Author(s)

Yaosheng Zhang ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ Beijing 21st Century School, Beijing, 100142, China

Corresponding Author

Yaosheng Zhang

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to examine the associations between screen exposure, including usage duration, content characteristics, and viewing context, and adolescents’ physical activity, sleep quality, and behavioral problems. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 16 eighth-grade students from an international school in Beijing. Screen usage was assessed using a self-administered questionnaire, while physical activity level, sleep quality, and behavioral problems were measured with the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents (PAQ-A), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), respectively. Kendall's tau-b correlation analysis was used for statistical testing. The results showed that weekday screen time was significantly positively correlated with sleep problems (τ = 0.47, p < 0.05) and hyperactivity problems (r = 0.50, p < 0.05), while weekend screen time was significantly negatively correlated with physical activity level (r = -0.41, p < 0.05) and prosocial behavior (r = -0.45, p < 0.05). In addition, exposure to violent content was significantly positively correlated with peer relationship problems (r = 0.51, p < 0.05), whereas no significant correlations were found for co-viewing frequency. These findings suggest that different dimensions of screen exposure may have distinct effects on adolescent health: weekday screen time is mainly associated with sleep and hyperactivity problems, weekend screen time may influence physical activity and prosocial behavior through a "time displacement" effect, and violent content may exacerbate peer relationship problems through social learning pathways. Overall, the study provides empirical support for targeted interventions based on the "screen time–content–context" triad model.

KEYWORDS

Screen Exposure; Physical Activity; Sleep Quality; Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ); Adolescents; Kendall's Correlation

CITE THIS PAPER

Yaosheng Zhang. The Impact of Screen Time, Content, and Context on Physical Activity, Sleep, and Behavioral Problems among International School Students. Advances in Educational Technology and Psychology (2026). Vol. 10, No. 3, 73-79. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/aetp.2026.100309.

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