Parents worry about their children being glued to screens for hours a day – but now scientists have found evidence that in moderation, it can be good for teenagers’ emotional well-being.
Screen time “good” for teens
Researchers from Oxford University’s Internet Institute analysed self-reported data from 120,000 15-year-olds across the UK, and found that using smartphones and computers, and playing video games, was associated with higher levels of well-being – at least, up to a point. With computers, well-being “peaked” at four hours and 17 minutes a day on weekdays, before starting to dip again; when it came to watching TV, this “Goldilocks” moment (not too much, not too little) came at three hours and 41 minutes; for video games, it was one hour and 40 minutes; while for smartphone use, it was one hour and 57 minutes. When it came to weekend use, even longer periods were associated with increased well-being. “Our research suggests that some connectivity is probably better than none, and there are moderate levels that as in the story of Goldilocks are ‘just right’,” said lead author Dr Andrew Przybylski. However, the study didn’t consider the implications for other aspects of teenage development; nor did it calculate the cumulative effect of using multiple devices.
This story is from the January 28 2017 edition of The Week UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the January 28 2017 edition of The Week UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Khalid Masood: The Making Of A Killer
Last Tuesday, Khalid Masood checked into the £59-a-night Preston Park Hotel in Brighton.
Europe's Faustian Bargain
A year ago, the EU and Turkey made a controversial deal to stem the flow of refugees into Europe. How has it panned out?
Carswell's Defection: Has UKIP Had It?
“Douglas Carswell was once the golden boy of UKIP,” said Tim Stanley in The Sunday Telegraph: “its first elected MP, its brightest intellect, its shot at respectability.”
The North Korea problem
Donald Trump warned this week that he was ready to tackle the nuclear threat from North Korea with or without help from China.
Europe's Last Colony
Spain has long been determined to regain sovereignty over “the Rock” at its southern tip, but Gibraltar remains stubbornly British.
His Only Crime Was Coming Home
As Western-backed forces push Islamic State out of Mosul, its militants are laying minefields in their wake – aimed not at soldiers but at ordinary people who have come back to rebuild their lives. Colin Freeman went on a tour of Iraq’s new killing fields
The Modest Dutch Designer Who Made Millions From Miffy
Dick Bruna, who has died aged 89, created one of the most instantly recognisable characters in children’s literature, said The New York Times: the sparsely drawn white rabbit known in English as Miffy.
Trump's conflict of interest: how will he deal with it?
Donald Trump ran, and won, on a promise to “drain the swamp” of Washington corruption, said Eugene Robinson in The Washington Post. But so far, he seems intent on deepening it. The president-elect owns or has stakes in around 500 companies, at least 111 of which do business overseas. This creates a massive and unprecedented conflict of interest. One of Trump’s biggest lenders, for example, is Germany’s Deutsche Bank, currently negotiating a multibillion-dollar settlement with the Justice Department over abuses that contributed to the 2008 market crash.
What the scientists are saying...
What the scientists are saying...
Cricket: Kohli hammers England
The end was “swift” and brutal, said Vic Marks in The Guardian. On the final morning of the fourth Test, in Mumbai, India needed less than half an hour to take England’s last four wickets. They thrashed the visitors by an innings and 36 runs to seal a 3-0 series victory, with the fifth Test still to be played.
