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Articles by tag "media use":
2022, 2
p. 30–39
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59
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly changed the conditions of life and in particular changed the way how adults and children use digital devices. Digitalization plays a big role in the development of preschool children. Therefore, it has become extremely relevant to study how preschoolers use digital devices in the new social conditions. This study aims to examine the use of digital devices before and during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown period by children aged 6-7. In this study we compared answers to the interview in 2019 and in 2021. The first wave of survey was conducted in 2019 involving 417 children aged 6–7 years. And the second wave with the same interview was conducted in 2021 involving 495 children aged 6–7 years. According to our results, children in 2021 named more options of digital devices usage and those options are more varied comparing to 2019. In addition, children became significantly more likely to say that digital devices could be used for work and learning, and they themselves became more likely to use them for educational purposes. However, many digital practices have remained unchanged over the past two years. For example, children still mostly use digital devices to play games. Among the answers about favorite digital activities in 2021 were more frequent answers not only from the category of entertainment, but also from the category of «psychological tools». In 2021, there are more kids using digital devices every day and fewer using them only on weekends. During the pandemic, children were more likely to use digital devices with parents, siblings, and friends. As a result of this work, recommendations for parents on the optimal use of digital devices by preschoolers were clarified.
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DOI: 10.24412/1997-9657-2022-2110-30-39