title: How parents can affect excessive spending of time on screen-based activities.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The aim of this study is to explore the association between family-related factors and excessive time spent on screen-based activities among school-aged children.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional survey using the methodology of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study was performed in 2013, with data collected from Slovak (n = 258) and Czech (n = 406) 11- and 15-year-old children. The effects of age, gender, availability of a TV or computer in the bedroom, parental rules on time spent watching TV or working on a computer, parental rules on the content of TV programmes and computer work and watching TV together with parents on excessive time spent with screen-based activities were explored using logistic regression models.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two-thirds of respondents watch TV or play computer games at least two hours a day. Older children have a 1.80-times higher chance of excessive TV watching (CI: 1.30-2.51) and a 3.91-times higher chance of excessive computer use (CI: 2.82-5.43) in comparison with younger children. More than half of children have a TV (53%) and a computer (73%) available in their bedroom, which increases the chance of excessive TV watching by 1.59 times (CI: 1.17-2.16) and of computer use by 2.25 times (CI: 1.59-3.20). More than half of parents rarely or never apply rules on the length of TV watching (64%) or time spent on computer work (56%), and their children have a 1.76-times higher chance of excessive TV watching (CI: 1.26-2.46) and a 1.50-times greater chance of excessive computer use (CI: 1.07-2.08). A quarter of children reported that they are used to watching TV together with their parents every day, and these have a 1.84-times higher chance of excessive TV watching (1.25-2.70).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Reducing time spent watching TV by applying parental rules or a parental role model might help prevent excessive time spent on screen-based activities.
authors.affiliation: Health Psychology Unit, Institute of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, P,J, Safarik University in Kosice, Tr, SNP 1, Košice 041 01, Slovak Republic. daniela.brindova@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Brindova
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pavelka
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ševčikova
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Žežula
authors.forename: Jitse P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: van Dijk
authors.forename: Sijmen A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Reijneveld
authors.forename: Andrea Madarasova
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Geckova
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D002668:Child Rearing; D003201:Computers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005195:Family Relations; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D013690:Television / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D018910:Video Games / Q000706:statistics & numerical data