Tablet Use Affects Preschoolers' Executive Function: fNIRS Evidence from the Dimensional Change Card Sort Task

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Pediatric Neuroimaging

Background:

• Excessive screen time, particularly tablet use, is a growing concern in early childhood.
• Executive functions are critical for cognitive development and academic success in preschoolers.
• The impact of heavy tablet use on neural correlates of executive function remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of heavy tablet use on executive function in preschoolers.
• To examine neural activity in the prefrontal cortex during a cognitive task in relation to tablet usage patterns.
• To compare cognitive performance and brain activation between tablet non-users and heavy users.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Dimensional Change Card Sort (DCCS) task to assess executive function.
• Employed functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to measure prefrontal cortex (BA 9) activation.
• Compared 16 'heavy-user' preschoolers with 8 'non-user' preschoolers (mean age 5.0 years).

Main Results:

• 'Non-users' demonstrated significantly higher accuracy on the DCCS task compared to 'heavy-users'.
• Significant differences in prefrontal cortex (BA 9) activation patterns were observed between the groups.
• 'Heavy-users' exhibited abnormal prefrontal cortex activation patterns.

Conclusions:

• Heavy tablet use is associated with poorer executive function performance in preschoolers.
• Abnormal prefrontal cortex activation in heavy tablet users suggests potential neurodevelopmental alterations.
• Further research is warranted to understand the long-term implications of heavy tablet use on child brain development.