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Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research

Date Submitted: Oct 23, 2020
Date Accepted: Mar 4, 2021

The final, peer-reviewed published version of this preprint can be found here:

Predictors of Parental Barriers to Reduce Excessive Child Screen Time Among Parents of Under-Five Children in Selangor, Malaysia: Cross-sectional Study

Mansor E, Ahmad N, Raj D, Mohd. Zulkefli NA, Mohd Shariff Z

Predictors of Parental Barriers to Reduce Excessive Child Screen Time Among Parents of Under-Five Children in Selangor, Malaysia: Cross-sectional Study

J Med Internet Res 2021;23(4):e25219

DOI: 10.2196/25219

PMID: 33847590

PMCID: 8080141

Predictors of Parental Barriers to Reduce Excessive Child’s Screen Time among Parents of Under-Five Children in Selangor, Malaysia: A Cross-Sectional Study

  • Elliza Mansor; 
  • Norliza Ahmad; 
  • Diana Raj; 
  • Nor Afiah Mohd. Zulkefli; 
  • Zalilah Mohd Shariff

ABSTRACT

Background:

Globally, there is an increasing prevalence of excessive screen time exposure among young children, including Malaysia. Parents are advised to limit this exposure but there are barriers for many of them to follow this recommendation. To date, there is a lack of studies on the factors that cause these parental barriers.

Objective:

This study aimed to determine the parental barrier towards the reduction of excessive child’s screen time and its predictors among parents of children under five years old in Petaling District, Selangor, Malaysia.

Methods:

A cross-sectional study was conducted from April 2019 to June 2020 among 789 parent-child dyads attending child health clinics in Petaling District, Selangor, Malaysia. Validated self-administered questionnaires were used to capture information on sociodemographic factors, parental factors, child-related factors, environmental factors, and parental barriers. Stratified sampling with probability proportionate to size was employed. Data were analysed with IBM SPSS version 25. Descriptive analysis and bivariable analysis were performed before multiple linear regression was used to identify the predictors of parental barriers.

Results:

The overall mean score of parental barriers was 3.51 (SD 0.83), indicating that the average numbers of barriers experienced by parents were more than three. The multivariable analysis showed that the predictors of parental barriers included monthly household income (adjusted β: -0.03, 95% CI: -0.05, -0.02), parents who worked in public sectors (adjusted β: 0.18, 95% CI: 0.06, 0.29), positive parental attitude on screens (adjusted β: 0.68, 95% CI: 0.58, 0.79), parents’ low self-efficacy to influence child’s physical activity (adjusted β: -0.32, 95% CI: -0.43, -0.20), and child’s screen time (adjusted β: 0.04, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.06).

Conclusions:

The strongest predictor of the parental barriers to reduce excessive child’s screen time was the positive parental attitude on screen time which could contribute to their abilities to limit child’s screen time. Thus, future intervention strategies should aim to foster correct parental attitudes towards screen time activities among young children.


 Citation

Please cite as:

Mansor E, Ahmad N, Raj D, Mohd. Zulkefli NA, Mohd Shariff Z

Predictors of Parental Barriers to Reduce Excessive Child Screen Time Among Parents of Under-Five Children in Selangor, Malaysia: Cross-sectional Study

J Med Internet Res 2021;23(4):e25219

DOI: 10.2196/25219

PMID: 33847590

PMCID: 8080141

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