P099 Use of Digital Technology During Child Bedtime Routines: A qualitative investigation

Abstract

Abstract Introduction The Child Bedtime Routines Study (CBRT) sets out to examine patterns and attitudes towards sleep in daily life in a novel and detailed way, by constructing personal timelines of 5–8-year-old children’s sleep routines in their homes, their digital technology use, and parental attitudes and behaviours surrounding sleep and digital technology use. Methods This project involved individual semi-structured interviews with 30 parents of 5–8-year-old children via zoom. During the interview parents completed a novel visualisation of their home environment and the visual diagramming tasks for afternoon and evening, sleep and wake routines at home via the online interactive platform Mural. Results Thirty parents (Female = 86.7%) of 30 children (66.7% boys) aged between 5 and 8 years participated in the study. The most common description of their child using technology was watching shows or videos via tv or tablet. Over 76% of parents identified having rules or regulations regarding digital technology use. There was little technology use reported around bed-time routines, however, the use of apps to listen to bedtime stories was reported by some. Discussion The interviews allowed for greater description and nuance regarding the parenting decisions around technology use in the home. Household rules around the use of digital technology by children were not specifically oriented around bedtime or the potential impact of technology on sleep quality, duration, or timing. The use of technology-based sleep aids may increase, and a better understanding of the potential benefits and costs of those technologies needs to be understood.