Essay No. 1: What harmful effects can watching
televison have on children?
Television is not harmful, it's just entertainment. This statement reflects the opinion of many parents concerning
their children’s television consumption as well as it serves as a justification
for keeping youngsters occupied in front of the screen. Today studies show that
in the UK the average child spends four to six hours a day in front of television
screens. Moreover, this development is further fostered by the fact that almost
two-thirds of the 8-to-16-year old children have a television set in their
bedroom. However, especially considering the new media of the 21st century
such as the internet and games consoles, the number of debates about the
influence of media consumption on children has increased recently. Hence, a
closer consideration of the detrimental effects of television is necessary.
Recent studies prove that youngster’s television habits are related
to their school performance. According to these surveys, watching television for too long can lead to poor grades. Firstly,
it is a fact that sitting in front of the screen excessively can be judged as a
time-consuming way of occupation. During this time pupils could otherwise do
their homework or prepare for exams. In addition, most of the shows they watch
on television are non-educational. Consequently, the content of these shows,
which is often nonsense, certainly does not contribute to the children’s
education. Another alarming sign is the sleepiness of some children during
school-time. The lack of sleep and concentration may be caused by watching
television far into the night. Hence, this deficiency can among others be
blamed for the unsatisfactory grades children might receive.
A further domain of negative influence is the mental health of young
people. The serious impact of television shows is clearly visible using the
example of Britain’s Next Top Model and similar television formats. These
programs promote an image that is questionable to a high extent. Since they create
unrealistic body images and problematic beauty standards, they can be regarded
as a factor contributing to psychological problems such as lacking self-esteem,
inferiority complexes and eating disorders. Another sphere of influence concerning
these values is commercials. The psychological health may also be affected in
regard to the perception of their environment; in particular children might suffer
from the inability to distinguish between reality and life shown on screen. Thus,
one can state that television does not only impinge on children’s minds but furthermore
may also encroach on their social behavior.
Additionally, there is a tendency for the medium of television to gradually
become a substitute for family life and friends. Such a development can be
detected in children’s homes. On the one hand, the offspring often tends to
compensate the parental absence with watching television exceedingly. On the
other hand, some parents consider television shows as a welcome possibility to
keep their children occupied for several hours. Moreover, children who sit in
front of the screen all day long miss important social aspects of their life
like having conversations or meeting friends. As a result, this does not only lead
to isolation and loneliness but also entails an impoverishment of the
children’s social skills and a stagnation of the their personality on a social
level.
After the discussion of the negative impact of television on
children’s mental health, it is now time to deal with their physical condition.
The results of a recent study are alarming: the more hours children watch
television, the more they are likely to suffer from obesity. Furthermore,
children often eat unhealthy food in front of the screen. In this context, one
should also emphasize the force of commercials advertising junk food. It is worrying
that according to a research 70% of three year old children are able to
identify the Mc Donald’s symbol whereas only half of them know their family
name. In combination with little physical activity, television consumption can
lead to obesity and other related cardiovascular diseases.
Moreover, there are many television shows that are inappropriate for
children. They often comprise certain groups of themes like violence, sexuality, drug and alcohol abuse. As for the aspect of
violence, one can note that it is often glorified and shown in an extremely unrealistic way on television. An example may be cartoons. In
this kind of television show one character often beats another character
severely and nonetheless the beaten one shows no signs of physical violence.
Accordingly, there is the risk that especially young children implement these
wrong representations in their life and tend to imitate the aggressive, violent
and antisocial behavior they see on the screen. As a consequence, they regard
violence not only as completely acceptable but also as amusing. There is always
the possibility that children tend
to misjudge what they see on screen; they can be easily impressed as well as
they regard the presented world as exemplary and safe. However, many children
are unable to cope with the multitude of new impressions; this is eminently severe
in cases children do not have a person to whom they can relate and talk to.
All things considered, one can say that there are various reasons
why watching television can have a negative impact on children. Therefore, it
should not be uncontrollably available. Consequently, parents have to be aware
of possible harmful effects of television consumption. Thus, it is a parental
duty to, on the one hand, control their children’s television viewing behavior
and, on the other hand, present sensible alternatives concerning their
children’s leisure time activities.
Words: 913
Sources:
(20.04.2009, 13:15).
(20.04.2009, 13:40).