How Does Screen Exposure Affect Sleep Routines of Preschool Children?
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Background: Sleep is crucial for children's development and is influenced by bedtime routines, screen exposure, and socioeconomic factors. Modern lifestyle changes, including increased screen use, may disrupt sleep quality. Cultural and socioeconomic conditions also shape sleep habits, such as co-sleeping and parental involvement. This study aimed to examine the sleep characteristics and routines of healthy children aged 3–6 years and their associations with screen exposure and socioeconomic factors.
Methods: This cross-sectional study included 114 healthy children aged 3-6 years. The sleep disorder section of a structured diagnostic interview (Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment-PAPA) was administered to the parents. Sociodemographic features, sleep characteristics and routines, and screen time were noted. The correlation between sleep characteristics and sleep routines was analyzed. The statistical significance level was set at 0.05.
Results: 92.98% of children had at least one sleep routine, while 72% were exposed to screens for over an hour per day and 23.68% for over 3 hours per day. 26.3% of participants slept in their own room, 34.2% in a shared room, and 39.5% in their parents' bed. Bedtime resistance was prevalent in 73.69% of the participants. Education levels of parents (p<.05), monthly income (p=.002), and school attendance (p=.01) were correlated with sleeping in separate beds. Bedtime resistance was correlated with screen exposure longer than 1 h (p=.01). Bedtime resistance and separation dreams were more common in pre-sleep screen use (p<.05).
Conclusion: Factors related to bedtime routines play a key role in shaping sleep characteristics. Children’s school attendance, education levels of parents, and monthly income may affect sleep routines. Screen exposure can disrupt sleep, so reducing screen time before bed is important. Parental education on healthy sleep habits helps promote better sleep and supports children’s emotional and psychological development.
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