Screen-Related Parenting Practices in Mexican American Families with Toddlers: Development of Culturally- and Contextually-Relevant Scales

Background/Objectives: Screen-related parenting practices (e.g., restriction, coviewing) influence the way children use screen devices. Although children start using screen devices (e.g., televisions [TV], tablets) in the first few years of life, rigorously developed measures of screen-related paren...

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Main Authors: Darcy A. Thompson, Laura K. Kaizer, Sarah J. Schmiege, Natasha J. Cabrera, Lauren Clark, Haley Ringwood, Estefania Miramontes Valdes, Andrea Jimenez-Zambrano, Jeanne M. Tschann
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Children
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/7/874
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author Darcy A. Thompson
Laura K. Kaizer
Sarah J. Schmiege
Natasha J. Cabrera
Lauren Clark
Haley Ringwood
Estefania Miramontes Valdes
Andrea Jimenez-Zambrano
Jeanne M. Tschann
author_facet Darcy A. Thompson
Laura K. Kaizer
Sarah J. Schmiege
Natasha J. Cabrera
Lauren Clark
Haley Ringwood
Estefania Miramontes Valdes
Andrea Jimenez-Zambrano
Jeanne M. Tschann
author_sort Darcy A. Thompson
collection DOAJ
description Background/Objectives: Screen-related parenting practices (e.g., restriction, coviewing) influence the way children use screen devices. Although children start using screen devices (e.g., televisions [TV], tablets) in the first few years of life, rigorously developed measures of screen-related parenting practices for parents of toddlers do not exist. The objective of this study was to develop culturally and contextually relevant survey measures of screen-related parenting practices for use in Mexican American families with toddlers. Methods: Measures were developed using an exploratory sequential mixed methods (qualitative → quantitative) approach. Mexican American mothers of toddlers (15–26 months of age) participated in semi-structured interviews. Using the interview findings, domains of parenting practices across screen device types were identified, and survey items were developed. Items were administered by phone to 384 Mexican American mothers. Analyses included evaluation of the factor structure and psychometric properties of nine domains of parenting practices and evaluations of correlations between each scale and demographic characteristics. Results: Factor analyses supported a one-factor solution for each parenting practice as follows: Restrict TV Time (8 items), Coview TV (10 items), Behavioral Regulation with TV (12 items), Restrict Mobile Device Time (8 items); Coview Mobile Devices (10 items); Behavioral Regulation with Mobile Devices (16 items), Restrict Screen Content (8 items), Allow Screen Use Around Sleep (6 items), and Allow Screen Use While Eating (6 items). The reliabilities were acceptable (Cronbach’s alphas > 0.80). Hispanic acculturation, maternal age, and child age were correlated with many of the scales of parenting practices. Conclusions: The measures developed in this study offer a way to evaluate the use and impact of screen-related parenting practices in Mexican American families with toddlers. The use of these measures will enable investigators to identify relationships among parenting practices, screen use, and child well-being, which could inform the design of early childhood interventions promoting healthy screen use in this population.
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spelling doaj-art-26a477e679a8423797458bdf408ebf002025-08-20T02:45:38ZengMDPI AGChildren2227-90672025-07-0112787410.3390/children12070874Screen-Related Parenting Practices in Mexican American Families with Toddlers: Development of Culturally- and Contextually-Relevant ScalesDarcy A. Thompson0Laura K. Kaizer1Sarah J. Schmiege2Natasha J. Cabrera3Lauren Clark4Haley Ringwood5Estefania Miramontes Valdes6Andrea Jimenez-Zambrano7Jeanne M. Tschann8Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USADepartment of Biostatistics and Informatics, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USADepartment of Biostatistics and Informatics, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USACollege of Education, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USASchool of Nursing, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USADenver Health and Hospital Authority, Denver, CO 80204, USAAdult and Child Center for Outcomes Research and Delivery Science, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USADepartment of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USADepartment of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USABackground/Objectives: Screen-related parenting practices (e.g., restriction, coviewing) influence the way children use screen devices. Although children start using screen devices (e.g., televisions [TV], tablets) in the first few years of life, rigorously developed measures of screen-related parenting practices for parents of toddlers do not exist. The objective of this study was to develop culturally and contextually relevant survey measures of screen-related parenting practices for use in Mexican American families with toddlers. Methods: Measures were developed using an exploratory sequential mixed methods (qualitative → quantitative) approach. Mexican American mothers of toddlers (15–26 months of age) participated in semi-structured interviews. Using the interview findings, domains of parenting practices across screen device types were identified, and survey items were developed. Items were administered by phone to 384 Mexican American mothers. Analyses included evaluation of the factor structure and psychometric properties of nine domains of parenting practices and evaluations of correlations between each scale and demographic characteristics. Results: Factor analyses supported a one-factor solution for each parenting practice as follows: Restrict TV Time (8 items), Coview TV (10 items), Behavioral Regulation with TV (12 items), Restrict Mobile Device Time (8 items); Coview Mobile Devices (10 items); Behavioral Regulation with Mobile Devices (16 items), Restrict Screen Content (8 items), Allow Screen Use Around Sleep (6 items), and Allow Screen Use While Eating (6 items). The reliabilities were acceptable (Cronbach’s alphas > 0.80). Hispanic acculturation, maternal age, and child age were correlated with many of the scales of parenting practices. Conclusions: The measures developed in this study offer a way to evaluate the use and impact of screen-related parenting practices in Mexican American families with toddlers. The use of these measures will enable investigators to identify relationships among parenting practices, screen use, and child well-being, which could inform the design of early childhood interventions promoting healthy screen use in this population.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/7/874digital mediascreen deviceLatinocoviewingparental mediationinfants
spellingShingle Darcy A. Thompson
Laura K. Kaizer
Sarah J. Schmiege
Natasha J. Cabrera
Lauren Clark
Haley Ringwood
Estefania Miramontes Valdes
Andrea Jimenez-Zambrano
Jeanne M. Tschann
Screen-Related Parenting Practices in Mexican American Families with Toddlers: Development of Culturally- and Contextually-Relevant Scales
Children
digital media
screen device
Latino
coviewing
parental mediation
infants
title Screen-Related Parenting Practices in Mexican American Families with Toddlers: Development of Culturally- and Contextually-Relevant Scales
title_full Screen-Related Parenting Practices in Mexican American Families with Toddlers: Development of Culturally- and Contextually-Relevant Scales
title_fullStr Screen-Related Parenting Practices in Mexican American Families with Toddlers: Development of Culturally- and Contextually-Relevant Scales
title_full_unstemmed Screen-Related Parenting Practices in Mexican American Families with Toddlers: Development of Culturally- and Contextually-Relevant Scales
title_short Screen-Related Parenting Practices in Mexican American Families with Toddlers: Development of Culturally- and Contextually-Relevant Scales
title_sort screen related parenting practices in mexican american families with toddlers development of culturally and contextually relevant scales
topic digital media
screen device
Latino
coviewing
parental mediation
infants
url https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/7/874
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