A major international review involving more than 2.8 million children across 64 countries has found that heavier screen use is associated with poorer academic performance, weaker language development and increased emotional and behavioural difficulties in children.
The study, led by researchers at the University of Calgary in Canada, examined evidence from 23 previous statistical reviews covering children’s use of screens for activities including gaming, social media and streaming.
Researchers said the findings add to growing evidence that the amount of time children spend on digital devices may be an important factor in their development.
The review found that children with higher levels of screen exposure tended to have lower overall academic achievement and poorer language development. Heavier screen use was also associated with more difficulties involving emotions, behaviour and relationships with peers.
Screen time and children’s development
The researchers reported associations between higher screen exposure and symptoms linked to anxiety and depression, as well as behavioural difficulties including aggression and attention-related problems.
The study authors said the size of some of these associations was comparable to, or larger than, those reported for established predictors of child development, including socioeconomic status, parenting behaviour and premature birth.
However, the finding does not mean that screen time has been proven to be more damaging than poverty.
Rather, the comparison refers to the statistical strength of associations found across existing research. The researchers cautioned that the evidence cannot establish that screen use itself directly caused the difficulties observed.
For example, children who are already experiencing emotional, behavioural or learning difficulties may spend more time using screens. Family circumstances may also influence both children’s screen habits and their wellbeing.
More than 2.8 million children studied
The scale of the review makes it one of the largest examinations of the relationship between children’s screen exposure and developmental outcomes.
Researchers brought together evidence from studies conducted across 64 countries, allowing them to examine patterns across different populations and settings.
The analysis focused on several areas of children’s development, including academic achievement, language, emotional wellbeing, behaviour and relationships with peers.
Overall, greater screen exposure was consistently associated with less favourable outcomes in several of these areas.
Why screen time may matter
One possible concern is that excessive screen use can displace activities that are important for children’s development.
Time spent watching videos, gaming or scrolling can potentially take away from reading, physical activity, face-to-face interaction and sleep.
Research published separately in 2026 has also found links between children’s screen use and emotional and behavioural development. A study published in JAMA Network Open, for example, examined screen use and emotional, behavioural and social development among children and highlighted the importance of understanding children’s digital environments rather than looking at screen exposure in isolation.
Another 2026 study involving toddlers found that children with the highest screen exposure were more likely to show emotional and behavioural difficulties. It also reported that children from families experiencing more difficult socioeconomic circumstances tended to spend more time on screens and less time reading or looking at books with an adult.
Poverty and screen time are not necessarily separate issues
The latest findings also raise an important question about the relationship between screen use and family circumstances.
A separate study published in Children in August 2026 found that preschool children living at or below the federal poverty level spent substantially more time on screens than children living above that level.
The researchers found an adjusted difference of approximately 2.8 additional hours of screen time per day at baseline among children living at or below the poverty level. They cautioned, however, that the study had a small poverty subgroup and that the reasons for the difference require further investigation.
This suggests that simply telling parents to reduce screen time may not address the entire problem.
For some families, screens may be used because parents are working, managing household responsibilities or because affordable and accessible alternatives for children’s recreation are limited.
What parents can do
Experts increasingly emphasise that children’s digital habits should be considered alongside the quality of their overall daily routine.
Parents can encourage children to balance screen use with activities such as reading, outdoor play, physical activity, family conversations and adequate sleep.
For younger children in particular, parents can also consider watching or using digital content together with them rather than allowing screens to become a substitute for interaction.
The quality of content matters too. Educational and age-appropriate programmes can serve a different purpose from endless passive scrolling or exposure to inappropriate material.
The bigger message
The latest study does not suggest that parents should completely remove technology from their children’s lives.
Instead, it adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that how much, how often and how children use screens matters.
Technology is now deeply embedded in education, communication and entertainment. The challenge for parents, schools and policymakers is therefore not simply to eliminate screens, but to create healthier boundaries around their use.
And while the study has generated headlines comparing screen exposure with poverty, researchers’ findings are more nuanced.
The evidence shows a strong association between heavier screen use and several poorer developmental outcomes, but it does not prove that screen time causes those outcomes or that it is inherently more harmful than poverty.
What it does provide is another reason for parents and caregivers to pay closer attention to children’s digital habits—and to ensure that screens do not crowd out the real-world experiences children need to learn, communicate, play and grow.
