American parents' active engagement mediates the impact of background television on toddlers' play

This secondary analysis examined the extent to which parent engagement mediates the impact of adult-directed background television (BTV) on toddlers' toy play. Fifty-one children (12, 24, 36 mos) played in a furnished observation lab for 30 min without BTV and 30 min with BTV (order counterbalanced across participants). Parents were instructed to act as they normally would during leisure time. The findings revealed an indirect negative effect of BTV on the proportion of time that 12- and 24-month-old children played with toys, which was completely mediated by parents' active engagement in their child's play. These effects were not observed for 36-month-olds who had more (rather than less) play in the presence of BTV. Moreover, parents' overall disengagement (regardless of engagement quality) did not mediate the effect of BTV on toddlers' play. That is, the quality of parent engagement mattered more than the overall quantity of engagement for the youngest children. These findings provide further evidence for the importance of considering social context and individual characteristics when examining the impact of screen media on play.