[Use of screens by female adolescents in Brazil: practice and perceptionsUso de pantallas por parte de las adolescentes en Brasil: prácticas y percepciones].

Abstract

Objective: To describe the screen usage profile among female adolescents in Brazil and analyze the practices and perceptions related to the use of these technologies.

Methods: A cross-sectional, observational study was conducted with volunteer female adolescents who completed anonymous questionnaires administered in a public school in 2024 as part of community outreach activities. The questionnaire addressed the adolescents' screen usage and their perception of screen usage by their guardians. The data were categorized for descriptive statistical analysis.

Results: A total of 214 valid questionnaires were collected. The participants' average age was 14.9 years. Of the participants, 45.3% were in elementary school, 50.1% in high school, and 62.7% reported starting screen use before the age of 10. Regarding privacy, 46.4% had private social media profiles, while 39.7% had public profiles. Lack of supervision in internet use was reported by 81.5%. In terms of screen time, 76.4% used screens for more than 4 hours per day; on non-school days, this proportion reached 80.5%. Mobile phone use in the classroom was reported by 90.6%, while 79.5% indicated they would use screens less if they had more leisure options or greater parental attention.

Conclusion: Inadequate screen use was observed among female adolescents. The lack of parental supervision facilitates exposure to digital dangers, particularly due to the absence of leisure activities or greater parental involvement.