Effect of Touch Screen Tablet Use on Fine Motor Development of Young Children

ABSTRACT

Aim: To investigate the effects of touch-screen tablet use on the fine motor development of preschool children without developmental delay. Methods: 40 children who used a touch-screen tablet more 60 minutes per week for at least 1 month received a 24-week home fine motor activity program using a touch-screen-tablet. 40 children matched for age (mean = 61.0 months) and sex who did not meet the criteria for previous tablet use received a 24-week program consisting of manual play activities. Motor performance was measured using the Bruininks–Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency. The two-factor mixed design ANOVA was used to compare performance of the touch-screen tablet and non-touch-screen tablet groups. Results: Pretest analysis showed no group differences in motor performance and pinch strength. At posttest, children in the nontouch-screen-tablet group made significantly greater changes in fine motor precision (p < 0.001), fine motor integration (p = 0.008), and manual dexterity (p = 0.003). Conclusion: Using a touch screen tablet extensively might be disadvantageous for the fine motor development of preschool children.

KEYWORDS:

• Touch-screen tablet
• fine motor
• preschool
• child development

Acknowledgments

We thank all the children and family members who participated in this research.

Declaration of Interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.

Funding

Support for this research was provided in part by grant MOST 103-2314-B-006-001 from the Taiwan Ministry of Science and Technology, and in part by scholar grants from the College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University.

About the Authors

Ling-Yi Lin, BSc, MSc, ScD, OT, is affiliated with National Cheng Kung University, Faculty of Occupational Therapy and Allied Health Sciences, Tainan, Taiwan. Rong-Ju Cherng, BSc, MSc, PhD, PT, is affiliated with National Cheng Kung University, Faculty of Physical Therapy and Allied Health Sciences, Tainan, Taiwan. Yung-Jung Chen, MD, PhD, is affiliated with National Cheng Kung University, Faculty of Medicine- Department of Pediatrics, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan.