Digital media exposure and impulsivity in European adolescents - the I.Family study

Abstract Background Emotion-driven impulsiveness (i.e., impulsivity) is associated with obesity in adolescents. Yet, how exposure to digital media (DM) is related to impulsivity in free-living European youth remains unknown. Methods This study included ADHD-free adolescents aged 12-18 years, who participated in the third examination wave of the IDEFICS/I.Family cohort (2013-2014), and who provided information on their impulsivity. Participants self-reported their DM exposure (hours/day), for smartphone, internet, television viewing, and computer/game console (PC). Media multitasking (i.e., simultaneous use of PC with other media) was also reported. Latent class analyses were applied to identify underlying patterns of DM exposure. Generalized linear mixed regressions, adjusted for confounders (e.g., weight status) were used to estimate regression coefficients (β) and 99.9% confidence intervals (CI). Results The analyses included 3222 adolescents (mean age/SD=13.6/1.1; half girls), 26% of whom were with overweight/obesity. The results showed that one additional hour of exposure to smartphones (β, 0.73; 99.9%CI, 0.41-1.06), internet (β, 0.57; 99.9%CI, 0.28-0.86), and higher media multitasking (β, 0.72; 99.9%CI, 0.33-1.11) were positively associated with impulsivity in all participants. The latent class analyses identified four patterns of DM exposure. Adolescents with prolonged smartphone/internet exposure but low PC/medium TV exposure (β, 1.61, 99.9%CI, 0.41, 2.82) showed higher impulsivity score, compared to those with low exposure to all media, especially girls and participants living in two-parent families. Conclusions Prolonged DM exposure is related to being more impulsive in the context of negative emotions in European adolescents. Although future longitudinal research should confirm these findings, they hint at a further underlying mechanism by which DM exposure may lead to obesity and subsequent metabolic disorders. Key messages • Excessive DM exposure is positively related with the emotion-driven impulsiveness of European adolescents. • These findings call for actions to increase adolescents’s psycho-emotional resilience against the digital environment.