Computer tablet use linked to angry outbursts among toddlers, research shows

While allowing little kids to stare at a computer screen often gives parents a much-needed respite, new research suggests cutting back on the practice, with early tablet use linked to increased outbursts later on. 

Children logging 75 minutes or more of daily screen time at 3 1/2 years old were more apt to outbursts of anger and frustration a year later, a study published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics found. 

Further, the findings suggest a vicious cycle is in play, with little kids who were more apt toward expressions of anger and frustration at 4 1/2 years old likely to spend even more time on an iPad a year later. 

“It might allow parents to immediately avoid a temper tantrum but in the long term, repeated use of this kind of strategy does not allow children to develop strong, internal emotional regulation skills,” the study’s author, Caroline Fitzpatrick, a professor of child development at the University of Sherbrooke in Quebec, told CBS Evening News.

The study’s findings are based on a survey of 315 parents of preschool-aged children living in Nova Scotia, Canada. Participants self-reported tablet use by their kids at 3 1/2 years of age, a year later at 4 1/2 years old, and then at 5 1/2 years, in 2022. Parents also answered standard questions to access their children’s expressions of anger.

Still, some parents find a little bit of tablet time can be a big help, without causing any apparent harm.

Atlanta mother Farrah Butler occasionally allows her 3-year-old son, Oliver, to play on an iPad, particularly when she needs a break or is trying to get something done, such as cook dinner.

“The screen is helpful when you’re trying to get daily tasks done, when they want you to play and you just need to take a few minutes,” Butler said. She and her husband have found that Oliver and his two siblings didn’t mind too much when their mobile screens were taken away. “They found other things to do with their time,” she relayed.