Smartphone, tablets… At the age of 2, more than one in four children is exposed to digital screens

That many children spend too much time in front of the television was already established and recognized in many families. But a recent INSEE study on the use of digital screens by toddlers provides a reminder: according to official recommendations, children under 3 should simply not be exposed to them. In fact, the situation is quite different: more than a quarter of children only 2 years old are regularly exposed to screens, especially those of their parents, before they even know how to interact with speech.

Too many digital screens in the environment of the youngest

Out of a panel of 18,000 children, INSEE found that three-quarters of 2-year-old children are kept away from digital screens on a daily basis, respecting the recommendations.

However, 27% of these 2-year-old children, ie more than one in four children, find themselves exposed to at least one screen every day (parents’ telephone, tablet, etc.); 16% of children would even have, before the age of 5, so-called “intensive” use of these digital screens, varying from 20 minutes a day for 2-year-olds, to more than an hour of daily telephone use for 5-year-old children .

Screen time plus television

And that is without taking into account the accumulated time dedicated to television, which remains high among children under 6 years old. “From the age of 2, television is part of the life of almost all children“, specifies the study, especially if there are older brothers and sisters who “train” the youngest in this use.

According to the study, the average amount of time a 2-year-old child spends watching television each day is 47 minutes. In front of digital screens, it is 6 minutes. In total, this represents 53 minutes a day in front of the screens from 2 years old. Almost a full hour.

Usage also shows a fairly rapid increase with age. Thus, at age 5, 98% of children watch television, on average 62 minutes per day, compared to 23 minutes for tablets and computers and 7 minutes for smartphones, i.e. 92 minutes per day.

A use correlated to that of the parents

Certain habits can cause a child so young to be demanding:

Some parents use the telephone to occupy their children for a few minutes in a waiting room. Others therefore have brothers and sisters who initiate them a little too early, in their own screen consumption.

The study mainly points to the influence of parents, and in particular their individual uses: young children would be more likely to stay in front of screens if their parents spent time with them in front of the television from an early age. “It is early socialization and parental initiation that weigh the most on the digital trajectories of children.notes INSEE.

With the concern induced by this use: the absence of interaction with the screens which can, in the long term, play on the acquisition of language.