Home vs. bedroom media devices: socioeconomic disparities and association with childhood screen- and sleep-time

Abstract Background The literature has shown a widespread use of portable electronic devices among children over the last years. This study aimed to identify the availability of different media devices at home versus in children’s bedroom according to the socioeconomic status (SES), and analyze the association between that availability and children’s screen- and sleep-time on week and weekend days. Methods Data from 3 to 10 year-old children (n=8430) from a cross-sectional study conducted in Portugal (2016/17) was used. Screen- and sleep-time, availability of media devices, father and mother education (as a proxy measured of SES) were assessed via questionnaire. Results Available devices at home was significantly more common among high-SES families; while media devices in the bedroom were more frequent in low-SES families (p Conclusions Further research is needed to explore the pathways by which different electronic media negatively impacts on children’s sleep and screen-time and to develop effective strategies to minimize device access at bedtime.