Does Age and Reading Activity Predict Children’s Engagement in Grandparent–Grandchild Zoom Sessions?
Date of Award
Spring 2026
Document Type
Honors Thesis
Department/Major
Psychology
Additional Department
Education
First Advisor
Gabrielle Strouse
Second Advisor
Leah Seurer
Third Advisor
Lauren Myers
Keywords
grandchildren, grandparent, Zoom, joint visual attention, book reading
Subject Categories
Educational Psychology | Social Psychology and Interaction
Abstract
As the digital world continues to advance, interactions that once took place in person are increasingly occurring online. Although a substantial body of research has documented the benefits of shared reading for children under six, far less is known about how these experiences and reading development unfolds in digital contexts. This study examines how structured book reading during video chat supports joint visual attention (JVA; sharing attention with another person on an object) between children (18 months to 6 years old) and their remote grandparents. The proportion of successful grandparent-initiated JVA bids throughout three different activity conditions, baseline (control), matching books, or grandparent-led, was analyzed, as well as the frequency of response modalities (verbal, gaze, gesture). Results indicated that activity condition, but not child age, significantly influenced children’s successful response to JVA bids, particularly in the grandparent-led condition. Furthermore, gesture and gaze responses varied among activity conditions, but not age, with more gesture use during grandparent-led and increased gaze during matching books. Verbal responses, however, showed an age-related increase. These findings highlight the importance of designing activities, grandparent-led specifically, to be an effective way to support child engagement across early childhood ages rather than requiring age‑specific tailoring. Additionally, looking at specific response modalities reinforces the importance of how a child might respond versus if it was just successful or not.
Recommended Citation
Dunn, Breanne E., "Does Age and Reading Activity Predict Children’s Engagement in Grandparent–Grandchild Zoom Sessions?" (2026). Honors Thesis. 425.
https://red.library.usd.edu/honors-thesis/425