Cognitive Effects of Daily Screen Time Habits among Early Adolescents
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Background: Screen time has become a normal part of daily life for early adolescents. Many young students switch between schoolwork, videos, gaming, and social media throughout the day. Some of this use is helpful and even necessary, especially for learning. However, long hours on screens are concerning and affect attention, memory, and overall thinking skills. Sleep disturbance caused by late-night screen use may also influence how well students perform in school. Objective: To explore how daily screen-time habits relate to basic cognitive functions in early adolescents aged 11 to 14 years. The focus was on attention, working memory, processing speed, and sleep quality. Methodology: This study used a cross-sectional design to examine associations between screen-time habits and cognitive functioning in early adolescents. We recruited 100 students, aged 12 to 14 years, from four different schools. Schools were selected through convenience sampling within the local region; within each school, students were approached randomly during regular school hours after obtaining permission from school authorities and parental consent. Students with known neurological, developmental, or serious health conditions were excluded to avoid confounding. Each participant completed a self-administered questionnaire capturing their daily screen-time habits. Participants completed a short sleep-quality scale, adapted from existing sleep questionnaires, to report usual bedtime, wake-up time, sleep disturbances, and subjective sleep quality. Cognitive assessment of participants was carried out using standardized short tasks. Pearson correlation analyses were conducted to explore linear relationships and multiple linear regression models were constructed to test the predictive value. Results: Students who spent more than three hours a day on recreational screens, especially at night, showed lower attention and weaker working-memory scores. Their reaction times were slower, and many reported disturbed sleep. On the other hand, moderate academic screen use did not show major negative effects and, in some cases, showed slightly better performance. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that parents and teachers should guide early adolescents toward healthy and balanced screen habits. It is important to limit recreational or entertainment screen time, especially during the evening, as this can affect sleep and overall brain function. Encouraging good
Downloads
Article Details
Issue
Section
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
References
1. Onyeaka HK, Muoghalu C, Baiden P, et al. Excessive screen time behaviors and cognitive difficulties among adolescents in the United States: Results from the 2017 and 2019 national youth risk behavior survey. Psychiatry Research 2022; 316: 114740.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2022.114740 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2022.114740
2. Poujol MC, Pinar-Martí A, Persavento C, et al. Impact of mobile phone screen exposure on adolescents' cognitive health. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2022; 19(19): 12070.
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912070 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912070
3. Sarvajna DH, Winston JS, Puttanna D, et al. Screen-time exposure and modality-specific working memory capacity in adolescents. International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health 2025.
https://doi.org/10.1515/ijamh-2025-0148 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/ijamh-2025-0148
4. Liu J, Riesch S, Tien J, et al. Screen media overuse and associated physical, cognitive, and emotional/behavioral outcomes in children and adolescents: an integrative review. Journal of Pediatric Health Care: Official Publication of National Association of Pediatric Nurse Associates & Practitioners 2022; 36(2): 99–109.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedhc.2021.06.003 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedhc.2021.06.003
5. Kar SS, Dube R, Goud BKM, et al. Impact of screen time on development of children. Children (Basel, Switzerland) 2025; 12(10): 1297.
https://doi.org/10.3390/children12101297 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/children12101297
6. Nagata JM, Lee CM, Hur JO, Baker FC. What we know about screen time and social media in early adolescence: a review of findings from the adolescent brain cognitive development study. Current Opinion in Pediatrics 2025; 37(4): 357–364.
https://doi.org/10.1097/MOP.0000000000001462 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/MOP.0000000000001462
7. Paulich KN, Ross JM, Lessem JM, Hewitt JK. Screen time and early adolescent mental health, academic, and social outcomes in 9- and 10- year old children: utilizing the adolescent brain cognitive development ℠ (ABCD) study. PloS One 2021; 16(9), e0256591.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256591 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0256591
8. Eirich R, McArthur BA, Anhorn C, et al. Association of screen time with internalizing and externalizing behavior problems in children 12 years or younger: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Psychiatry 2022; 79: 393–405.
https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2022.0155 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2022.0155
9. Cheung MC, Yip J, Cheung JPY. Influence of screen time during covid-19 on health-related quality of life of early adolescents. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2022; 19(17): 10498.
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191710498 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191710498
10. Soares PSM, de Oliveira PD, Wehrmeister FC, et al. Screen time and working memory in adolescents: a longitudinal study. Journal of Psychiatric Research 2021; 137: 266–272.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.02.066 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.02.066
11. Dong N, Zhou Y, Lei L, et al. The longitudinal impact of screen media activities on brain function, architecture and mental health in early adolescence. International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology: IJCHP 2025; 25(3): 100589.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijchp.2025.100589 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijchp.2025.100589
12. Muppalla SK, Vuppalapati S, Pulliahgaru AR, Sreenivasulu H. Effects of excessive screen time on child development: an updated review and strategies for management. Cureus 2023; 15(6): e40608.
https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.40608 DOI: https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.40608
13. Naing L, Hassen S, Sharbini S, et al. The relationship between the use of screen-based devices and self-reported sleep quality in adolescents aged 13-19 years in Brunei. BMC Public Health 2024; 24(1): 3270.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-20453-5 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-20453-5
14. Atkin AJ, Dainty JR, Dumuid D, et al. Adolescent time use and mental health: a cross-sectional, compositional analysis in the millennium cohort study. BMJ Open 2021; 11(10): e047189.
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-047189 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-047189
15. Madigan S, McArthur BA, Anhorn C, et al. Associations between screen use and child language skills: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Pediatrics 2020; 174(7): 665–675.
https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2020.0327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2020.0327
16. Panjeti-Madan VN, Ranganathan P. Impact of screen time on children’s development: cognitive, language, physical, and social and emotional domains. Multimodal Technologies and Interaction 2023; 7(5): 52.
https://doi.org/10.3390/mti7050052 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/mti7050052
17. Stiglic N, Viner RM. Effects of screentime on the health and well-being of children and adolescents: a systematic review of reviews. BMJ Open 2019; 9(1): e023191.
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2018-023191 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2018-023191
18. Arshad D, Joyia UM, Fatima S, et al. The adverse impact of excessive smartphone screen-time on sleep quality among young adults: a prospective cohort. Sleep Science (Sao Paulo, Brazil) 2021; 14(4): 337–341.
https://doi.org/10.5935/1984-0063.20200114 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5935/1984-0063.20200114
19. Brown DMY, Porter C, Hamilton F, et al. Interactive associations between physical activity and sleep duration in relation to adolescent academic achievement. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2022; 19(23): 15604.
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315604 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315604
20. Clemente-Suárez VJ, Beltrán-Velasco AI, Herrero-Roldán S, et al. Digital device usage and childhood cognitive development: exploring effects on cognitive abilities. Children (Basel, Switzerland) 2024; 11(11): 1299.
https://doi.org/10.3390/children11111299 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/children11111299