Examining the short-term effects of video exposure on children’s attention and other cognitive processes

The literature suggests that fast editing pace (usually operationalised with a number of cuts and scene changes; McCollum & Bryant, 2003), which is typical of much of children’s programming, may have detrimental developmental consequences. Previous studies that examined the effects of fast pace on children’s attention and cognition produced inconclusive findings. The major weakness of this research was using programmes that varied in both pace and content. Thus, this thesis focused on examining the effects of the differential editing (fast vs. slow) using specially produced videos, which allowed manipulating the pace while maintaining strict content control. Experiments 1-4 investigated the short-term effects of differentially paced videos on children’s attention. In these experiments, attention was either measured indirectly, through an observation of play (Experiment 1) or directly with a continuous performance task (Experiments 2-4). To address the recent proposals about the potential detrimental role of pace and content on children’s executive function (Lillard, Drell, Richey, Boguszewski, & Smith, 2015; Lillard & Peterson, 2011), Experiments 3 and 4 included the assessment of the inhibitory control component of executive function. Additionally, Experiments 2 and 5 employed psychophysiological methods (i.e., electroencephalography and cardiovascular measures) to investigate the effects of pace and content on internal attentional and inhibitory processing. Finally, a questionnaire study measured children’s current media preferences and use and investigated parental supervision methods and media beliefs. Results indicated that watching fast-paced videos resulted in more unsettled behaviour during play and less thoughtful responding on the formal laboratory tests of attention. Moreover, the pace of video editing affected neural processes that underpin inhibition. Finally, watching the videos containing elements of fantasy improved children’s inhibitory control. By identifying harmful features, as well as the potential benefits of watching videos, this new evidence contributes to a better understanding of how to optimise children’s media use

Disentangling the effects of video pace and story realism on children’s attention and response inhibition

This study examined the influence of the realism (realistic vs. unrealistic) and pace (slow vs. fast), in a video of an actor reading a story, on 4-year-old children’s attention and response inhibition. After establishing baseline cognitive performance, 187 children watched novel videos that manipulated realism and pace, while keeping other programme features constant. Irrespective of the pace, watching the videos which presented unrealistic stories improved children’s response inhibition. For attention, there was an interaction between pace and realism. Exposure to the fast-paced video resulted in faster responding, but only when the story was realistic. Together the results suggest that a story’s realism, rather than the video’s pace, affects the inhibitory component of children’s executive function; whereas both pace and realism interact to affect attention. We propose that certain types of feature, embedded in a video, can provide a buffer against the negative effects of exposure to fast pace

Children’s mental health and recreation: Limited evidence for associations with screen use

Aim This study examined the direct and indirect associations between childhood psychopathology symptoms, screen use, media multitasking and participation in non-digital recreation. Methods Psychopathology symptoms, media use, media multitasking, participation in sports, social clubs and reading/games were reported by 520 parents about their 3- to 11-year-old children. The data were analysed using structural equation modelling. Results There were bidirectional negative associations between sports participation and emotional problems (β = −0.16, P < .001 and β = −0.15, P < .001); attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms were associated with reduced reading/games (β = −0.14, P = .004). A bidirectional positive association was found between media use and conduct problems (β = 0.10, P = .015 and β = 0.14, P = .015). Increased media multitasking was indirectly associated with elevated symptoms of ADHD via a reduction in reading/games (β = 0.10, P = .026). However, there was no evidence that screen use mediated the associations between psychopathology symptoms and non-digital recreation. Conclusion Depending on the specific psychological difficulties, children are either less likely to participate in non-digital recreation or are more likely to use screen media or multitask with media. Interventions for children, who experience emotional or behavioural difficulties, are needed to improve participation in non-digital recreation

The Short-Term Effect of Video Editing Pace on Children’s Inhibition and N2 and P3 ERP Components during Visual Go/No-Go Task

We investigated the immediate consequences of differently paced videos on behaviour and neural activity during response inhibition. Forty 7-year-olds watched a fast- or slow-paced video and completed a go/no-go task. Compared to the slow-paced-video group, children in the fast-paced-video group made more no-go errors. There was also an interaction between pace and no-go response type (correct, wrong) for the N2 and P3 peak latencies. In the slow-paced group, both components peaked earlier for correct response withholds. This usual pattern of activation was absent in the fast-paced group. Video pace appears to affect behaviour and the neural responses involved in inhibition

The feasibility of a strategy for the remote recruitment, consenting and assessment of recent referrals: a protocol for phase 1 of the On-Line Parent Training for the Initial Management of ADHD referrals (OPTIMA)

