Teenagers and Screen Time

Audiologists often ask how their patients with hearing loss spend their leisure time, both to identify critical listening situations and assist patients with potential listening solutions. For those audiologists with teenage patients, it’s probably no surprise if they mention spending some of their time looking at a screen. 

Zablotsky and colleagues (2024) used data from the July 2021–December 2023 National Health Interview Survey to determine the prevalence of device screen time per weekday by those ages 12–17 years. Specifically, these teens were asked, “On most weekdays, how many hours do you spend a day in front of a TV, computer, cellphone, or other electronic device watching programs, playing games, accessing the internet, or using social media?” In their calculation, they were told to exclude the time spent related to scholastic activities. About half of the respondents (50.4 percent) reported having four or more hours of daily screen time.

The percentage of teenagers who reported four or more hours of daily screen time varied significantly by age, race and Hispanic origin, parental education, and the urbanization level of their place of residence. Teens who reported spending four or more hours each day on screens were significantly more likely to report symptoms including anxiety and depression over the prior two weeks than those who spent less time on their devices.

Reference

Zablotsky B, Arockiaraj B, Haile G, Ng AE. (2024) Daily screen time among teenagers: United States, July 2021–December 2023. NCHS Data Brief 513.