An explorative study to assess screen dependency and their associated problems among upper primary school children aged 8 to 12 years in selected schools at Kuppam

Background: Excessive use of screens and digital media, a growing challenge for child neurology, leads to exposure to blue lights, which has an impact on the child’s brain and leads to a disorder called Screen Dependency Disorder (SDD). The objectives assess screen dependency and its associated problems among upper primary school children, examine the correlation between screen dependency and associated problems, and to identify the association between screen dependency and selected socio-demographic variables. Materials and Methods: Using a non-experimental descriptive correlation design and a sample of 135 students selected via simple random sampling, the research analysed screen usage patterns, related health issues, and demographic influences. Results: Findings revealed that 60% of children were severely screen-dependent, with 45.9% spending 2–3 hours daily on screens, primarily using smartphones 61.5% and televisions 31.1%. Statistical analysis showed a moderate positive correlation between screen dependency and physical (r=0.66), emotional (r=0.65), and psychosocial problems (r=0.63), weak positive correlation was found in academic issues with p<0.01. Demographic factors such as the child’s education level, parents’ occupation and education, family type, and screen time duration significantly influenced screen dependency and its associated effects. Conclusion: From this study, we have concluded that allowing the children to use screen media to resolve quarrels, the presence of television in the bedroom, children using smart phones, and excessive screen time more than 2 hours over the weekend significantly increased the risk of developing screen dependency. Keywords: explorative, assess, screen dependency, physical, emotional, psychosocial, academic problem, urban area