Report highlights risks of screen time for young children

A new report from Terra Nova, published on October 13, 2026, titled Children and Screens: Addressing the Issue at Its Roots, warns about the consequences of excessive digital exposure for very young children and proposes an action plan to change this: fewer prohibitions, more play, exchanges, and family support. The report focuses on children aged 0 to 5 years, a period often overlooked in public digital policies.

Screen time varies by region and income

According to the report, some low-income families in Seine-Saint-Denis expose their children to screens for up to 44 hours per week, although this is not representative of the national average. Data from the French cohort Elfe cited in the report indicates that children spent an average of 56 minutes per day in front of screens at two years old, 1 hour 20 minutes at three and a half years, and 1 hour 34 minutes at five and a half years, during the period studied between 2013 and 2017.

Focus on quality of interaction over screen content

The report emphasizes that the main challenge is not the light of screens or the content viewed, but the time spent in front of a screen, which is time no longer devoted to playing, talking, exploring, moving, or interacting with adults. The first years constitute a critical period for brain development, particularly for language acquisition, attention, and emotional regulation. Exchanges between parents and children play an essential role in these learnings, including the conversations, gazes, responses, and reciprocal interactions.

Parental screen use affects child development

The report highlights a concept called "technofencing," referring to the interruptions of interactions between parents and children caused by the use of adults' screens. A meta-analysis of 21 studies concerning nearly 15,000 children under five years old highlights associations between parental screen use in the presence of the child and less favorable cognitive and emotional development. In his preface, psychiatrist Serge Tisseron emphasizes the need to preserve the availability of adults to the youngest children.

Barriers to reducing screen time

The report suggests that informing families is not enough; it is also necessary to give them the material and social means to do otherwise. The survey conducted in Seine-Saint-Denis reveals that many parents already know the recommendations regarding screens and wish to limit their use, but the reality of daily life complicates their implementation. Small living spaces, fatigue, single parenthood, work hours, lack of family support, or absence of outdoor spaces make screens an immediate solution to occupy or calm a child.

Real-life example of screen use

A mother interviewed within the framework of the survey summarizes this reality: "I put on an animated film for him so I can cook." The report emphasizes three complementary dimensions of behavioral change: knowing, being able to, and wanting to. However, according to Terra Nova, public policies have so far mainly favored the first lever, that of information and awareness, without sufficiently acting on the actual ability of families to modify their habits.

Proposed solutions for reducing screen time

Rather than multiplying prohibitions, Terra Nova proposes to reinvest in activities that naturally promote the development of young children, such as free play, outdoor activities, shared reading, and exchanges with adults. The report calls for developing ludothèques, these places dedicated to games that remain too few and often unknown to families, and proposes to open more children-parents reception places and allow access to school playgrounds on Saturdays.

Action plan with public investment

Terra Nova proposes an action plan to be deployed over five years, with an additional public investment estimated at 200 million euros per year by the end of this period. Five main orientations structure this strategy: developing screen-free play spaces, breaking the isolation of young parents, revising prevention campaigns, strengthening support for vulnerable families, and more regulation of content and equipment for very young children.

Screen time and educational inequality

The report invites us to consider early childhood as an essential period for preventing educational inequalities, as a child who arrives at preschool with a limited vocabulary or difficulties in understanding oral exchanges may encounter more obstacles in learning to read. However, the report also recalls that social inequalities play a major role, as families do not all have the same resources, the same living space, or the same opportunities for support.

Optimistic approach to screen time

The report advocates an intentionally optimistic approach, stating that early overexposure to screens is not a fate if real solutions are offered to families. The debate on screens should not be reduced to determining how many minutes a child can spend in front of a tablet or a television but should also pose a broader question: what place does our society give to play, human exchanges, and the development of young children?