Time to Play in Javanese Preschool Children-An Examination of Screen Time and Playtime before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Soni Nopembri; Rizki Mulyawan; Puji Yanti Fauziah; Erma Kusumawardani; Indri Hapsari Susilowati; Lukman Fauzi; Widya Hary Cahyati; Tandiyo Rahayu; Terence Buan Kiong Chua; Michael Yong Hwa Chia

doi:10.3390/ijerph20031659

Time to Play in Javanese Preschool Children-An Examination of Screen Time and Playtime before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Jan 17;20(3):1659. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20031659.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Physical Education, Faculty of Sports and Health Sciences, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Sleman 55281, Indonesia.
² Department of Sports Science, Faculty of Sports and Health Sciences, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Sleman 55281, Indonesia.
³ Nonformal Education Department, Faculty of Education Science, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Sleman 55281, Indonesia.
⁴ Department of Occupational Health and Safety, Faculty of Public Health, Universitas Indonesia, Depok 16424, Indonesia.
⁵ Public Health Department, Faculty of Sports Science, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Semarang 50229, Indonesia.
⁶ Physical Education Department, Faculty of Sports Science, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Semarang 50229, Indonesia.
⁷ Physical Education and Sports Science Academic Group, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Singapore.

Abstract

This comparative-descriptive multi-national research examined the screen time and playtime of preschool children aged 1-6 years before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents reported on the play and screen habits of preschool-aged children on the weekday and weekends using a questionnaire on the lifestyle habits of their children. Results indicated a significant difference in screen time and playtime on the weekday and weekend before the pandemic (screen time: 1.91 ± 2.40 vs. 2.16 ± 2.60 h; playtime: 3.55 ± 2.49 vs. 4.11 ± 2.58 h, both p < 0.05), but during the COVID-19 pandemic, only the weekday-weekend difference in screen time was significantly different (screen time: 2.87 ± 3.15 vs. 3.26 ± 3.18 h, p < 0.05; playtime: 3.25 ± 3.41 vs. 3.48 ± 2.41, p > 0.05). Before- and during-COVID-19 comparisons showed that the average daily screen time increased by 150% from 2.04 h to 3.06 h (p < 0.05), while the average play time decreased by 12.3% (3.83 to 3.36 h, p < 0.05). Based upon international guidelines for movement behaviours of young children, special attention and actions are needed to manage the excessive daily screen time and preserve the average daily playtime of Javanese preschool children. These results present useful benchmarking data for parents, teachers, and health authorities to initiate ameliorative interventions to better balance children's screen time and playtime as Indonesia emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic to a COVID-19 endemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; playtime; preschoolers; screen time.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

COVID-19* / epidemiology
Child, Preschool
Humans
Indonesia / epidemiology
Life Style
Pandemics*
Screen Time

Grants and funding

This is a part of an international study called IISSAAR. This research is funded by the Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) under the Education Research Funding Programme (OER 29/19 MCYH) and administered by the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Singapore MOE and NIE. This research also received supplementary funding from DIPA BLU Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta (1.30/UN34/IV/2019).