Media Use and the Analytical Brain: Screen-Based Media Use and Behavioral Preference in Indonesian Children

This study aims to examine the relationship between screen-based media use and autistic features. The present study involved 207 parents of Indonesian children 4-6 years old and 10-12 years old. Parents completed several questionnaires addressing children screen-based activities and level of autistic traits. The questionnaires are: (1) a screen-based media survey; (2) Empathizing-Systemizing Quotients (EQ-SQ Child); and (3) The Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ-Child). An online survey was utilized to collect all study data. The results showed that children spent more than four hours on average per day with media use. The regression analysis indicated that total time spent by children on media use shows a positive correlation with systemizing. The total time spent by children on media use also positively correlated with the extreme male brain condition. The total time spent on screen-based media use did not significantly contribute to explaining the variance of empathizing. However, empathizing is negatively correlated with time devoted in watching activities (television, videos, and movies) and playing video games. The more children spend time playing in video games, the more the autism quotient (AQ) score increases. Finally, the current study provides empirical evidence for a relation of screen-based media use and autistic features in children. The findings suggest that the duration of screen-time are significant predictors of systemizing and extreme male behavior, albeit the significance for empathizing depends on the type of media. The results highlight the clinical importance of examining screen-based media use among children.