Traditional print books may have an edge over e-books when it comes to quality time shared between parents and their children, a new study suggests.

But traditional print books may have an edge over e-books when it comes to quality time shared between parents and their children, a new study suggests.

The research, led by University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital and involving 37 parent-toddler pairs, found that parents and children verbalized and interacted less with e-books than with print books. The findings appear in journal Pediatrics, which is published by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

«Shared reading promotes children’s language development, literacy and bonding with parents. We wanted to learn how electronics might change this experience,» says lead author Tiffany Munzer, M.D., a fellow in developmental behavioral pediatrics at Mott.

«We found that when parents and children read print books, they talked more frequently and the quality of their interactions were better.»

The parent-toddler pairs in the study used three book formats: print books, basic electronic books on a tablet and enhanced e-books featuring additions like sound effects and animation. With e-books, not only did the pairs interact less but parents tended to talk less about the story and more about the technology itself. Sometimes this included instructions about the device, such as telling children not to push buttons or change the volume.

Story Source:
Materials provided by Michigan Medicine — University of Michigan. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.