Parents should not let their children spend much time watching television - Research Paper Example

?Parents Should Not Let Their Children Spend Too Much Time Watching Television The debate on whether parents should or should not let their children append a lot of time watching TV carries much weight. This is in relation to how much beneficial or adverse extended periods of TV watching are to children and the likely effects to their later lives. As a result, we seek to find reasons as to why parents should not let their children spend too much time watching television, as well as some of the reasons why watching it is beneficial to children. Common arguments among those who are against children watching TV fall on morality. In this light morality carries issues of violence and risk assessment in regard to one’s behavior. The argument they place on the issue lays on the content aired on Television programs depicting the use of violence, and other violent acts, mild or severe, in resolution of conflicts between individuals and groups. This is in cases of religious violence that at times is aired blatantly by some radical organizations in a quest to incite sympathizers to join them in their fight for goals they hold dear. In some movies and programs that are aired on TV, going by the name of action, tend to contain scenes of violence that are, at times, claimed to be justified. This is by having story lines that claim the perpetrator to have a genuine or righteous cause that should be seen to the end. The cause is usually on the lines of rescuing loved ones or fighting crime, quite literally. Owing to this, those that are against children watching TV claim that these negative behaviors and attitudes may get to their children. In addition, opposers of TV claim that images portrayed to children are not as simple as thought as they produce the opposite of the desired effect. This is in regard to showing children that there is no room for negotiation in wrongdoing and that violence is the only means of resolution of conflicts of interests should other means fail. This is in spite of other options having no chance to prove themselves in clearing controversial or volatile situations. Owing to such programming issues, the more time that a child spends watching TV translates to increased exposure to such rash concepts that adults engage in with little regard for the consequences. The other form of violence that children get exposure to is that of violence expressed towards women. Violence perpetrated against women on TV leads to poor images of women that remain etched in the young and innocent minds of children (Kahlor and Eastin 215). This occurs by labeling males as the dominant human in any situation, in the society. Therefore, to exercise their dominance, men maintain their dominance, when threatened, through violence creating a negative image of women. In addition, through violence directed at women, children gain a wrong perception that the only way to suppress women in their quest to gain an equal status as men is to subject them to acts of subordination. Such actions include sexual assault and sexual violence in the form of rape (Kahlor and Eastin 216). Opposers, in my opinion, therefore, have solid ground on this issue with backing from facts as evidence sustains their arguments In addition to their claims, violence on TV appears as a positive thing that is to be emulated in order to live a full and satisfying life. This is particularly so by using violence by TV stars to gain wealth and live a fulfilling life. Violence of this form and in such levels translates to poor relations with others, as what the child understands is how to use his or her physical strength to enforce decisions, or wishes. This way, children tend to exercise violent acts towards other children in the society and at school; which makes TV viewing a contributor to bad living (Facts for Families). On the moral issue of risk assessment, those that are against watching extended hours of TV for children due effects it has on their awareness of the experiences found in the world. They base this on the idea that, to make decisions on certain behavior that one would like to take part in, there is the need to weigh the reality (Wahlberg and Sjoberg 31). Watching too much TV distorts fiction, reality and cognitive processes in assessing the effects of certain situations concerning one’s psychological set up. TV exposes children to all manners of risk so that they can imagine any form of risk with the likelihood of occurring to them, as images portrayed on TV are usually quite different from actual occurrences. This is about either over estimating or under estimating the gravity of certain situations to the extent that nothing seems to worry them in any way. From watching excess TV, children take risk assessment as a light task that does not hold much meaning to it. These events are evident in cases where TV programs do not portray the gravity of some situation by posting alarming images or information brought forth by reassuring messages (Wahlberg and Sjoberg 35). This, for children, creates a habit of ignorance towards occurrences affecting them directly or indirectly thus generating a numbing effect where children learn to turn a cold shoulder on almost anything despite its significance. In some cases, however, TV and numbing awareness in children plays a crucial role when it comes to coping with traumatic stress. Opposers are of the view that, children dismiss certain issues that they find unpleasant as just forms if fiction or implying the reassuring messages that they receive from TV, in reporting grave issues such as disasters. In addition, due to exposure to high-risk situations on TV, children tend