Associations Between Home Environment, Children’s and Parents’ Characteristics and Children’s TV Screen Time Behavior

In Ireland, television (TV) screen time is a highly prevalent sedentary behavior among children aged less than five years. Little is known about the influence of parental rules and policies or screen time availability and accessibility within the home on children\u27s TV screen time behaviors. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the extent to which parents\u27 sociodemographic and sedentary behaviors are associated with children\u27s TV screen time; and to determine the associations between parents\u27 rules and practices, home physical environment and children\u27s daily TV viewing. Three hundred and thirty-two children aged 3-5 years and their parents participated in the study. Children\u27s TV screen time and home environmental characteristics (parents\u27 rules and practices and the physical environment) were assessed using questions from standardized and validated questionnaires. The data were analyzed using binary logistic regression. Within the different sedentary behaviors evaluated, parents\u27 TV viewing was positively associated with children\u27s TV screen time (OR 1.65, 95%CI 1.09-2.50, p = 0.018). Leaving the TV on, whether or not it was being watched, was associated with a 38% increased probability of children watching ≥ 1 h TV daily. Children whose parents restricted their outdoor activity were more likely to watch ≥ 1 h TV daily (OR 2.01, 95%CI 1.04-3.88, p = 0.036). Findings from the study demonstrated that parents\u27 own screen time behaviors, leaving the TV on whether it was being watched or not and restricting outdoor play were associated with higher children\u27s TV viewing in the home environment. This knowledge is essential to inform future interventions aimed to address the increase in screen time among young children