Orig. title: KIM-Studie 2020: Basisuntersuchung zum Medienumgang 6- bis 13-Jähriger in Deutschland
Engl. transl.: KIM 2020: Study of the media use of 6- to 13-year-olds in Germany
Keywords
Kids
Children
Media
Internet
Media use
Digitalization
Learning
Publication details
| Year: | 2021 |
| Issued: | 2021 |
| Language: | German |
| Editors: | |
| Authors: | Medienpädagogischer Forschungsverbund Südwest |
| Type: | Report and working paper |
| Publisher: | Medienpädagogischer Forschungsverbund |
| Place: | Stuttgart |
| Topics: | Learning; Internet usage, practices and engagement; Literacy and skills; Risks and harms |
| Sample: | The population of the KIM Study 2020 is made up of German-speaking children aged six to 13 in private households and their primary parents in Germany. The representative sample comprises a total of 1,216 children and their main educators, nine percent of whom have a migration background. This small proportion is due to the design of the study, which requires extensive reading and writing skills in both the child surveyed and the main parent. However, the basis of this subgroup is too small for a differentiated evaluation, especially since the culture-specific backgrounds of the respective countries of origin would also have to be taken into account. If the children were already six years old at the time of the survey, children who did not yet go to school were also surveyed. The interviewees were selected according to a quota procedure. The sample points were stratified according to federal state and type of municipality (BIK location size classes) and randomly selected. Within the sample points, the respondents were selected on the basis of quota specifications with the characteristics gender x age, gender x age x federal state and type of municipality (BIK) x federal state according to the currently available data from the Federal Statistical Office. The results are therefore representative for the six to 13 year olds in Germany. (KIM Study 2020, p.3) |
Abstract
The topic of digitization, media use and media consumption by children has come even more to the fore in 2020 due to the corona pandemic. At the time of the survey for the KIM study in early autumn 2020, most of the children were back in class, but three quarters of the students had already had experience with homeschooling.
Television is still the most frequent media leisure activity of children, 70 percent watch television every day. Television also serves to convey knowledge, half of the six to 13-year-olds watch knowledge formats, 27 percent watch news programs. In addition to linear television, the use of streaming services is playing an increasingly important role: the availability of streaming services in households has increased significantly. 44% of households with children now have a subscription. The usage time recorded for the first time shows with an average of 24 minutes that Netflix & Co. have gained a clear place in children's media everyday life.
71 percent of six to 13 year olds use the Internet. The proportion of internet users increases with the age of the children. With regard to activities on the Internet, WhatsApp, search engines, films / videos and YouTube are used most frequently. Despite the special situation in 2020, at least during the survey period in autumn 2020, there was no relevant change in daily internet usage time; it averages three quarters of an hour (46 minutes) for six to 13-year-olds. Overall, the 2020 KIM study shows a high level of stability in media usage behavior among six to 13-year-olds.
(Source: https://www.mpfs.de/studien/kim-studie/2020/)
Outcome
The children themselves still have a comparatively manageable range of devices. The most common devices is the cell phone, which half of the children surveyed have. 41 percent of children aged 6–13 have a gaming console in their bedrooms, 38 percent have a CD player, and around a third have their own television (34 %). One out of five children has Internet access in their own bedroom (22 %), 18 percent of the children have their own computer/laptop, 17 percent have a cassette player, and 16 percent have a radio; 14 percent have a children's computer. 9 percent of children aged 6–13 have a tablet, and 7 percent can access a streaming service such as Netflix or Disney+ in their bedroom.
Television is the most common leisure activity for children; 70 percent watch television (almost) every day. Six out of ten children who watch TV have a favourite TV channel – the children's channel (KiKA) takes first prize here. Half of children aged 6–13 watch educational programmes, and 27 percent watch news programs. 41 percent of children watch YouTube videos. There is a marked increase in this as the children get older (6–7 years: 13 %, 12–13 years: 68 %).
More than half of the children (53 %) who use the Internet use WhatsApp on a daily basis. 53 percent of the WhatsApp users have a WhatsApp group for their school class. 42 percent of Internet-savvy children use TikTok, followed by Snapchat (31 %), Instagram (30 %), and Facebook (26 %).
Overall, the 2020 KIM study documents that the usage data of the familiar media range is characterised by stability in many areas. A significant increase can be seen above all in streaming services where access in households has increased considerably. At an average of 24 minutes, the duration of use surveyed for the first time shows that Netflix & co. now have a tangible place in children's everyday lives. (KIM Study 2020, p.91)