Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital. Is television or screen addiction real? This is a complicated, hotly debated question. Officially, if you go by the disorders listed in the latest Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5), the "bible" of recognized mental health conditions, the answer is no. However, countless researchers (and games laypeople alike) view screentime overuse as a looming crisis. While scientists and psychologists wrestle over exactly what qualifies as an addiction or disorder, the fallout of TV and screen overuse is plain for most of us (experts, doctors, parents, and teachers included) to see. So, even though TV addiction has not yet made the list, there is still plenty of reason to work toward a healthier relationship with your screens. The idea of television addiction is nothing new and predates the explosion in media and screens of recent years. Da ta has be en generat ed by GSA Content Generat or D emoversi on!
Worry over too much TV has been conceptualized and discussed since the 1970s, well before some of the behavioral addictions that have since overtaken it in terms of scientific research and widespread acceptance, such as internet addiction. Although early research into TV addiction was limited, the concept of TV addiction was relatively well accepted by parents, educators, and journalists, as television watching became more common, particularly among children. Doctors, teachers, counselors, parents, and even kids are growingly concerned as the quantity of content, types of available media, proliferation of electronic devices, and time spent on screens all soar. According to data in Common Sense Media's 2019 "The Common Sense Census: Media Use by Tweens and Teens," the average teen spends 7 hours, 22 minutes on screens daily-not including for school or homework. Time in front of screens is up significantly from the last survey in 2015, which is even more alarming when you consider that the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends significantly less screentime than kids are getting. This h as been gen erated by GSA C ontent Generator Demoversi on.
In 2001, the AAP, citing concerns over possible links of excess screentime to aggressive behavior, poor body image, obesity, and decreased school performance, set a guideline of two hours of screentime maximum for children aged 2 and older and no screens for those under 2. In 2016, those guidelines were reduced to one hour for children aged 2 to 5, and more open-ended "consistent limits" were recommended for kids 6 and up, along with the advice to implement age-appropriate supervision and to teach children media-savvy skills. Clearly, today's children are far surpassing the recommended limits. Smartphone ownership has also increased sharply with 69% of 12-year-olds now having a phone in their pockets, compared with just 41% in 2015. Today, nearly 90% of high schoolers and over 50% of 11-year-olds are smartphone owners as well. As we all know, if you have a smartphone (or any other electronic device), you also have the potential for 24-hour access to television and other content via streaming.
Common Sense Media research found that tweens and teens spend the majority of their screentime binge-watching TV and videos, with YouTube and Netflix topping the most used content providers. According to 2019 Common Sense Media data, teens spend 39% of their over 7 daily screentime hours watching TV and videos, 22% devoted to gaming, and 16% to social media. This adds up to over 5.5 hours total and nearly 3 hours a day watching content. Tweens, who average just under 5 hours of daily screen time, allot 53% of their media time to TV and videos, 31% to gaming (https://gamingdeals.shop), and 4% to social media. Studies conducted with self-identified "TV addicts" have shown that those who consider themselves addicted to television are more generally unhappy, anxious, and withdrawn than other people who watch television. These people use television watching to distract themselves from negative moods, worries and fears, and boredom. They are also somewhat more likely to be solitary and hostile and to withdraw from or have difficulty maintaining social connections with others, although it is unclear whether there is a causal link between these personality characteristics and addiction.
More recently, games research shows there is a growing popular trend toward binge-watching television in our culture, which may be exacerbating television addiction. Characteristics that have been associated with self-identified TV addiction are binge-watching, susceptibility to boredom, and the use of TV to fill time. The TV (whether streaming on a device or watching on a traditional TV) is used as a way to avoid rather than seek out stimulation. One reason TV or screen addiction isn't considered a true addiction is a lack of sufficient research and the fact that many symptoms of overuse have been normalized. Most of us partake in some of these behaviors to some degree, from spending a weekend binge-watching our favorite show to winding down with a few hours on Facebook, YouTube, or game consoles. Everywhere we look people are staring at screens and, if not, gamingdeals.shop are holding them in their hands, pockets, or bags.