Screen-time exposure and modality-specific working memory capacity in adolescents

Electronic devices have become an integral part of adolescents' lives, serving as a means of entertainment, education, and communication. Educational applications may enhance early reading and cognitive abilities, but excessive screen time can harm working memory (WM), a critical skill for processing information. Considering the developmental transformations in WM during adolescence, existing literature about the impacts of active (AST) vs. background screen time (BST) on modality-specific WM capacity remains inconclusive. This study examined the correlation between WM and different forms of screen in adolescents.

A total of 81 adolescents aged between 13 and 16 years were included in this cross-sectional study. WM span was measured using auditory reverse digit span (ARDS) and visual reverse digit span (VRDS) tasks, as well as a Corsi backward (CB) task. Screen time data were collected from parents and self-reported by participants.

The study found that higher AST than BST exposure occurred in all children. While BST showed no significant impact on WM, higher AST was linked to better performance on all three tasks, especially the CB task. Logistic regression revealed that lower CB and ARDS scores predicted low AST levels with strong classification accuracy. In contrast, BST was not a significant predictor of WM outcomes. These findings suggest modality-specific effects of active screen engagement on WM.

This study concluded that higher levels of AST were associated with better performance across WM tasks, particularly in the visuospatial modality, highlighting modality-specific effects of screen exposures among adolescents in this context.