The exposure of children under the age of 3 to screens has been the subject of much debate for over a decade. This question has been raised again since the advent of tablets. Is screen time necessary for my baby's development? Is television harmful to my child's development? Children's exposure to screens Could screen time before the age of three encourage digital addiction? e-Enfance provides the keys to understanding.
Raised on television, what are the consequences?
Experts distinguish between two types of screens: passive screens, such as televisions, and interactive screens, such as tablets and computers. The CSA and the vast majority of paediatricians and psychologists strongly advise against television for children under the age of three. In order to grow and become independent, children need contact and interaction with the people and objects around them, whereas screens, particularly television, «are something completely distant,» observes Justine Atlan, founder of the e-Enfance association. Far from demonising television, specialists nevertheless note that many parents use television as a «nanny» because it reassures them to see what their child is watching. «They feel they have more control over television than any other medium,» notes Justine Atlan. However, television is not dangerous in moderation, but according to studies, it is only from the age of three that children begin to understand the stories in the programmes they watch.
So what about the new screens?
Could interactive screens be a tool for learning and sharing? Psychologists and paediatricians seem less cautious about the use of tablets and other interactive screens for very young children. It seems important for children to have access to tablets before the age of three in order to stimulate their cognitive development. However, according to Michael Stora, psychologist, psychoanalyst and founder of the Observatoire des Mondes Numériques en Sciences Humaines (Observatory of Digital Worlds in Human Sciences), guest on the programme La Maison des Maternelles: «tablets only make sense because they are shared». This is indeed the opinion of the entire sector: it is essential that teachers, parents or other members of the child's entourage accompany the child and have a say in how the digital tool is used. A second theory, formulated by a group of clinicians, contradicts the report by the French Academy of Sciences by showing that tablets, when used for educational purposes, offer parents a tool for creating «champion babies» who are able to read before starting primary school and speak several languages. Tablets would therefore be a medium that tends to cause anxiety.
Faced with these conflicting opinions, Justine Atlan reminds us that tablets should be considered just another form of entertainment for babies: a complementary activity, with limited time and controlled content.
And after three years?
After the age of three and up to six, it is advisable to limit screen time to between one and one and a half hours and to continue encouraging children to comment on what they see in order to maintain interaction. Then comes the pre-adolescent and adolescent period, dreaded by parents, when children seem unable to do without their phones, computers, video games and other screens. Does exposure to screens from an early age encourage this addiction? As Michael Stora points out, addiction in general «is a vulnerability that goes beyond the digital world. It is not the screen itself that causes addiction, but more complex personal histories.» The screen then becomes an escape from a tyrannical environment and, for some, will become the only outlet to avoid seeing or even thinking about certain things.
Our articles on the subject
Protecting young children from screens: e-Enfance / 3018 calls for stronger prevention measures
The DSA's new guidelines for protecting children online
Good digital habits for the new school year: a practical guide for families
Libération – Véronique Béchu warns, “Infants and very young children are easy targets for paedophiles.”
