Anger and frustration higher in children who use tablet devices: study

Children using tablet devices such as iPads are angrier and more frustrated than their peers who don’t access this technology, a new study from the Université de Sherbrooke, University of Johannesburg, Universidade Federal de São Paulo and Université Sainte-Anne has found.

The multinational study found that when it comes to the use of tablet devices, children who used them at 3.5 years were more likely to be angrier and more frustrated than their peers by the time they were 4.5, and that this anger and frustration led to more use of tablets by 5.5 years, often because of ‘tech tantrums’ when parents and caregivers attempted to modify or ‘dial back’ the use of the tablets. 

The findings, researchers suggest, point to tablet computers contributing to a cycle that is “deleterious for emotional regulation” in children. 

A 75 minute increase in tablet use was linked with a 22 per cent increase in anger and frustration a year later, authors note, also demonstrating that children are spending more time on tablets, and therefore speculating that these rates of anger and frustration are likely to increase. 

The average amount of time a 4-year-old spent on a tablet increased from 50 minutes in 2020 to 55 minutes in 2022, and is continuing to grow.

“The preschool-age years represent a sensitive period for the development of emotional regulation skills,” the authors wrote. “Children who spend more hours using screens may forfeit opportunities to engage in activities, such as interactions with caregivers or free play with other children that are essential for rehearsing and eventually mastering self-regulation.” 

“Children who fail to develop the ability to effectively manage outbursts of anger and frustration in particular are then likely to face poor health, academic, and psychosocial outcomes.”

In response to their findings the researchers urged parents to set limits on how much time children are spending on tablet devices, and to support children to deregulate anger and frustration and to manage their emotions. 

“Screen use in general and mobile device use in particular are increasingly present in the lives of young children,” they said. 

“Our study suggests that parents be (aware) that tablet use in early childhood can disrupt the ability to manage anger and frustration and lead to increased outbursts in young children.”

Access the findings in full here.