Media Violence: Advice for Parents
Media Violence: Advice for Parents
American children watch an average of 28 hours of television a week. By the time they reach age 18, they will have seen 16,000 simulated murders and 200,000 acts of violence (American Psychiatric Association, 1998). These numbers exclude time spent watching movies, playing video/computer games or online inter-active media, and listening to music -- all of which may contain violent content. Since the deregulation of broadcasting in 1980, there has been a proliferation of media content that encourages violent and other antisocial behaviors (Javier, Herron, & Primavera, 1998).
Media violence can be hazardous to children's health. Six medical organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association, recently released a joint statement on the impact of entertainment violence on children. They stated that studies point overwhelmingly to a causal connection between media violence and aggressive attitudes, values and behaviors in some children (Congressional Public Health Summit, 2000). Children's exposure to media violence needs to be recognized by parents and professionals in order to intervene.
Pediatric nurses are in key positions to minimize the impact of media violence. In primary care settings, as well as community and hospital settings, nurses often engage children in discussions to assess the child's physical and psychosocial health. They can obtain children's media violence exposure histories as part of their assessments in order to educate children and parents about the effects of exposure to media violence. Pediatric nurses can offer advice to parents on how to avoid violence exposure. They can also play a role in encouraging the entertainment industry to exercise more responsibility in the ways they entertain children. The purpose of this article is to identify the common effects of media on children and provide advice for parents that pediatric nurses can incorporate into their teaching.
American children watch an average of 28 hours of television a week. By the time they reach age 18, they will have seen 16,000 simulated murders and 200,000 acts of violence (American Psychiatric Association, 1998). These numbers exclude time spent watching movies, playing video/computer games or online inter-active media, and listening to music -- all of which may contain violent content. Since the deregulation of broadcasting in 1980, there has been a proliferation of media content that encourages violent and other antisocial behaviors (Javier, Herron, & Primavera, 1998).
Media violence can be hazardous to children's health. Six medical organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association, recently released a joint statement on the impact of entertainment violence on children. They stated that studies point overwhelmingly to a causal connection between media violence and aggressive attitudes, values and behaviors in some children (Congressional Public Health Summit, 2000). Children's exposure to media violence needs to be recognized by parents and professionals in order to intervene.
Pediatric nurses are in key positions to minimize the impact of media violence. In primary care settings, as well as community and hospital settings, nurses often engage children in discussions to assess the child's physical and psychosocial health. They can obtain children's media violence exposure histories as part of their assessments in order to educate children and parents about the effects of exposure to media violence. Pediatric nurses can offer advice to parents on how to avoid violence exposure. They can also play a role in encouraging the entertainment industry to exercise more responsibility in the ways they entertain children. The purpose of this article is to identify the common effects of media on children and provide advice for parents that pediatric nurses can incorporate into their teaching.