The Parent Play Questionnaire: Development of a parent questionnaire to assess parent–child play and digital media use

Predicting preschool children's digital play addiction tendency during Covid-19 pandemic: Regarding the mother-child relationship, and child- and family-related factors

Previous research about children's digital play has predominantly focused on parental perspectives and parental mediation strategies. Although research on the effects of digital play on young children's development is plentiful, there is little evidence on young children's digital play addiction tendency. Herein, preschool children's digital play addiction tendency, and the mother-child relationship perceived by mothers, examining child- and family-related factors were explored. The present study also aimed to contribute to the current research pertaining to preschool-aged children's digital play addiction tendency through an examination of the mother-child relationship, and child- and family-related factors as potential predictors of children's digital play addiction tendency. A sample of 450 mothers of children between 4 and 6 years filled out two measures that identify the mother-child relationship and children's digital play addiction tendency. Correlational analyses revealed that in general, the mother-child relationship was significantly associated with children's digital play addiction tendency. Significant differences were evident in the relationship between numerous child- and family-related factors, and children's digital play addiction tendency, as well as the mother-child relationship. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that a negative mother-child relationship, the children's digital play usage, and the mothers' digital device usage predicted the children's digital play addiction tendency.

Scale of Parental Playfulness Attitude (PaPA): Psychometric Properties With Latino Caregivers in the United States

IMPORTANCE

Parent-child play is a beneficial and meaningful co-occupation. Therapists who want to optimize parent-child play for Latino- and Latina-American dyads need valid, reliable measures to assess caregiver playfulness in addition to preexisting measures of child playfulness.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate data collected from Latino-American caregivers with the Scale of Parental Playfulness Attitude (PaPA), a 28-item parent self-report to determine its construct validity, internal reliability, and cross-cultural validity.

DESIGN

Quantitative exploratory design applying a latent-trait psychometric model.

SETTING

Online survey.

PARTICIPANTS

Convenience sample of 50 Spanish-speaking parents from the mainland United States recruited via snowballing (88% mothers, ages 24-47 yr; M = 34.8 yr; 82% first-generation Americans). The inclusion criteria were age ≥18 yr; literate in Spanish; primary caregiver to a child age 2.5-7 yr. Data from an existing sample of 50 parents dwelling in Puerto Rico were used to examine cross-cultural validity.

OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

Rasch analysis demonstrated evidence for adequate construct validity: positive point-measure correlations, 93% fit of items, logical item hierarchy, and good progression of the rating scale. Range and mean for parent playfulness exceeded those of the items; principal-components analysis revealed one contrast of 4.46 eigenvalues, bringing unidimensionality into question. Evidence suggested excellent internal reliability (person-reliability index = 0.85, strata = 3.55) and good cross-cultural validity (25 of 28 items formed a similar hierarchy for parents dwelling in the mainland United States and Puerto Rico).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Although the PaPA can be used to assess caregiver playfulness with culturally diverse Latino-American dyads, further research is required. What This Article Adds: This study provides evidence for the construct validity and internal reliability of a tool that measures parent playfulness in the context of parent-child play. The PaPA is an important tool for occupational therapists working with Latino-American families.

Infant media use: A harm reduction approach

There are a myriad of potentially harmful developmental outcomes associated with infant digital media use. Studies revealing risk associated with early media use have informed the current American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommendations that discourage most digital media use among children under 18 months of age. Recent research advances, however, suggest potential benefits of technology engagement in this age group. Additionally, surveys of parents reveal that most infants engage with digital media for at least 30 min a day, exceeding the AAP recommendations. In response to these discoveries and cultural trends, some scholars have made compelling cases to adapt the AAP guidelines for infants. A helpful model for developing infant digital media use guidelines for families may be the harm reduction approach. The intent of this review is to suggest adaptations to the AAP guidelines for infant media engagement using a harm reduction framework. This review describes the challenge of restrictive guidelines, briefly summarizes the harm reduction approach, provides a review of risks and benefits associated with infant media use in each developmental domain (physical, cognitive, and socioemotional), summarizes correlates of infant screen media use, and examines intervention strategies for reducing screen time. The paper concludes with examples of possible adaptations to current AAP infant media use recommendations using harm reduction and bioecological frameworks.