Screen media technology and ADHD in children and adolescents: Potential perils and emerging opportunities
Screen media technology (SMT) use has become increasingly prevalent among youth, and is associated with a variety of negative outcomes, including poor sleep and impairments in several domains of cognitive functioning, including task-switching, attention, working memory, and response inhibition. Youth with ADHD may be particularly vulnerable to the hazards of SMT use and engage in problematic screentime behaviors at disproportionate rates. SMT may result in negative outcomes for individuals with ADHD via several processes, including: (a) screen characteristics, nighttime use, and interference with sleep, (b) media multitasking, (c) device notifications, (d) media content, and (e) compulsive SMT use. Despite the harmful effects of SMT use, digital therapeutics, such as serious game interventions, SMS interventions, and smartphone applications, have demonstrated promise in improving ADHD symptoms and enhancing medication treatment adherence in youth with ADHD. Several unknowns currently exist in relation to the effects of SMT use in children and adolescents with ADHD. Research should focus on disentangling the directionality and strength of the relationship between SMT use and ADHD-related symptoms, along with individual-level factors related to harmful SMT use, such as sociodemographic background. Further research using longitudinal designs and objective measurements of SMT use is needed to better understand the effect of screen-based behaviors on the mental and physical wellbeing of youth with ADHD and to pinpoint potential intervention targets. Parental mediation strategies, such as autonomy-supportive mediation, may be an effective strategy for mitigating the hazardous effects of SMT use in this population.
