"Before They Can Walk"... 12% of Toddlers Exposed to Digital Devices Before Turning One

54.3% of Children Aged 3-5 Use Before 24 Months
Parents "Aware of Harmfulness but See Need for Use"

More than one in ten children aged 3 to 5 were found to have been exposed to digital devices before their first birthday. As the age at which children come into contact with digital devices gradually decreases, there is a growing call for appropriate safety education.

According to the report titled “2022 Support Materials and Content Development for Enhancing Digital Literacy Competency,” prepared by the Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation of Korea National University of Education on the 16th, 54.3% of children aged 3 to 5 were exposed to digital devices at 24 months or younger.

The survey was conducted over ten days starting August 29 last year, targeting 2,179 parents of children aged 3 to 5 enrolled in kindergartens nationwide.

Among them, 42.5% responded that their child was first exposed to digital devices between 13 and 24 months, while 11.8% reported first exposure before their first birthday, at 0 to 12 months.

After 24 months, the response rate decreased as the age increased. The percentage of children first exposed to digital devices between 25 and 36 months was 24.0%, 14.7% at age 3, 5.4% at age 4, and 1.7% at age 5.

Additionally, 75.1% of respondents said that their child's digital device usage time “increased” as they grew older, which was higher than those who said it “remained the same” (14.4%) or “decreased” (10.6%).

Regarding usage frequency, 40.7% answered that their child uses digital devices “daily,” followed by “1 to 2 days per week” (23.0%) and “3 to 4 days per week” (21.0%). The average daily usage time was “30 minutes to less than 1 hour” at 33.6%, and “1 hour to less than 2 hours” at 33.2%. Those who reported “3 hours or more” accounted for 5.8%.

In a survey on parents’ perceptions of their children's digital device use, negative responses were prevalent. When investigating four categories?necessity, learning effectiveness, harmfulness, and developmental usefulness?the perception of “harmfulness” scored 3.28 points, higher than the scores for “necessity” (3.21 points), “learning effectiveness” (3.20 points), and “developmental usefulness” (2.91 points).

In particular, the perception that digital device use negatively affects physical development scored 3.74 points, the highest among nine detailed items within each category. Conversely, the perception that digital device use enhances language development and communication skills was the lowest at 2.81 points.

Seventy-five point seven percent of parents reported setting rules regarding their child's digital device usage time, space, and methods. However, 24.3% said they do not establish any specific rules.

The research team pointed out, “While parents are concerned about the harmfulness and developmental impact of digital device use in young children, they also recognize the need to use them appropriately. Therefore, it is necessary to develop support materials for parents to help them properly manage digital device use during early childhood.”