Kaiser Family Foundation Study Shows "Media Multi-tasking" Impacts Media Use Among Children and Teens

A new study from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds youth are spending more time using computers, the Internet, and video games without reducing the time they spend with television, print, and music. Young people are able to fill increasing amounts of media content into the same amount of time each day because of "media multi-tasking," e.g. going online while watching television, according to the study.

The study, Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-olds, looked at media use among a national sample of more than 2,000 third through twelfth graders, including almost 700 self-selected participants who kept seven-day media diaries.

One area of concern raised by the study is that children's bedrooms are increasingly becoming "multi-media centers." Two-thirds of all 8-18 year olds have a television in their bedroom, and 49 percent have a video game player there. Fifty-four percent have a VCR or DVD player; 37 percent have cable or satellite television; 31 percent have a computer; and 20 percent have Internet access in their bedroom. The study shows that youth with a television in their bedroom spend almost 1 ½ hours more in a typical day watching television than those without a set in their room.

The study also finds that a majority of all 8-18 year olds say their parents have no rules about television watching. Forty-six percent indicated they do have rules, but only 20 percent say their parents enforce the rules "most" of the time.

You can find additional information about Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-olds at http://www.kff.org/entmedia/entmedia030905pkg.cfm.

To learn more about the effects of media on children, visit the National Institute on Media and the Family at www.mediafamily.org