Validity of children's direct estimates of time spent television viewing

Abstract

Using a representative sample of Dutch 10‐ to 16‐year‐olds (N = 581), the study was designed to determine if the criterion‐related validity of two types of child‐reported direct estimates of time spent television viewing depended on gender, age, socioeconomic status (SES), and level of school achievement. Validity was assessed in terms of the correlations found between direct estimates and a child‐reported diary measure of viewing. The validity coefficients of the direct estimates were found to be unrelated to gender, but comparatively higher among older children (aged 10‐16), high‐SES children, and, though not significantly, among high‐achieving children.