Analysis of parental beliefs and practices leading to excessive screen time in early childhood.

Background: Excessive screen time in young children is a growing concern in the digital age. It is important to explore parental beliefs and practices that could shape children's screen time routines.

Methods: This cross-sectional study surveyed 3624 parents of children aged 2-5 years from five northern Indian states between July and October 2024. The participants completed a validated questionnaire assessing sociodemographic factors, children's screen time duration, parental beliefs and practices related to screen time regulation (guidelines and enforcement), screen use purposes (eg, feeding, chores) and perceived impacts on child development (eg, social skills, attention, speech/language). Data analysis included χ² tests and multinomial logistic regression to identify associations between variables.

Results: Over 60% of the children spent 2-4 hours daily on screens, with no significant associations between weekday-weekend screen time patterns and sociodemographic factors. Multinomial logistic regression revealed that the odds of excessive screen use were greater among children whose parents were unsure of whether restrictions should be set (AOR=3.03 for 4-6 hours), those whose parents did not set screen time limits (AOR=1.64 for 4-6 hours and AOR=2.07 for >8 hours), those whose parents used screens during feeding (AOR=1.82 for 2-4 hours; AOR=2.66 for 4-6 hours, AOR=2.79 for 4-8 hours and 3.54 for >8 hours) and those whose parents did not believe that screen time hindered speech and language development (AOR=1.77 for 2-4 hours and AOR=2.11 for 4-6 hours).

Conclusion: Parental factors, including the absence of screen time limits and the cultural use of screens during mealtimes, contribute to excessive screen time. Interventions in India should focus on practical programmes that support parents in managing screen time, tailored to regional and cultural contexts.