own smartphone and social media use. In a community sample of emerging adults, self-reported recreational screen time increased by 2.6 hours per week, on average, during the pandemic compared to two years earlier (Wagner et al, 2021). In an effort to cope with COVID-19 stress, 79.2% of undergraduate students reported turning to social media-which was correlated with reports of more negative effects of COVID-19 on stress-and 60.4% reported connecting with friends and family using video chat-which was uncorrelated with negative effects of COVID-19 on stress (Prowse et al, 2021).…”

Analysis of Food Habits during Pandemic in a Polish Population-Based Sample of Primary School Adolescents: Diet and Activity of Youth during COVID-19 (DAY-19) Study

“…It should be indicated that increased screen time, which is commonly observed during the COVID-19 pandemic [68], may also be an important factor influencing food habits. A study conducted in a Spanish population of children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic revealed that increased screen time was associated with worse dietary behaviors, including lower intake of fruit, vegetables, fish, pulses, and nuts, but higher intake of fast foods and sweets [69].…”