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  1. Development, Screens, and Nature

Development, Screens, and Nature

In recent years many studies have explored how the fast-growing technification of the world is affecting individuals, especially children. Some of these studies have found that children seem to be the most affected by this phenomenon (Harper, 2020, p.47). The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that young children should spend no more than one hour a day engaging in screen time. Despite the recommendation of expert’s preschool children are accumulating up to four hours a day of screen time. The majority (99.4%) of preschool children watch TV, a third of them play video games and around 1/4 of them use the internet for activities beyond games (Harper, 2020, p.115). Unfortunately, excessive screen time can have negative effects on motor, cognitive, social, emotional, and language development both in the short and long term. Studies show negative associations between excess screen time exposure and cognitive development, effortful control, language and communication abilities, behavioral problems, self-regulation, and pro-social behavior in children under the age of 5 (Oswald, 2020, p.10). In his study, Oswald (2020), concluded that excessive use of screen-based technology can potentially displace protective behaviors which could have a negative impact on psychological well-being.

More hours of screen time also imply less time moving and playing outdoors doing activities that are essential for a child’s motor development (Oswald, 2020, p.2). This is especially worrying in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. It has become inevitable that children spend more time in front of screens instead of outdoors (Hechter et al., 2019). School has moved to the virtual setting for a vast majority of children, and with many parents working from home, children move from the screen of education to screens of entertainment. This has made that the American Academy of Pediatrics has even changed its posture regarding strict time limits on screen time since longer amounts of screen time are inevitable in the current circumstances. Instead, the AAP recommends focusing on the type of screen time children see (Wiederhold, 2020, p. 359). Studies showed that on average children spent 3 hours in front of a screen, now they are in front of a screen 6 hours on average (Wiederhold, 2020, p. 359).

Despite the current rise of screen time, screen time use has been on the rise long before the Covid-19 pandemic. In the United States, a study reported that 12-year old children spend less than six hours a week outside, but on average spend more than six hours a day in front of a screen (Oswald, 2020, p.2). Research also seems to indicate socioeconomic status impacts the number of hours spent outdoors or in front of a screen. Oswald (2020) found that children from low social-economic backgrounds typically have less access to green/natural spaces and spend more time in front of screens (p.3). The time children are missing playing with toys and in nature is affecting their motor development, as well as other areas of development. Webster et al. (2018) found that the relationship between screen time and fundamental motor skills in preschool children is inversely proportional. The more a child spends in front of a screen the less they scored on a fundamental motor skills test. Another study on the effects of touch screen tablets on fine motor development in preschool children found that the children that engaged in the manual play activities had significantly greater changes in fine motor precision, integration, and dexterity than children that were using the touch screen tablets (Ling-Yi Lin, 2017). Lin et al. concluded that extensive use of touch screen tablets might be unfavorable for the fine motor development of preschool children.

Literature supports the idea that spending time in nature can help mitigate the effects of screen time, especially in the area of motor development as well as general well-being. In a review of over sixty studies regarding the benefits of children interacting with nature, Summers et al. (2019) found that “these studies support the notion that just spending time interacting with nature tends to promote a child’s well-being and healthy development”. Studies have shown that green time or spending time in nature has shown to have benefits related to physical activity, mental/emotional health, motor development, psychosocial health, cognitive skills, social skills, and emotional-behavioral benefits (Harper 2019, 38).

Studies indicated that outdoor play increases motor fitness in preschool children and that play-oriented activities are more effective in developing motor skills than traditional instruction (Harper 2020; Trawick-Smith, 2014). Motor fitness is defined as abilities of coordination speed agility power and balance (Fjortoft, 2004, p.24). Fjortoft and Sageie (2000) discovered that children who had access to many different natural features during their play had improved motor development when compared to those who had access to a more traditional urban playground of concrete and mass-produced playground structures. They add that when children can access safe natural outdoor spaces, they are more likely to engage in gross motor activities (Fjortoft et al., 2000). Natural ecosystems represent rugged and dynamic playscapes that challenge cognitive and motor activity in children (Summers, 2019).

Motor skills are linked to several cognitive processes, they can facilitate the development of new connections in the brain. Play, in addition to having benefits on motor skills, helps enhance memory, attention, self-regulation, and academic achievement (Trawick-Smith, 16). In his work, Oswald (2020, p.39) concludes that nature may be an underutilized public health resource that could potentially function as a preventive and psychological buffer for children in the high-tech era. In addition to the benefits mentioned above spending time in nature can help deepen the connection children have with the natural world which can result in ecologically conscious teens and adults (Harper, 2020, p.47).

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