Screen Time and Behaviour in Preschool-Aged Children: Relationships With Caregiver Perceptions

Emma L Axelsson; Alexandra Metse; Sandhiya Nanthakumar; Gemma Paech; Alyssa A Quinn; Kate Purcell; Alliyah Asis; Isabelle Robbins

doi:10.1177/18369391251376711

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Screen Time and Behaviour in Preschool-Aged Children: Relationships With Caregiver Perceptions

Journal article

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Screen Time and Behaviour in Preschool-Aged Children: Relationships With Caregiver Perceptions

Emma L Axelsson, Alexandra Metse, Sandhiya Nanthakumar, Gemma Paech, Alyssa A Quinn, Kate Purcell, Alliyah Asis and Isabelle Robbins

Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, Vol.51(1), pp.104-122

2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/18369391251376711

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Abstract

screen time

preschool children

behaviour

sleep

caregiver perceptions

Screen time has been implicated in young children’s behaviour, but less is known about the behaviours that predict screen time and caregivers’ views about children’s screen time. Caregivers of 3- to 5-year-old Australian children completed questionnaires on their child’s screen time, behavioural and social development, sleep-related behaviours, and their own perceptions about screen time. The lower children’s personal-social development the more caregivers disagreed about setting limits, which in turn was related to longer screen times. Children’s greater externalising behaviours were associated with caregivers’ belief that setting limits causes conflicts. Children’s greater difficulties with sleep were also associated with caregivers’ belief that limits cause conflicts, which was associated with greater screen time. Therefore, more challenging behaviours are linked with caregivers’ more permissive views of screen time and with difficulties setting limits. Strategies for managing behaviours and conflicts surrounding screen time could help in regulating children’s time spent on screens.

Details

Title: Screen Time and Behaviour in Preschool-Aged Children: Relationships With Caregiver Perceptions
Authors: Emma L Axelsson (Corresponding Author) - University of Newcastle Australia
Alexandra Metse - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Healthy Ageing Research Cluster
Sandhiya Nanthakumar - University of Newcastle Australia
Gemma Paech - University of Newcastle Australia
Alyssa A Quinn - University of Newcastle Australia
Kate Purcell - University of Newcastle Australia
Alliyah Asis - University of Newcastle Australia
Isabelle Robbins - University of Newcastle Australia
Publication details: Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, Vol.51(1), pp.104-122
Publisher: Sage Publications Ltd.
Date published: 2026
DOI: 10.1177/18369391251376711
ISSN: 1839-5961; 1836-9391
Copyright note: © The Author(s) 2025. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access page (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).
Data Availability: Data are openly available at the project’s Open Science Framework page (https://osf.io/5ec4h/). We have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
Grant note: This research was funded by the University of Newcastle’s College of Engineering, Science, and Environment and Centre for Brain and Mental Health Research.
Organisation Unit: Healthy Ageing Research Cluster; School of Health - Psychology
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991159339402621
Output Type: Journal article

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