Page Last Updated: May 14, 2026

Screen-Based Media Use (ScreenQ)🔗

Table Name	`ph_cg_screenq`
Construct	Media Use
Study Visits	V04, V06
Administration	Child-specific: Yes Respondent: Birth Parent or Primary Caregiver Method: HBCD Study staff or self, in person or remote (5 min estimated duration)
Quality Control	Monitoring of data dashboard for variable missingness Detection of possible coding errors Verification of scoring accuracy when applicable Review of data consistency

Instrument Details🔗

ScreenQ is designed to measure child screen use patterns. Questions are based on the AAP guidelines for media use. ScreenQ scores have been correlated with language development, working memory and executive functioning.

The HBCD ScreenQ includes additional response options "Decline to answer" and "Don’t know." The impact on scoring is described under Scoring Procedures below. In addition, when the child is mentioned, pronouns were changed from he/she to “the child” for gender neutrality.

The ScreenQ is scored in 4 domains:

Access (7 point max)
Frequency (8 point max)
Content (6 point max)
Co-Viewing (6 point max)

The sum of these domains gives the Total score with range 0-27. A summary score is not computed if data are missing. Note that "Decline to answer" and "Don’t know" (additional response options incorporated for HBCD) are both considered missing/non-responses; any questionnaire that includes those answers should not have a summative score calculated. Researchers can decide independently how to handle missingness.

See full scoring procedures here.

References🔗

Hutton, J.S., Huang, G., Sahay, R.D. et al. A novel, composite measure of screen-based media use in young children (ScreenQ) and associations with parenting practices and cognitive abilities. Pediatr Res 87, 1211–1218 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-020-0765-1