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Half of US teens spend over 4 hours daily on screens, CDC study finds

By Austin Williams
Published  November 1, 2024 5:00pm MST
Mental Health
FOX TV Digital Team

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The Brief

    • About 50% of U.S. teens aged 12 to 17 report four or more hours of screen time daily.
    • Teens with high screen time are more likely to report symptoms of anxiety (27%) and depression (26%).
    • Urban teens are more likely than rural teens to spend over four hours on screens.

LOS ANGELES - A new survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that around 50% of American teens, ages 12 to 17, spend at least four hours daily in front of screens—whether on their smartphones, computers, or televisions. The data comes from responses to a federal survey conducted from mid-2021 to late 2023.

As screen time rises among adolescents, researchers are finding a connection between extended screen use and mental health concerns. The CDC study found that nearly 27% of teens who reported four or more hours of daily screen time also reported experiencing anxiety in the past two weeks. In comparison, only 12.3% of teens with less screen exposure experienced similar symptoms.

Higher screen time linked to increased depression

Self-reported depression rates were also significantly higher among teens with elevated screen time. About 26% of teens who spent four or more hours a day on screens reported symptoms of depression, compared to 9.5% of those with less screen time.

In this photo illustration, a teenage child looks at the screen of a mobile phone. ((Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images))

Screen time patterns by age, gender, and location

Screen time usage appeared similar across genders, with roughly 48% of boys and 52.5% of girls spending four or more hours on screens daily. Age played a more noticeable role: 45.6% of younger teens (ages 12-14) engaged in prolonged screen time, compared to 55% of older teens (ages 15-17).

Teens in urban areas also showed higher screen time, with 51.4% of urban teens spending four-plus hours daily on screens, compared to 43.3% of rural teens.

Prior research on screen time and mental health

Amanda Ng, the report’s lead author from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, noted that prior research has connected excessive screen time with negative health outcomes, including poor sleep, fatigue, and elevated symptoms of anxiety and depression.

The Source
This article is based on data from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics and was published in NCHS Data Brief.