Childhood Screen Time Negatively Affects Academic Achievement Tests: Study

Findings come as a panel of federal judges has been asked to consolidate all video game addiction lawsuits before one judge for pretrial proceedings.

A new study warns that children who spend more time on screens show reduced cognitive development, prompting researchers to urge parents to set limits early.

Canadian researchers published a new study in JAMA Network Open on October 10, indicating that increased screen time for children in grades 3 through 6 were linked to lower reading and math scores on standardized tests.

The findings come amid growing concerns about the impact of social media, video games, and their addictive effects on youth. In recent months parents have filed hundreds of social media addiction lawsuits claiming companies like TikTok, Facebook, Meta and Google intentionally design their platforms to manipulate and maximize user time and engagement, as well as the content users see. 

Similar complaints have been filed regarding the marketing and design of video games, resulting in video game addiction lawsuits as well.

In both instances, parents, guardians and school districts argue that these tactics drive addictive and self-destructive behavior in children and teens, leading to anxiety, depression, eating disorders, lasting psychological harm, and in some instances, attempted or completed suicides.

For the study, researchers from The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto analyzed data from 3,322 third graders and 2,084 sixth graders in Ontario, Canada, collected between 2008 and 2023. Parents reported their children’s screen time, which was compared with performance on standardized academic tests.

According to the findings, each additional hour a child spent watching screens per day was linked to a 9% to 10% drop in test scores in third grade, and sixth grade. In addition, video game use was linked to lower achievement in third grade reading skills.

“Much of the existing research emphasizes digital and social media use in older children and youths, but greater attention is needed on screen behaviors among young children. Screen time in these formative years may influence child development.”

– Researchers with The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The researchers noted the impact was particularly notable in female third-graders, whose reading and math scores dropped the longer they played video games. They called for more early prevention and interventions to limit screen time for elementary school-aged youths before they reach their teens.

Video Game Addiction Lawsuits

The study comes as the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) is being asked to consolidate all federal video game addiction lawsuits filed against the creators of games like Fortnite, Minecraft and Roblox into one MDL, or multidistrict litigation, which would bring the cases under a single court for coordinated pretrial proceedings.

This request follows a wave of lawsuits accusing major game developers and publishers of using design tactics intended to keep players, especially teenagers, hooked on their games at the expense of mental health. Plaintiffs argue that features built into popular online platforms are deliberately engineered to create compulsive play patterns.

Parents bringing the lawsuits also contend that these companies illegally collect data from minors to build algorithms, which promote targeted advertising and encourage in-game spending. The complaints highlight practices such as randomized loot boxes, time-intensive challenges for rare items and pay-to-win upgrades, alleging they are all designed to manipulate young players into spending more time and money.

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