When parents talk about “screen time,” it’s often with a sigh. But lumping television watching and doomscrolling on a phone or tablet together misses a big difference in how these activities engage children and affect their development.
Sure, any screen use can replace opportunities to move, play with friends, read, or connect face-to-face with family. Too much of that is a loss for physical health and emotional well-being. But not all screen time is created equal.
Why TV and Movies Can Be Good
Television and movies, especially when chosen thoughtfully or watched together as a family, can offer shared experiences that bring families closer. They can introduce compelling stories, moral lessons, and cultural understanding. TV and movies also serve as a necessary respite when circumstances demand it, such as during a long car ride, travel, sickness, or simply to give a caregiver a moment to breathe. These moments of calm are not a failure. Good-quality media can provide space for laughter, imagination, and even learning, and support mental health for parents, grandparents, and the whole household. We like Common Sense Media - they have solid age recommendations for content and break down the type of content (violence, suggestive messaging, consumerism, etc.).
Doomscrolling: A Different Pattern of Engagement
By contrast, scrolling through social media feeds on a table or phone tends to encourage very different habits. These devices (and the software/apps on the devices) prompt constant distraction, rapid switching between short bits of content, and endless “just one more” scrolling loops.
The feeds are engineered by algorithms to keep users hooked, feeding novelty and emotional triggers rather than thoughtful narrative. Social media content is often unfiltered and uncurated, portraying misleading depictions of others’ lives. This can negatively affect children’s self-image and expectations. Unlike focused television viewing, this sort of scrolling is fragmented and interactive in ways that are not always healthy - watch The Social Dilemma on Netflix, if you haven’t!
What the Research Says
Recent research supports the idea that different kinds of screen use are linked to different outcomes. A large meta-analysis found that structured media activities, such as watching television, were associated with lower anxiety and inattention than social media and unstructured screen use, suggesting that content and context matter more than total minutes.
Longitudinal studies (those that happen over time, sometimes a long time) tracking children’s social media use are associated with increases in inattention andoms, whereas television or videos do not show the same association. Another scientific analysis argues that smartphone and online media use often correlates with higher impulsivity and stress in young people, more so than non-internet media such as television. Taken together, these findings suggest that it is not screen time per se that matters, but how the screen is used.
A Balanced View
No one is suggesting screens are perfect. Excessive television watching can be unhealthy when it replaces physical activity or social play. But thoughtful use of television or movies, especially as a shared family experience, can be a positive part of childhood. The hyper-stimulating, endless, algorithm-driven scroll that accompanies smartphone or tablet use is far more concerning for many parents and experts.
Next time someone says “screens are bad,” the question should be which screens and how they are being used. The difference between watching a meaningful movie together and doomscrolling through feeds can be more than a handful of minutes—it can shape attention, mood, and relationships.