Can kids learn from screens? The immediate effect of screen content on Preschoolers’ Executive Function

The aim of this exploratory study was to examine the immediate effects of screen content on preschool children’s executive function. The study used a between-subjects experimental design, i.e. 2 (educational vs. non-educational) ×2 (realistic vs. fantastical) ×2 (younger vs. older), with 90 preschool participants. The main results indicated that neither the main effects of educational or fantastical content on EF nor their interaction effects were statistically significant, while there were significant interaction effects between educational content and age on children’s performance of EF. Specifically, watching educational screen content led to greater immediate improvements in EF among young children compared with non-educational content, whereas this effect was not significant for older children. The findings highlight the importance of considering screen content and age when evaluating the effects of screen use on preschool children’s executive function and inform content designers, educators, and caregivers to make evidence-based decisions about screen use for young children.