Background: In the UK, children with high levels of hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention referred to clinical services with possible attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often wait a long time for specialist diagnostic assessment. Parent training (PT) has the potential to support parents during this difficult period, especially regarding the management of challenging and disruptive behaviours that often accompany ADHD. However, traditional face-to-face PT is costly and difficult to organise in a timely way. We have created a low-cost, easily accessible PT programme delivered via a phone app, Structured E-Parenting Support (STEPS), to address this problem. The overall OPTIMA programme will evaluate the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of STEPS as a way of helping parents manage their children behaviour while on the waitlist. To ensure the timely and efficient evaluation of STEPS in OPTIMA, we have worked with children’s health services to implement a remote strategy for recruitment, screening and assessment of recently referred families. Part of this strategy is incorporated into routine clinical practice and part is OPTIMA specific. Here, we present the protocol for Phase 1 of OPTIMA—a study of the feasibility of this remote strategy, as a basis for a large-scale STEPS randomised controlled trial (RCT). Methods: This is a single arm observational feasibility study. Participants will be parents of up to 100 children aged 5-11 years with high levels of hyperactivity/impulsivity, inattention and challenging behaviour who are waiting for assessment in one of five UK child and adolescent mental health or behavioural services. Recruitment, consenting and data collection will occur remotely. The primary outcome will be the rate at which the families, who meet inclusion criteria, agree in principle to take part in a full STEPS RCT. Secondary outcomes include acceptability of remote consenting and online data collection procedures; the feasibility of collecting teacher data remotely within the required timeframe, and technical difficulties with completing online questionnaires. All parents in the study will receive access to STEPS. Discussion: Establishing the feasibility of our remote recruitment, consenting and assessment strategy is a pre-requisite for the full trial of OPTIMA. It can also provide a model for future trials conducted remotely

What helps children learn difficult tasks: a teacher's presence may be worth more than a screen

What helps children learn: is it a presence of a live teacher or an interaction with the learning materials? Addressing this question, we manipulated a teacher’s presence (on-screen vs. present) and activity (observing vs. doing) while teaching children about the properties of geometric shapes. Five-year-olds (n=215) completed two shape-sorting tasks in which they distinguished between typical, atypical and non-valid shapes. In between these tasks, they took part in one of four training sessions: doing teacher-present, observing teacher-present, doing teacher-on-screen and observing teacher-on-screen. Although children’s shape knowledge improved across all training conditions, learning showed an interaction between teacher presence and task difficulty. In a teacher’s presence, children learned more about the most difficult (atypical) shapes, irrespective of activity. It may be the social interaction, associated with a teacher’s presence, that enhances learning. Conversely, physically taking part in interactive touchscreen training did not result in more learning than passive screen viewing

Links between mental health problems and future thinking from the perspective of adolescents with experience of depression and anxiety: a qualitative study

Abstract Background Depression and anxiety are common during adolescence and could have detrimental impacts on young people’s ability to make and implement plans for their future. However, to the best of our knowledge, no other study has adopted a qualitative approach in investigating these effects from the perspective of adolescents with lived experiences of depression and anxiety. We sought to understand how young people perceive and interpret the impact of mental health conditions on their thinking about the future. Methods We conducted semi-structured interviews with 19 adolescents aged 16–19 years in the UK (median age = 19, IQR = 1.5), who had a history of protracted periods of clinical or subclinical depression and/or anxiety. They were asked to reflect on how their ability to think about the future and the content of the future-related thinking was impacted during periods of poor mental health, compared with periods of feeling well. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and subjected to thematic content analysis. Results Five domains were identified. First, the impact of mood on future thinking capability focuses on reduced ability and motivation to engage in future thinking. Second, the impact of mood on images, thoughts, and feelings about the future includes the emotional valence of future-related thoughts, their vividness, structure, and the extent to which they intimated subjective feelings of control (i.e., agency). Third, social influences focuses on social factors that might ameliorate or exacerbate future thinking. Fourth, reflections on personal worries and expectations about the future captures personal interpretations of past worries and hopes and how future thinking affected mood. Finally, personal coping refers to how young people cope with the negative emotions that come with future thinking. Conclusions This study provided a nuanced and granular account of how depression and anxiety impacted young people’s future thinking based on their lived experiences. By highlighting the different ways that variations in future thinking were experienced as a function of depression and anxiety, our analysis highlighted new factors that should be considered in studies of adolescent mental health risk, which could inform the development of new therapeutic approaches