New Media Usage Habits and Emotional Development in Primary School Children

Abstract

The study, which involved 743 Italian primary school children (47.5% girls; 51.7% boys) with an average age of 8.85 years (SD = 1.104), explores the representation and habits of use of new media. It probes the presence of devices in children’s bedrooms, their habits before falling asleep and when they wake up. The data highlight that the lifestyle of the subjects is characterized by a regular use of the smartphone that is also used in social spaces (restaurants, streets, parks, sea), and highlight a prevalent absence of active mediation by parents. It is observed that most children are active daily on their smartphones in a solitary way and that the rules set by their parents are present only in the minority of the sample. The PCA and Examination of Variance (ANOVA) were also performed. The results also showed that the habit of using the devices influences the results on the Scale Emotional adjustment. It is hypothesized that active mediation by parents and their presence represents a protective factor for children’s emotional development and acts as a regulatory element of digital behavior. The survey also provides food for thought for teachers who could support families, stimulating them to reflect on the importance of their active presence in the relationship with children through digital activity regulation.