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Annotated Bibliography

How Does the Use of Interactive Media Impact Child Development?

Carolyn Daly

Professor Malcolm Cambell

UWRT 1103

October 13, 2019

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Annotated Bibliography

Barr, Rachel, Elisabeth McClure, and Rebecca Parlakian. “Screen Sense: What the Research

Says About the Impact of Media on Children Aged 0-3 Years Old.” ​Zero to Three​, 25

Oct. 2018,

https://www.zerotothree.org/resources/2536-screen-sense-what-the-research-says-about-t

he-impact-of-media-on-children-aged-0-3-years-old#downloads. Accessed 13 Oct. 2019.

This website article discusses the known effects of media on the learning and

development of children aged zero to three. It also provides ways to enhance media use

so that it can best benefit the child. The authors say it is important to create a healthy

media environment for children and in order to do this you must take into consideration

the “3 C’s”; Child, Context, and Content. Think about a child's characteristics, for

example, their age and stage of development, this can impact the type of media they use.

The context of media use must also be considered. A term the authors introduce is

technoference which is how media can disrupt interactions. Media can distract and

overwhelm children if it is too challenging and they cannot comprehend it. The content

must be engaging, promote active involvement of parent and child, be meaningful, and

create a socially interactive experience in order to best benefit the child. Each part is

essential for creating the best media experience for young children. This article was

published by the ​Zero to Three​ organization. Their mission is to ensure that all babies and

toddlers have a strong start to life. They accomplish this by providing parents and

professionals with the knowledge and tools needed to raise young children. The authors
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of this article include Rachel Barr, Elisabeth Mclure, and Rebecca Parlakian. Rachel

Barr, PhD, is director of the Georgetown Early Learning Project, she trained as a

developmental and clinical psychologist and is currently a professor at Georgetown

University. Elizabeth Mclure received her PhD in developmental psychology from

Georgetown university, she currently works at the Lego Foundation as a creativity

research specialist. Rebecca Parlakian is the Senior Director of programs at ​Zero to

Three,​ she has a masters in education and human development from the George

Washington University. The information provided is backed by extensive research and

studies making this a reliable source. This source was most recently updated October of

2018. The purpose of this article is to inform parents, caregivers, and early childhood

professionals about the effects media devices have on children and suggest ways to

enhance children’s media use. This source provides me with examples on how media can

be used for the benefit of children and their families.

Jemima Kiss. “‘I Was on Instagram. The Baby Fell down the Stairs’: Is Your Phone Use

Harming Your Child?”​ The Guardian (London, England)​, Guardian Newspapers, 7 Dec.

2018, p.45, Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.

This news article brings to attention the impact of parental media use on the development

of children. The author begins this article with a story of a mother who was too distracted

by her phone to notice that her daughter had fallen down the stairs. The mother Sara

Davidson comments on the irony of the situation that so much of her time is spent trying

to keep her children off devices yet it was her own use of technology that distracted her

from her daughters fall. Many parents are so concerned with their child’s media use that
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they do not realize their own use can affect children emotionally, cognitively, and

physically. According to research published in the US Pediatrics Research journal in June

of 2018, parents stressed about a child’s bad behavior often find comfort through

technology, which in turn can cause the child’s behavior to worsen. There is also

evidence that child screen use negatively affects conversational development. Chris

Calland, a child behavior expert and adviser to parents, schools, and nurseries around the

UK, says there is a correlation between parents stuck on their phones and children who

are developmentally behind in language and interpersonal skills. Interaction is critical for

children when they are learning language. Michelle Morris, consultant speech and

language therapist at Salford Royal NHS Trust, stresses the importance for adults to be

“in the moment” with their child. When parents are distracted, children become

frustrated, opportunities for exposure to new words are reduced, and learning

opportunities are missed. Author of this news article, Jemima Kiss, worked as Head of

Technology at ​The Guardian​ and currently works as a freelance editor and journalist in

San Francisco. ​The Guardian ​is a British daily newspaper which was founded in 1821

and has since spread to the United States and Australia. The author uses research from

several different studies to support her claims, making this a reliable source. Similar to

Young Children’s Screen Time: The Complex Role of Parent and Child Factors, this

news article examines the impact of parental media use on child development. The

purpose of this article is to inform parents of ways their children are affected when they

are absorbed in the use of technology. Before reading this article I had not considered
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how parents use of media can impact child development. This source has been beneficial

to my research and opened up a whole new world of questions.

Lauricella, Alexis R., Ellen Wartella, and Victoria J. Rideout. “Young Children’s Screen Time:

The Complex Role of Parent and Child Factors.” ​Journal of Applied Developmental

Psychology​, vol. 36, Elsevier Inc, Jan. 2015, pp.11-17,

doi:10.1016/j.appdev.2014.12.001. Accessed 15 Oct. 2019.

This academic journal studies the relationship of parental media use and child age to

determine predictors of child media use. The authors begin by providing the reader with

some background knowledge about parent child relationships and data from previous

studies. They inform that children are greatly influenced by their parents and siblings,

therefore, parents set the tone for home media environment. The Ecological Theory

proposed by Urie Bronfenbrenner, an American psychologist, was used to support this

claim. This theory draws attention to the impact of cultural and environmental factors on

child development. Three hypotheses are created from the background information

provided. First, the amount of time parents spend on media devices is positively

associated with the amount of time children spend on the same type of device. Second,

parents attitude toward technology is positively associated with child a screen time for

that specific device. Lastly, on all devices child screen time differs with age, with older

children having a higher screen time across all devices. This study focuses on four media

platforms: television, computers, smartphones, and tablets. 2,326 parents of children aged

zero to eight were sampled. There was a wide range in demographics of the sample

population. The results concluded that parent media use has a strong correlation with
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child use of all four types of devices and parent attitudes are key contributors to child

screen time. This academic journal was published by Elsevier Inc, a business that has

been publishing academic books and journals since 1880. Their goal is to lead the way in

advancing science, technology, and health by empowering readers with knowledge. The

authors of this academic journal include; Alexis R. Lauricella, Ellen Wartella, and

Victoria J. Rideout. Alexis R. Lauricella is an Assistant Professor and the Director of

Technology in Early Childhood Center at Erikson's Institution. Ellen Wartella is a

professor at Northwestern School of Communication where she researches effects of

media on children and adolescents. Victoria J. Rideout is a published author whose work

has been published in peer reviewed journals such as ​the Journal of the American

Medical Association (JAMA), Pediatrics, a​ nd the​ Journal of Marketing and Public

Policy​.​ The purpose of this source is to discover predictors of child media use in order to

inform parents and professionals. This source is reliable and beneficial to my research

because it has provided me with statistics and data that support my argument and has

given me insight to the complex factors that impact child media use.