Excessive screen-device use is linked with both physical health (i.e. obesity and cardiovascular risk) and mental health outcomes (i.e. depression and substance abuse) ostensibly through obesogenic health behaviors (i.e. poor sleep and sedentary behavior) and social/emotional risk factors (i.e. behavior problems). Advances in mobile technology have increased the availability of screens for young children (under 6), and screen time habits established in early childhood can persist through school age and into adulthood. Research on screen time use has been hindered by methodological limitations, including a reliance on retrospective self-reported measures (which are subject to recall and desirability biases). Additionally, the limited research on within-day time-varying contexts (i.e. child behavior, parenting stress) that influence screen time in specific situations, produces an unrefined picture of the mechanisms underlying the link between screen time and behavioral health outcomes. Utilizing data already collected by mobile devices is likely to provide a more objective and nuanced measure of screen time. Integrating intensive longitudinal data collected from multiple sources (i.e. passive mobile screen time sensing, ecological momentary assessment (EMA) and accelerometry) can reveal the process-oriented science that underlies the association between screen time and physical health behaviors (i.e. sleep & activity) and mental health (i.e. behavior problems). This study aims to test the feasibility/acceptability and utility of passively collecting objective mobile screen time data in conjunction with accelerometry and EMA among low income dyads of caregivers and their 3-5-year-old child over 30-days. Caregivers will complete EMA to assess screen time context including child behavior problems (i.e. compliance, tantrums) and parent stress. Validity of passive screen time sensing will be assessed using concurrent parent EMA report of screen time and sedentary behavior via accelerometry. Feasibility and acceptability will be assessed by examining predictors of compliance with passive sensing protocols and qualitative interviews respectively. Results will inform measurement and intervention strategies of a subsequent well powered trial to identify personalized targets for behavior interventions to prevent obesity and reduce health disparities. This project integrates well with the COBRE Research Center for Well-Being theme to dually address health and social-emotional behaviors in children.
