Screen Time and Developmental Evidence: An Empirical Assessment from Rural West Bengal

Soumyajit Bhunia; Debadrita Sircar

doi:10.55524/ijirem.2026.13.2.11

Abstract

This paper is trying to explore the intricate relationship between social media scrolling time and two major student developmental outcomes viz. Quetelet index and scores in the board examination. Primary data has been collected through a well-structured questionnaire (Pro-goti) survey administered to 300 students across four administrative blocks in West Bengal. We apply multivariate regression model estimation to account for interdependent educational and health outcomes. Preliminary findings suggest that higher social media use is negatively associated with both well-being and academic performance. Regression results indicates that higher levels of parental education contributing significantly to improved test scores, underscoring the intergenerational transmission of educational advantages. Children from joint families and larger households tend to perform worse, possibly due to divided attention, limited resources, or less conducive study environments. Religious disparities are also evident, with students from the Muslim community recording significantly lower test scores compared to their Hindu counterparts. The results provide valuable early evidence to inform policy discussions around screen time regulation, digital education literacy, and school-based behavioural interventions.

Keywords

Screen time, Quetelet index, Test scores, Multivariate regression.

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Cites this article as

S. Bhunia, D. Sircar, "Screen Time and Developmental Evidence: An Empirical Assessment from Rural West Bengal", International Journal of Innovative Research in Engineering and Management (IJIREM), Vol-13, Issue-2, Page No-75-81, 2026. Available from: https://doi.org/10.55524/ijirem.2026.13.2.11