A Multidimensional Examination of Temperament, Problematic Media Use, Emotion Regulation, Behavioural Problems and Developmental Outcomes in Preschool Children

INTRODUCTION: This study examined relationships between temperament, problematic media use (PMU), emotion regulation, behavioural problems and developmental outcomes in preschool children, focusing on temperament's mediating role between PMU and emotion regulation. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 205 children (mean age: 54.28 months; 55.6% male) from a child psychiatry outpatient clinic. Parents completed standardized measures including the Short Temperament Scale for Children, Problematic Media Use Measure (PMUM), Emotion Regulation Checklist (ERC) and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Children's development was objectively assessed using the Denver Developmental Screening Test-II (DDST-II). Data analysis involved correlation, group comparisons and mediation analysis using the PROCESS macro. RESULTS: Problematic media use was significantly higher in children with developmental delays (p < 0.001) and strongly correlated with delays in all DDST-II domains (p < 0.001). A significant negative correlation was found between PMU and emotion regulation. Crucially, mediation analysis revealed that temperament fully mediated the relationship between PMU and emotion regulation (indirect effect: 0.018, 95% CI [0.0052, 0.030], p = 0.006), accounting for 62.7% of the total effect. Children with higher reactivity temperament traits showed stronger associations between PMU and emotional lability. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that problematic media use is significantly associated with developmental delays in preschoolers. This underscores the necessity of moving beyond uniform screen time guidelines towards individualized, temperament-informed interventions to support healthy emotional development in the digital age.