Parental influences on youth television viewing.
OBJECTIVE
To assess associations among youth television (TV) viewing and parental TV viewing, parental knowledge of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommendations to limit children's TV viewing time to < or = 2 hours per day (knowledge), and parental limits on the frequency of children's TV viewing (rules).


METHODS
Adult participants in the 2002 Styles surveys answered questions about their weekly TV viewing, knowledge, and rules. TV viewing time of children of the adult participants (520 boys and 525 girls) age 10 to 18 years was also collected. Associations between hours of child TV viewing and parental TV viewing, parental knowledge, and parental rules were quantified using linear regression techniques.


RESULTS
Variables included in multivariate regression models accounted for 8% to 18% of the variance in TV viewing among boys and girls. Parent TV viewing was significantly associated with TV viewing in 10- to 12-year-old and 16- to 18-year-old boys and girls. Knowledge was not associated with TV viewing in boys and girls in this sample. Rules were associated with TV viewing in boys and girls of all ages.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that parental TV viewing and rules limiting their child's TV time may play an important role in children's weekly TV viewing time.
Barradas
Danielle T
DT
Program in Nutrition and Health Sciences, Graduate Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA. DBarradas@cdc.gov
Fulton
Janet E
JE
Blanck
Heidi M
HM
Huhman
Marian
M
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009765:Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control; D016487:Parenting; D013690:Television; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States