Study challenges commonly held beliefs
By Zhejiang University
Screens are now a routine part of life for many young
children, but their possible effects on later learning remain uncertain. A
study that tracked children from age 1 through age 8 found that greater viewing
time, especially during infancy and near the start of school, was associated
with lower academic performance at age 9 and weaker working memory at age 10.5.
The results indicate that when children use screens may matter as much as how
long they spend using them.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Academy
of Pediatrics advise avoiding screens before 18 to 24 months and limiting
viewing to less than one hour per day between ages 2 and 5. Many children
exceed those recommendations, yet previous research on screens and cognitive
development has produced inconsistent results.
Much of that work has examined children at only one point in
time, concentrated on those already in school, or lacked repeated measurements
across the early years. Following children through several developmental stages
can help researchers identify periods of greater sensitivity while accounting
more carefully for family and environmental factors.
Repeated tracking tests when exposure matters
Researchers from Inserm and the National University of
Singapore conducted the investigation, which was recently published in
the World Journal of Pediatrics. Using information from the Growing
Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) birth cohort, they evaluated
parent-reported screen viewing at six different ages, then measured academic
achievement and working memory years later.
Screen
time in early childhood may have lasting effects on learning and memory.
Children who spent more time viewing screens during early childhood tended to
show poorer academic performance and weaker working memory years later. The
strongest associations were observed for screen exposure during infancy,
suggesting that early childhood may be a particularly sensitive period for
cognitive development. Credit: World Journal of Pediatrics
Infancy and school entry stand out
The analysis included 502 children followed from infancy
into middle childhood. Higher screen viewing during particular stages was
associated with poorer academic results and weaker working memory later on. The
clearest and most consistent relationships appeared during infancy and near
school entry, suggesting that these may be especially sensitive periods for
cognitive development.
Children with greater total screen exposure across childhood
also generally performed less well in school. Together, the findings suggest
that both the timing and overall amount of viewing may have implications for
learning and memory.
“The effect sizes we saw at age 1 were the largest among all
time points we examined,” the authors said. “That suggests early infancy may be
a window of heightened sensitivity, when the developing brain is particularly
vulnerable to the displacement of learning interactions by screen time. We were
also surprised to see that while screen use at age 2 and 3 did not show
significant links, the associations re-emerged at age 6—when children enter
formal schooling. So it is not just about early years; screen use later in
childhood still matters.”
Small effects could matter widely
The authors said the results support the view that “less is
better” for children’s screen viewing. An additional hour per day may not
produce an obvious effect in every child, but even small differences across a
population could shift a meaningful number of children toward poorer academic
outcomes.
Efforts to reduce screen use may therefore be most useful
when they begin in infancy and are reinforced as children approach school age.
The authors also noted that future studies should look beyond duration to
examine the quality of content, the type of device used, and whether parents
watch alongside their children, since each of these factors could shape
developmental outcomes.
Reference: “Screen viewing time from age 1 to 8 years and
subsequent academic performance and working memory” by Shuai Yang, Natarajan
Padmapriya, Saw Seang-Mei, Chong Yap Seng, Lynette P. Shek, Peter D. Gluckman,
Keith M. Godfrey, Johan G. Eriksson, Falk Müller-Riemenschneider, Evelyn C. Law
and Jonathan Y. Bernard, 3 June 2026, World Journal of Pediatrics.
DOI:
10.1007/s12519-026-01046-1