to develop a sense of immunity towards threats (Facts for Families). This is because, the horror portrayed in programs accentuates as fictions and come in so enormous doses that they view it as a daily occurrence. Therefore, all the above arguments against extensive TV viewing hold a point due to the negative impact on this crucial life skill. Excessive watching of TV by children bears adverse effects on their lives in terms of general, social, and mental health. Excessive hours spent watching TV rob children of valuable time that could be spent doing other relevant things such as exercise to improve one’s health, but instead, TV promotes inactivity in children, a recipe for ill health (Susanne and Donna 22). This remains a principle claim in opposing TV watching for children, which is backed by research, logical and factual information. In this light they attempt to prove that, TV exposes children to high risk of eating disorders due to advertising programmed in TV shows and movies. Research shows that every hour spent watching TV increases the prevalence of obesity by up to 2% (Lears 18). This is in spite of lack of nutritional advertising on TV during prime time and children’s programs. However, watching TV for extended periods leads to an increase of nutritional intake in the form of snacks that affects the overall health of the child. This coupled with inactivity translates to that children take in more food than they are able to spend the accompanying energy. In addition, in obese children, TV commercials that advertise food stimulate the eating habits of children (Lears 19). This is in line with acting as strong environmental cues that render children responsive towards televised TV commercials. In my opinion, the relationship between TV and obesity in children is known due to the high calorie content that the snacks children consume contain, as well as low nutritive value. Another basis against watching TV is that of obesity under nutrition, because; the images portrayed on TV are those of slim women provoking young girls to look like them. Therefore, they argue that girls strive to get a figure that is appealing to males in spite of the consequences that they have to go through. Slimming means that a child will have to cut down on their food intake in the name of dieting while their bodies are at critical stages of development (Lears 20). As a result, some children resort too bulimic tendencies, which are high among children who watch too much TV (Lears 21). This owes credit to implicit messages and images aired on TV showing that the ideal body of a woman is that which has no fat. The above statement is always in conflict with other messages that TV watching popularizes; children should eat all they want, and have fun while doing it. In this light, bulimia and anorexia kick in as they can eat all they want and gain no weight at all, or little if any. Children also lack the value of food, as well as appreciation for it due to frequent snacking. Snacking by children emulates TV characters as they rarely eat to satisfy their hunger and only tend to have meals that they are socially or emotionally inclined to participate in (Lears 22). Therefore, children gain erratic eating habits that contribute real life issues about weight and nutrition. TV and healthy eating habits have no relationship whatsoever except in issues that touch on new recipes and cooking shows aired on TV. These shows teach the importance of making decent meals, however, and how the nutritional value of food is measure and balanced. They also argue with regard to emotional, social, and cognitive wellbeing being and the effects it has on these aspects of life. School performance, in this light is put under cognitive heath where it affects how children perceive school work. Their idea gains basis that children devote so much of their leisure time to entertainment emanating from TV programs and movies; that they have little time for other activities such as studying during their free time. In addition, those that watch violence on TV tend to get lower grades in school (Amardeep and Raghbir 46). In schoolwork, TV affects the grades in relation to attitudes that children have towards school inculcated by TV. Some TV programs taint the image of school to be a place where children’s freedom is curtailed, and they are forced to do that which the teachers want. In this light, children display aggressive behavior and rebellion against authority through cutting classes and violating school rules. All this is in a bid to emulate that which they watch on TV and prove to their peers what they are made of, as well as how daring they are. The result of such is expulsion initiated by too much spent watching TV. In addition, others cut classes to watch TV, an extension of the last period they watched, depicting a form of addiction to TV to the point all they can think of, and their conversations and social life revolves around. Still on health, they argue that it interferes with children’s emotional wellbeing thus parents should not allow their children to spend too much time watching TV as it acts as a redundant towards one’s self-awareness. Children watch TV, sometimes to burry that which they consider to be their worries n search for contentment (Moskalenko and Heine 76). Watching TV, for children directs their attention from themselves or that which they consider disturbing, and towards what they watch on TV. Watching TV for extended amounts of time creates a disparity between what they consider the ideal version of their lives and their actual lives, in reality. This owes to the images portrayed on TV of people and lives that they consider pleasant and fulfilling. In this regard, children forget if at all