Electronic Gaming and Social Adjustment in Early School-Aged Children: A Two-Wave Cross-Lagged Study

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate the associations and directionality between electronic gaming frequency and social adjustment in a cohort of early school-aged Norwegian children. Despite substantial interest in the topic, very few studies have investigated longitudinal associations. Most of the available studies have focused on children who are eight years old or older. There is also a lack of studies conducted outside of American culture. The present study used existing data from the research project SKOLEKLAR, conducted by the Center for Learning Environment at the University of Stavanger in 2012/2013. A total of 243 children participated in the study. Data was collected at two time points: first, when the children were in the last year of kindergarten (T1), and the second time the following year when they were in first grade of elementary school (T2). A cross-lagged structural equation modeling was used to analyze data. Social adjustment was measured using prosocial behavior and peer problems subscales from the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire teacher rated version, as latent variables. Electronic gaming was measured as total amount of hours spent on gaming on various platforms, reported by the parents. Gender, sex, and socio-economic status were included as covariates. Cross-lagged analyses showed that a higher electronic gaming frequency at T1 was significantly related to lower prosocial behavior at T2. No significant associations were found for gaming and peer relationship problems. The mixed results can be attributed to low variability, construct validity of the peer relationship problem scale, and potential selective or compensative processes. Furthermore, prosocial behavior at T1 did not predict any change in gaming at T2. There was a significant difference between the two directions of influence. Thus, the results indicate one-directional influence from electronic gaming frequency to later change in social adjustment.