Despite the rising prevalence of mobile media in young children’s lives, little research exists that
examines the effects of mobile media use on early childhood cognitive development. This study
will explore how mobile media use, specifically iPad use, in early childhood affects development
of visual spatial attention span. Researchers will recruit 160 participants, ages 3 to 6, and
categorize them into three groups: TV viewers only, interactive iPad users, and passive iPad
users. Children will complete a computer task to measure the length of their visual spatial
attention span. Parents will report on the average daily amount of media use, their child’s top
three most viewed or used programs and apps, and the pervasiveness of media use, as well as
complete a demographics survey. Research assistants will rate the level of exogenous stimuli
children are exposed to in their top three programs and apps. Researchers predict that iPad use
will be associated with shorter visual spatial attention spans in comparison to TV viewing, due to
longer amounts of use, higher levels of exogenous stimuli, and higher levels of pervasiveness. In
addition, researchers hypothesize that interactive iPad use will correlate with the shortest visual
spatial attention spans due to highest levels of exogenous stimuli and longest amounts of use.
The results will help parents and educators to more effectively monitor young children’s mobile
media usage.