The Effects of Using Music to Decrease Screen Time in Preschool Aged Children

Abstract

As children age, sedentary behavior increases, largely due to screen time. The goal of this study was to examine the effectiveness of using music and physical activity to decrease screen time among 2-5 year old children. Parent-child dyads were randomly assigned to either a screen time intervention (N=6) or screen time + music intervention (N=7) group. Parents and children wore accelerometers for 1-week before and after the intervention and parents recorded their child’s screen time during the same weeks. Members of each group attended an introductory seminar and participated in a 4-week intervention. All participants received an email newsletter each week during the intervention with information and strategies for decreasing screen time using physical activity. The newsletters for the screen time + music intervention group also included songs to use as an alternative to screen time. All parent participants were asked to complete a process evaluation at the end of each week, where they listed challenges, successes, and effective physical activities or strategies. Parents in the screen time intervention group reported a small decrease (d=.39) of 16.4 (41.5) minutes in daily child screen time from baseline to week 4 of the intervention, and parents in the screen time + music intervention group reported a moderate decrease (d=.65) of 23.3 (42.5) minutes. Daily child sedentary time increased by 44.9 (32.4; d=-1.5) minutes in the screen time intervention group. A decrease in daily child sedentary time (d=1.4) of 45.4 (46.5) minutes occurred in the screen time + music intervention group. Parents in both groups reported that bad weather, long car rides, and using screen time as family time were challenges to limiting screen time. Going for walks or bicycle rides with friends and family were commonly reported among both groups as effective physical activities. This intervention successfully decreased screen time in both groups, and decreased sedentary time in the screen time + music intervention group. Using music resulted in a larger effect on decreasing both screen time and sedentary time. Having resources with strategies for meeting screen time and physical activity guidelines was helpful to parents enrolled in the study. Substituting physical activity for screen time is worth investigating further in future studies.