Behavioral correlates of television viewing time in a Turkish sample of preschool children

Objective: Recent studies have found a correlation between television viewing and behavior problems in children. This study aimed to examine the extent of children's television-viewing time and its correlation with behavioral problems in a preschool age general population sample. Method: A total of 356 preparatory school students aged 5 to 7 years, were recruited for the study. The questionnaires on children's time spent on watching television, socioeconomic status of family (SES) and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) were administered to the parents of children's. Results: The overall mean +/- SD daily television viewing time was 3.2 +/- 1.4 hours. Elevated scores of somatic complaints, depression and anxiety, social problems, thought problems, attention problems, aggressive behaviors, internalization, externalization subscales and total problems were associated with higher television watching times. Overall television viewing time had a positive correlation with social problem, somatic complaints problem, anxious/depressed problem, internalization, externalization and total problem scores. Conclusion: Television viewing time is positively associated with internalization, externalization and total problems using CBCL in preschool children. Although this study does not suggest that time of the viewing television is one of the most important determinants of children's behavior problems, it indicates that heavy viewing may have a risk of behavioral problems for children. Our findings support the importance of parental monitoring of their children's television watching habits.