Race, socioeconomic class, and screen time Daily Average of Screen Time of American Children & Teens, By Age (in years) Age Group (in years) However, in 2017, TV dropped down to 42% of children's total daily screen time, and mobile media devices jumped up to 35%.
Specifically, a 2011 nationally representative survey of American parents of children from birth to age 8 suggests that TV accounted for 51% of children's total daily screen time, while mobile devices only accounted for 4%. TV and video games were once largest contributors to children's screen time, but the past decade has seen a shift towards smart phones and tablets. Nationally representative data of children and teens in the United States show that the daily average of screen time increases with age.
Īll forms of screens are frequently used by children and teens. An American survey in 2016 found a median of 3.7 minutes per hour of screen time over a 30-day period. In 2019, 81% of American adults reported owning a smartphone, up from 64% in 2015. Since their popularization in 2007, smartphones have become ubiquitous in daily life. Screens are now an essential part of entertainment, advertising, and information technologies. CRT's were the most popular choice for display screens until the rise of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) in the early 2000s. The first electronic screen was the cathode ray tube (CRT), which was invented in 1897 and commercialized in 1922.
