Promoting green time, while reducing screen time, can support children’s and adolescents’ mental healthThis study examined the relationship between screen time (ST) and green time (GT), and their implications on children’s and adolescents’ mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. ST includes digital technology-based activities, while GT accounts for time spent outdoors in natural settings. In aiming to clarify the relationship between ST, GT, and mental health, the study considered the role of other potentially influential factors, including gender, age, perceived family economic status, neighborhood characteristics, and body mass index (BMI).
The study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic between fall 2020 and spring 2021 in Canton Ticino, Italian-speaking Switzerland. Data was collected from a total of 844 participants, including 619 children (age 5-13 years) and 405 adolescents (age 14-19 years). Data collection was conducted through a series of questionnaires which were completed by children’s parents or by adolescents themselves. Repeated assessments of ST and GT were conducted at the first, third, and fifth months of the study. ST was assessed with four open-ended questions that aimed to quantify non-school related time spent on electronic devices. GT was assessed with two open-ended questions that aimed to measure daily time spent outdoors in nature. At the sixth month of the study, mental health was assessed using a questionnaire to determine a range of mental health indicators, including physical symptoms, sleep problems, inattention, depression, anger, irritability, and anxiety. Mental health assessments for children up to 9 years of age were completed by parents, while parents of children aged 10 to 13 completed the questionnaire with input from their child. Adolescents between the ages of 14 to 19 self-reported their mental health symptoms. Participants, or their parents, also reported socio-demographic information, including gender, age, perceived economic situation of the family, availability of green space in the neighborhood, and height and weight (used to calculate BMI). Data were analyzed quantitatively.
Participants’ average daily time spent outside ranged from two hours in the first month of the study to one hour and 45 minutes in the second and third study months. In general, younger participants (age 5–9 years) had higher GT levels. Daily time engaged in non-school ST was related to participant age. On average, daily ST was approximately 80 minutes for five- to nine-year-olds, 120-160 minutes for ten- to 14-year-olds, and 4 hours and 20 minutes for adolescents aged 15 or older.
Analysis detected significant relationships between GT and ST with mental health. Higher levels of GT were significantly related to lower levels of mental health problems across the study participants. On the other hand, higher levels of ST were significantly related to higher levels of mental health problems. Analysis also revealed that individual participants who engaged in GT were significantly more likely to participate in higher levels of GT over time, suggesting that time spent outdoors was a positive experience which encouraged more GT. Several factors were found to contribute to the relationship between ST, GT, and mental health. Female participants reported significantly lower levels of GT, but similar ST levels, compared to males. Increasing age was linked to increasing levels of ST, but not GT. Participants who perceived their family to be in good economic standing had significantly lower levels of both GT and ST, perhaps due to a preference for organized activities. Higher BMI levels were linked to higher levels of ST and, surprisingly, GT as well. Importantly, the availability of nearby green spaces was linked to increased GT and reduced ST, suggesting that neighborhood green space was a key facilitator of GT during the pandemic.
The study highlights both the importance of promoting GT to support children’s and adolescents’ mental health as well as the potentially harmful impacts of ST on mental health. To support young people in increasing their GT and decreasing ST, the researchers recommend that nature-based interventions be targeted to increase the participation of specific sub-groups, such as girls. It is also important to increase awareness of the possible negative impacts of ST. Overall, the study confirmed that the relationship between GT and ST and mental health is complex, and that further research is needed to inform interventions that will encourage children’s and youth’s engagement in nature-based activities.
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