Correlates of video game screen time among males: Body mass, physical activity, and other media use

This study examined the correlations between media use, body mass variables, and physical activity among 116 male undergraduates (white n = 106; African American n = 5, Latin American n = 1, Asian American n = 2, and 2 others). Length of video game play during one sitting was positively related to body mass index (BMI; r = .27, p < .01) and negatively correlated with frequency of exercise (r = − .21, p < .05) and days of walking (r = − .22, p < .05). Frequency of video game play was negatively correlated with length of exercising (r = − .21, p < .05). Years of video game play was negatively correlated with length of exercise (r = − .21, p < .05). These results were stronger among those who play online games. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that video game use predicted BMI, accounting for 6.9% of the variance. The implications of the results are discussed.