关键词: 数字图像, 儿童审美, 屏幕媒体

Abstract: Digital images have become ubiquitous in children’s daily lives, yet research on their influence on children’s aesthetics remains fragmented. This review addresses three questions: (1) How do digital and print images differ aesthetically? (2) What effects do digital images exert on children’s aesthetics? and (3) What mechanisms underlie these effects? Based on a systematic synthesis of 90 publications (including 37 directly relevant empirical studies) identified through CNKI, Web of Science, Psychosis, and Google Scholar (2010~2026), we propose a dual-pathway interactive model.
Digital and print images differ across four dimensions: technological constitution (virtual vs. material), sensory modality (multi sensory vs. primarily visual), interaction logic (generative vs. symbolic), and extemporization characteristics (dynamic vs. static). However, these represent typical tendencies rather than essential dichotomies. Digital images can be static and non-interactive, while print books can incorporate interactive elements such as flaps, tactile materials, and movable parts. Thus, medium labels should not replace analysis of specific design and usage contexts.
Quantitative synthesis of 13 studies with sufficient statistical information reveals that active creation-oriented digital interventions, including AI-assisted art training, augmented reality (AR) coloring, and AI-human co-creation, yield moderate-to-large positive effects on children’s aesthetic imagination and creativity (d = 0.65 to 2.39). For example, AR coloring activities for 4- to 5-year-olds yielded d ≈ 0.67 on creativity, while AI-assisted art training for fourth graders produced d ≈ 0.94 on imagination and d ≈ 0.99 on drawing performance. By contrast, passively consumed e-picture books with extraneous decorative elements (irrelevant animations, hot spots, embedded games) underperform print counterparts in the imaginative dimension (d ≈ -0.60 to -1.07). AI-based image processing tools show gender-differentiated effects, negatively affecting girls’ painting interest and sustained intention (d ≈ -0.55 to -0.69) while positively affecting boys’. These findings indicate that the direction and magnitude of effects depend on interactive design quality and its alignment with developmental levels, not on medium type alone.
This review makes three theoretical contributions. First, it moves beyond medium determinism by demonstrating that interactive design quality, specifically whether the image preserves an “unfinished space” inviting imaginative and embodied participation, is the critical variable. Second, it establishes rigorous construct differentiation between aesthetic-specific variables, including aesthetic perception, imagination, emotion, understanding, and creation, and related variables such as general creativity and narrative comprehension, providing a conceptual foundation for future empirical work. Third, it offers an integrative framework synthesizing cognitive-resource, embodied, and sociocultural perspectives, generating testable hypotheses for subsequent investigation.
Critical gaps remain: only 27 of 37 studies directly measure aesthetic-specific constructs; children aged 0~3 remain largely underrepresented; longitudinal designs are nearly absent. Future research should: (1) develop age-appropriate, culturally situated aesthetic assessment tools across developmental stages (0~3, 3~6, 6~12); (2) test the dual-pathway model using cognitive neuroscience methods (eye-tracking, EEG/ERP); (3) adopt longitudinal designs to examine developmental trajectories and causal directions; (4) establish rigorous reporting standards for empirical studies to facilitate meta-analytic synthesis; and (5) investigate differentiated effects of emerging technologies (AR, AI, VR) and cross-cultural variations. In conclusion, this review establishes a theoretical foundation for understanding how digital images shape children’s aesthetic development. The critical question is not whether digital images facilitate or hinder children’s aesthetics, but under what conditions and through what mechanisms they exert their effects. These insights inform evidence-based design principles for digital aesthetic education and support children’s holistic aesthetic growth in an increasingly digital world.

Key words: digital images, children’s aesthetics, screen media