impact of telvision children debate
Answers
Answered by
1
Effects of television viewing on child development, highly contested topic within child development and psychologyinvolving the consequences for children from the content of and the duration of their exposure to television (TV) programming. The effects of television viewing on child development have aroused a range of reactions from researchers, parents, and politicians that has fueled a debate that extends back to the medium’s inception in the 1940s.
It is difficult to argue that youths are not affected by what is broadcast on television. However, it is equally difficult to pinpoint particular shows or genres of programming as causing specific behaviours in children without considering the innumerable amount of alternate influences that may have an effect on their actions. Some have argued that television clearly has negative effects on youths—such as violent programming resulting in children who are more fearful, more aggressive, or more insensitive to the suffering of others—whereas others believe that such effects are, at best, ambiguous. Although it is uncertain which perspective is right or wrong, it is quite certain that the debate continues to galvanize social scientists, parents, and politicians in the United States and elsewhere.
Early Findings
As commercial television began to flourish in the United States in the 1940s, television’s effects on the first generation of individuals raised alongside the new medium became a topic of interest. In 1949 the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) sponsored a study conducted by Rutgers University that found that television increased familyunity and cohesion, did not promote viewer passivity, and did not replace other valued diversions, such as outdoor activities and social interactions. That landmark report was one of the first and most widely disseminated of its kind, and several more would follow in the forthcoming decade. Soon, however, questions were raised about whether television viewing decreased dialoguebetween children and parents and whether children could be expected to maintain academic progress as their average total viewing time increased to more than 20 hours a week. Eventually, broadcasters capitalized upon those youthful watchers by developing targeted programs such as puppet shows and Saturday morning cartoons. Although those were highly popular, many children—especially those from households that provided minimal parental involvement in viewing choices—were also watching wrestling shows, TV westerns, and mystery-crime dramas, all of which incorporated a significant amount of violence into their story lines. That, in turn, raised even more concerns about the impact of television on American youth.
Effects Of Television Violence
In several studies in the 1960s and ’70s, American psychologist Albert Bandura found that children learn from and imitate the behaviour of individuals they observe, specifically when the individual is rewarded for aggressive acts. That finding corroborated the admonitionsof those who suggested that children who constantly witnessed their favorite TV “heroes” being praised for beating up or killing the “bad guy” would, in turn, incorporate aggressive acts into their own repertoire of behaviours for use in situations characterized by conflict. Throughout the following decades, psychologists, sociologists, criminologists, and other social scientists have argued a number of different perspectives with respect to whether television violence facilitates or triggers violent behaviours in children. Some believe that watching violence on television likely causes a significant number of children to behave violently. Others have agreed that this may be true but that it is so only with children already susceptible to exhibiting violence. As a result, some have argued for tighter controls, either voluntary or legislative, concerning what should be allowed on the airwaves. Alternately, some have blamed parents instead of the broadcast industry and contended that parents are ultimately to blame for their children’s viewing habits. A general point of agreement (or compromise) among the research community is that television can have effects on children’s behaviours but that it must be considered as one of many determinants that may cause a child to act in a particular manner.
It is difficult to argue that youths are not affected by what is broadcast on television. However, it is equally difficult to pinpoint particular shows or genres of programming as causing specific behaviours in children without considering the innumerable amount of alternate influences that may have an effect on their actions. Some have argued that television clearly has negative effects on youths—such as violent programming resulting in children who are more fearful, more aggressive, or more insensitive to the suffering of others—whereas others believe that such effects are, at best, ambiguous. Although it is uncertain which perspective is right or wrong, it is quite certain that the debate continues to galvanize social scientists, parents, and politicians in the United States and elsewhere.
Early Findings
As commercial television began to flourish in the United States in the 1940s, television’s effects on the first generation of individuals raised alongside the new medium became a topic of interest. In 1949 the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) sponsored a study conducted by Rutgers University that found that television increased familyunity and cohesion, did not promote viewer passivity, and did not replace other valued diversions, such as outdoor activities and social interactions. That landmark report was one of the first and most widely disseminated of its kind, and several more would follow in the forthcoming decade. Soon, however, questions were raised about whether television viewing decreased dialoguebetween children and parents and whether children could be expected to maintain academic progress as their average total viewing time increased to more than 20 hours a week. Eventually, broadcasters capitalized upon those youthful watchers by developing targeted programs such as puppet shows and Saturday morning cartoons. Although those were highly popular, many children—especially those from households that provided minimal parental involvement in viewing choices—were also watching wrestling shows, TV westerns, and mystery-crime dramas, all of which incorporated a significant amount of violence into their story lines. That, in turn, raised even more concerns about the impact of television on American youth.
Effects Of Television Violence
In several studies in the 1960s and ’70s, American psychologist Albert Bandura found that children learn from and imitate the behaviour of individuals they observe, specifically when the individual is rewarded for aggressive acts. That finding corroborated the admonitionsof those who suggested that children who constantly witnessed their favorite TV “heroes” being praised for beating up or killing the “bad guy” would, in turn, incorporate aggressive acts into their own repertoire of behaviours for use in situations characterized by conflict. Throughout the following decades, psychologists, sociologists, criminologists, and other social scientists have argued a number of different perspectives with respect to whether television violence facilitates or triggers violent behaviours in children. Some believe that watching violence on television likely causes a significant number of children to behave violently. Others have agreed that this may be true but that it is so only with children already susceptible to exhibiting violence. As a result, some have argued for tighter controls, either voluntary or legislative, concerning what should be allowed on the airwaves. Alternately, some have blamed parents instead of the broadcast industry and contended that parents are ultimately to blame for their children’s viewing habits. A general point of agreement (or compromise) among the research community is that television can have effects on children’s behaviours but that it must be considered as one of many determinants that may cause a child to act in a particular manner.
Similar questions