Objective: To examine the use of television by children and adolescents, as well as the effect of television viewing on sleep, attention, and relationships.

Design: Review of research on television viewing and sleep, attention, and interpersonal relationships among children and adolescents, as identified through a PubMed literature search.

Subjects and Setting: N/A

Intervention(s): N/A

Outcome Measures: Television usage. Sleep, attention, and relationship outcomes associated with television usage.

Results: Studies suggested that time spent watching television by youth has remained relatively stable at 2.5-3 hours per day from 1949 to present, although viewing is no longer limited to live television programming. A 2009 national study of children and adolescents, ages 8-18, found that youth now watch television through a variety of media platforms and often while engaging with other media. Cross-sectional research suggested that television viewing was associated with problematic sleep behaviors, including less time spent in bed, later bedtimes, irregular naptimes, and sleep disturbances. Longitudinal studies have found significant relationships between early television viewing and attention problems later in childhood and adolescence, although the relationship was not always significant. Lastly, research findings suggest that time spent watching television may negatively affect interpersonal relationships by displacing time spent with family and peers.

Conclusion: Research on television use by children and adolescents suggests that time spent watching television is associated with sleep, attention, and relationship problems. More research can illuminate the effects of newer media and assist in the development of evidence-based guidelines for safe and appropriate media use. © Center on Media and Child Healthreturn