Televisions are an essential part of human life. Almost every home in the United States has a television set. This technology enables people to access all forms of entertainment ranging from movies and sports to music. Notably, people have become more informed as a result of televisions. Nonetheless, some concerns have been raised regarding the effects that excessive television viewing has on children. Morowatisharifabad, Karimi, & Ghorbanzadeh (2015) contends that children who spend most of their time sited have a significant probability of contracting chronic obesity-related ailments. TV viewing is directly related to adverse health and behavioral outcomes.
Literature Review
Qualitative research approaches such as questionnaires are employed for data acquisition on the effects of TV watching on progenies by Morowatisharifabad, Karimi, & Ghorbanzadeh (2015). Based on the research findings, children have become reluctant to engage in regular physical activity since TV watching consumes a lot of time. The authors claim that excessive TV viewing leads to sleep deprivation, and reduced lengths of sleep, as well as obesity and its related diseases such as diabetes and hypertension (Rosiek et al., 2015). Both articles claim that TV watching has exceeded the recommended time which is less than two hours per day. Today, children spend more than seventeen hours a week glued to the TV. The article was published in 2015, and the information can, therefore, be relied on.
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Shanthi, Kanniammal, & Mahindra (2017) use descriptive research design questionnaires to collect data on TV watching tendencies and their effects on the weights and behaviors of youngsters. The authors confirm that twenty-one point four percent of students from private institutions and three point six percent of children from public school suffer from obesity in India. The authors contend that the increased amount of time spent watching TV also results in overconsumption of food. Moreover, children prefer to eat more junk food such as Ice-cream, popcorns, and crisps while watching their favorite shows on TV. TV watching is therefore linked to decreased nutritional quality. These TV-induced behaviors are the reason why most children are either overweight or obese.
Lillard et al. (2015) investigate the effects of TV watching on children’s executive function. The authors conduct a systematic review of previous studies that used experiments to determine the influences of TV viewing on youngsters. Generally, the reviewed studies indicated that the executive functions of children decreased significantly after viewing fantastical shows as opposed to realistic ones or even when they read or played. The authors explain that fast, or rather, fantastical shows affect EF performance through their influence on the attentional and information processing systems. The article provides quality and persuasive arguments whose validity can be tested through more research.
Abdullah & Rahman (2017) claim that the popularity of crime shows and dramas has increased the levels of aggression and delinquency in youngsters. Children are very vulnerable during their behavioral, developmental stage and may hence emulate the negative behaviors that they view on television. According to Abdullah & Rahman (2017), the psychosomatic course of behavior development in progenies is contingent on what children observe. Positive behaviors can be replaced with negative ones due to the exposure to violent and delinquent acts on television (Kardefelt-Winther, 2017). The arguments are relevant and persuasive. Furthermore, the authors employ social learning theories to explain how children adopt delinquent behaviors by merely watching TV.
Mehraj, Bhat, & Mehraj (2014) Examines several impacts of TV watching on youngsters. The authors claim that approximately twenty-five hours in a week are spent by children watching television. The aggressive cues theory is used to explain precisely how violent scenes on TV heighten aggression levels in children and their delinquency acts. The approach assumes that exposure to hostile stimuli augments the physiological and emotional arousal, which in turn intensifies the probability of violence. On the other hand, Nakamuro, Inui, Senoh, & Hiromatsu (2015) claim that watching violent shows is not a guarantee that children will become more violent, but it increases the likelihood of being violent. Notably, the manner in which the violence is presented to children can also affect them. For instance, children relate more to violent heroes and are also more likely to be aggressive if violence is depicted justifiably. Most TV shows convey the message that violence is acceptable under some circumstances.
Gonçalves et al. (2018), contrary to other studies, explores the positive impacts of cartoon shows on youngsters. The authors focus on cartoons, which are readily accessible through televisions today. The research indicates that cartoons which convey messages on healthy eating motivate children to adopt healthier diets, which is a productive step in obesity prevention (Habib & Soliman, 2015). The authors bring into light the fact that television shows have different impacts on their viewers. Additionally, the effects of TV shows are contingent on the message that is conveyed in them.
Modern technologies have made people more informed and entertained. Television shows and movies break the monotony of everyday life. Furthermore, they enable children to enter into their fantasy worlds and accomplish that which they cannot in real life. Even so, scholars have raised numerous concerns about the effects of television on children’s health and behavioral outcomes. Nonetheless, more research on the pros and cons of TV viewing in children is required to determine if the adverse effects of this activity outweigh the positive ones.
References
Abdullah, M., & Rahman, N. A. B. A. (2017). Effects of TV Crime Shows on Behavioural Development of Children. In SHS Web of Conferences (Vol. 33, p. 00077). EDP Sciences.
Gonçalves, S., Ferreira, R., Conceição, E. M., Silva, C., Machado, P. P., Boyland, E., & Vaz, A. (2018). The Impact of Exposure to Cartoons Promoting Healthy Eating on Children's Food Preferences and Choices. Journal of nutrition education and behavior , 50 (5), 451- 457.
Habib, K., & Soliman, T. (2015). Cartoons’ effect in changing children mental response and behavior. Open Journal of Social Sciences , 3 (09), 248.
Kardefelt-Winther, D. (2017). How does the time children spend using digital technology impact their mental well-being, social relationships and physical activity? An evidence-focused literature review . Innocenti Discussion Paper 2017-02. Florence, Italy: UNICEF Office of Research-Innocenti.
Lillard, A. S., Drell, M. B., Richey, E. M., Boguszewski, K., & Smith, E. D. (2015). Further examination of the immediate impact of television on children’s executive function. Developmental Psychology , 51 (6), 792.
Mehraj, H. K., Bhat, A. N., & Mehraj, H. R. (2014). Impacts of media on society: A sociological perspective. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention , 3 (6), 56- 64.
Morowatisharifabad, M. A., Karimi, M., & Ghorbanzadeh, F. (2015). Watching television by kids: How much and why? Journal of education and health promotion , 4 .
Nakamuro, M., Inui, T., Senoh, W., & Hiromatsu, T. (2015). Are television and video games really harmful for kids? Contemporary Economic Policy , 33 (1), 29-43.
Rosiek, A., Maciejewska, N. F., Leksowski, K., Rosiek-Kryszewska, A., & Leksowski, Ł. (2015). Effect of television on obesity and excess weight and consequences of health. International journal of environmental research and public health , 12 (8), 9408- 9426.
Shanthi, M. M., Kanniammal, C., & Mahindra, J. (2017). The habit of television viewing and its impact on weight status and behavior among school children. International Education and Research Journal , 3 (8).