they knew that the whole scene aired on TV follows a script and a controlled environment. Because of the discrepancies, children develop negative self-image and feelings that, in turn, results in low self-esteem. TV shows children how they fall short of their ideals and by how far, as well as the unpleasant circumstance missing the said ideal feels (Moskalenko and Heine 78). Owing to these children lose touch with their own reality and fall into a state where they become observers of other people living their lives. Therefore, in this regard, opposers are of the view that TV interferes with the happiness, dynamism, and satisfaction of children with their own lives and seeks an escape for their shortcomings. In spite of objective self-awareness wrecking this much havoc in the life of a child, as it may be used in a positive way for motivation. This is by children watching more TV only for them to see what improvements their lives require. More hours watching TV, however, deny children the chance to evaluate their own lives, observe the said shortcomings of their lives, and act upon them. Overall, more time spent glaring at a TV screen only adds to dissatisfaction with life that a child experiences. In addition, TV for children undermines points of contact with society. Children use information acquired from TV programming as substitutes for socialization thus having fewer social relations with other members of society such as friends and other family members (Frey et al. 284). Socially, they are supported by an argument that Lund makes in light of family and friendly relations. This is owing to the fact that children watching too much TV tend to spend less time with parents and friends creating constructive relationships (Lund and Blaedon). TV offers new awareness models concerning labeling the weight that one possesses. In this light, affecting mainly females than males, female children tend to brand themselves to be overweight according to comparisons done between themselves and TV characters (Lears 23). This may lead to drastic measures in a bid to cut their weight and it in to the ideal body weight and figure deemed appropriate. In spite of all the information brought forth by those against children watching, those that are against restriction have some positive views on the effects. Claims are that; TV brings out knowledge of public and current affairs through the exposure that children have through television. This is because, bright children learn how to utilize, rather than abuse the amount of time they spend watching TV by accumulating knowledge useful to them in later life, either directly or indirectly (Wilbur 13). Also, for proposers, they argue that TV watching helps parents avoid the awkward talk with their children about sexuality. This is because it plays a key role in educating children on such issues. TV is crucial to the learning process for children as it holds certain information that can only be best presented through it. In this light, teachers utilize TV to demonstrate certain concepts that would e dangerous to conduct physically, such as some experiments in a laboratory (Wilbur 11). In addition, TV plays a crucial role in replacing teachers, in cases where there is a limited supply of teachers with little if any drop in quality of education, as per studies. Studies show that the use of TV to teach children bears the same quality of education in written examinations at the end of the various courses taken in schools (Wilbur 11). This makes their points worth agreeing with due to the solid evidence in support of this argument. In conclusion, spending too much watching TV is an issue that parents should look into and prevent in order to stop the prevalence of the negative implications that TV has on their children. This way, children are able to develop appropriately with moral, mental, and physical health. Works Cited Amardeep, Ahluwalia and Raghbir Singh. “TV viewing Habits Amongst Urban Chidren”. Journal of Marketing Management. Vol. 10 Issue 1, p45-62. 2011. Retrieved from ebscohost database. Facts for Families. Children and TV Violence. 2011. Web. 27 Jul. 2012. Frey, Bruno et al. “Does Watching TV Make us Happy?” Journal of Economic Psychology 28 283–313. 2007. Web. 27 Jul. 2012. Kahlor, LeeAnn and Eastin, Matthew. “Television’s Role in the Culture of Violence Toward Women: A Study of Television Viewing and the Cultivation of Rape Myth Acceptance in the United States”. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media. Vol. 55 Issue 2, p215-231. Retrieved from ebscohost database Lears, Margaret. The Effects of Television Viewing on Children’s Conceptions About Nutrition and Health. 1992. Web. 27 Jul. 2012. Lund, Sarah and Blaedon, Lindsey. “Sex and the Media: The Impact of Televsion Habits on Sexual Perception”. Journal of Undergraduate Research VI. 2003. Web. 27 Jul 2012. Moskalenko, Sophia and Heine, Steven. Watching Your Troubles Away: Television Viewing as a Stimulus for Subjective Sef-Awareness.2001. Web. 27 Jul. 2012. Nazari, Mohammad et al. “Correlations Between Children’s Television Advertising Exposure and Their Food Preference”. Journal of Media and Communication Studies Vol. 3(8), pp. 263-268. 2011. Web. 27 Jul. 2012. Susanne, Garvis and Donna, Pendergast. “Warning- Television Viewing May Harm Your Child’s Health: Parent Perceptions of Early Childhood Viewing Habits”. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood. Vol. 36 Issue 4, p22-28. 2011. Retrieved from ebscohost database Wahlberg, Anders and Sjoberg, Lennart. Risk Perception and the Media. Jou rnal of Risk Research 3(1), 31–50. 2000. Web. 27 Jul. 2012. Wilbur, Schramm. The Effects of Television on Children and Adolescents. 1997. Web. 27 Jul. 2012. Read More