The Home Screen Media Environment of Saudi Toddlers

The past few years have witnessed a rapid increase in the use of screen media by adults and children alike. Despite the widespread use of technology in Saudi Arabia, previous findings on Saudi children’s screen media use have been inconsistent and contradictory. The current study provides a comprehensive picture of screen media use among young children in Saudi Arabia. It explored the home screen media environment of 220 children aged 1 to 3 years, whose primary caregivers completed an online survey. Findings showed that the vast majority of these children had started using screens before the age of 2 years. On average, Saudi toddlers watched television for about 2 hours a day and used mobile media devices for about 1 hour a day. Their overall screen time was about 3 hours a day. Results also indicated that media use rates among Saudi toddlers are higher than those reported in the United States and the United Kingdom. The most viewed content genre on mobile media was children’s songs. Understanding children’s patterns of media use is an important first step in guiding the development of research-driven recommendations for all stakeholders on the use of screen media by young children.