Children, Adolescents, and the Media, An Issue of Pediatric Clinics, 1e

206 Pages·2012·4.99 MB·English

by  Victor C. Strasburger MD

Children,Adolescents,andtheMedia
Contributors
GUEST EDITOR
VICTORC.STRASBURGER,MD
ProfessorofPediatrics,ProfessorofFamily&CommunityMedicine,Chief,Department
ofPediatrics,DivisionofAdolescentMedicine,UniversityofNewMexicoSchoolof
Medicine,Albuquerque,NewMexico
AUTHORS
CRAIGA.ANDERSON,PhD
DistinguishedProfessor,DepartmentofPsychology,IowaStateUniversity,Ames,Iowa
CARSONA.BENOWITZ-FREDERICKS,BA
DepartmentofHealth,BehaviorandSociety,JohnsHopkinsBloombergSchoolofPublic
Health,Baltimore,Maryland
DINAL.G.BORZEKOWSKI,EdD
AssociateProfessor,DepartmentofHealth,BehaviorandSociety,JohnsHopkins
BloombergSchoolofPublicHealth,Baltimore,Maryland
JEFFCHESTER,MSW
ExecutiveDirector,CenterforDigitalDemocracy,Washington,DC
EDDONNERSTEIN,PhD
DepartmentofCommunication,UniversityofArizona,Tucson,Arizona
LORIDORFMAN,DrPH
Director,BerkeleyMediaStudiesGroup,Berkeley,California
KAYLORGARCIA,BA
DepartmentofHealth,BehaviorandSociety,JohnsHopkinsBloombergSchoolofPublic
Health,Baltimore,Maryland
DOUGLASA.GENTILE,PhD
AssociateProfessor,DepartmentofPsychology,IowaStateUniversity,Ames,Iowa
SONYAA.GRIER,MBA,PhD
AssociateProfessor,DepartmentofMarketing,KogodSchoolofBusiness,American
University,Washington,DC
MELANIEHINGLE,PhD,MPH,RD
AssistantResearchProfessor,DepartmentofNutritionalSciences,UniversityofArizona,
Tucson,Arizona
MARJORIEJ.HOGAN,MD
DepartmentofPediatrics,HennepinCountyMedicalCenter;AssociateProfessorof
Pediatrics,UniversityofMinnesota,Minneapolis,Minnesota
vi Contributors
AMYB.JORDAN,PhD
MediaandDevelopingChildSector,AnnenbergPublicPolicyCenter,Universityof
Pennsylvania,Philadelphia,Pennsylvania
JENNIFERKOLB,MD
PediatricResident,DepartmentofPediatrics,UniversityofWisconsin–Madison,Madison,
Wisconsin
DALEKUNKEL,PhD
Professor,DepartmentofCommunication,UniversityofArizona,Tucson,Arizona
ALEXISR.LAURICELLA,PhD
PostdoctoralFellow,NorthwesternUniversity,Evanston,Illinois
MEREDITHMASSEY,EdM
DepartmentofHealth,BehaviorandSociety,JohnsHopkinsBloombergSchoolofPublic
Health,Baltimore,Maryland
CATHYMCCARTHY,MPH
MorristownMedicalCenter,AtlanticHealthSystem,Morristown,NewJersey
KATELYNA.MCDONALD
Student,DepartmentofPsychology,IowaStateUniversity,Ames,Iowa
KATHRYNC.MONTGOMERY,PhD
Professor,SchoolofCommunication,AmericanUniversity,Washington,DC
MEGANA.MORENO,MD,MSEd,MPH
AssistantProfessor,DepartmentofPediatrics,UniversityofWisconsin–Madison,
Madison,Wisconsin
GWENNSCHURGINO’KEEFFE,MD,FAAP
CEOandEditorinChief,PediatricsNow,Wayland,Massachusetts
SARAPROT,MA
DoctoralStudent,DepartmentofPsychology,IowaStateUniversity,Ames,Iowa
WALTERD.ROSENFELD,MD
GoryebChildren’sHospital,AtlanticHealthSystem,Morristown,NewJersey
VICTORC.STRASBURGER,MD
ProfessorofPediatrics,ProfessorofFamily&CommunityMedicine,Chief,Department
ofPediatrics,DivisionofAdolescentMedicine,UniversityofNewMexicoSchool
ofMedicine,Albuquerque,NewMexico
BRINTHAVASAGAR,MD,MPH
DepartmentofHealth,BehaviorandSociety,JohnsHopkinsBloombergSchoolofPublic
Health,Baltimore,Maryland
ELLENA.WARTELLA,PhD
Al-ThaniProfessorofCommunication,ProfessorofPsychology;ProfessorofHuman
DevelopmentandSocialPolicy;Director,CenteronMediaandHumanDevelopment,
NorthwesternUniversity,Evanston,Illinois
Children,Adolescents,andtheMedia
Contents
Preface xi
VictorC.Strasburger
Children,Adolescents,andtheMedia:HealthEffects 533
VictorC.Strasburger,AmyB.Jordan,andEdDonnerstein
The media can be a powerful teacher of children and adolescents and
have a profound impact on their health. The media are not the leading
causeofanymajorhealthproblemintheUnitedStates,buttheydocon-
tributetoavarietyofpediatricandadolescenthealthproblems.Giventhat
childrenandteensspend>7hoursadaywithmedia,onewouldthinkthat
adultsocietywouldrecognizeitsimpactonyoungpeople’sattitudesand
behaviors. Too little has been done to protect children and adolescents
fromharmfulmediaeffectsandtomaximizethepowerfullyprosocialas-
pectsofmodernmedia.
Overview:NewMedia 589
Gwenn Schurgin O’Keeffe
Pediatricians care for children’s growth and development from the time
they are born until they become adults. In addition, pediatricians must
be vigilant for external influences. Technology influences children of all
ages.Seventy-fivepercentofteenagersowncellphones,with25%using
themforsocialmedia.Technologycanleadtoanincreaseinskillsandso-
cialbenefitsbutthereisalsothepotentialforharmsuchassexting,cyber-
bullying, privacy issues, and Internet addiction, all of which can affect
health.Pediatriciansmustbecomewellversedinthenewmediatoprovide
media-orientedanticipatoryguidanceandadviceonmedia-relatedissues.
SocialNetworkingSitesandAdolescentHealth 601
Megan A. Moreno and Jennifer Kolb
Socialnetworkingsitesarepopularamongandconsistentlyusedbyado-
lescents.Thesesitespresentbenefitsaswellasriskstoadolescenthealth.
Recently,pediatricprovidershavealsoconsideredthebenefitsandrisks
ofusingsocialnetworkingsitesintheirownpractices.
ShouldBabiesBeWatchingTelevisionandDVDs? 613
Ellen A. Wartella and Alexis R. Lauricella
Should babies be watching television and DVDs? This is a reasonable
questiontoaskbutadifficultonetoanswer.Thisarticlereviewsthetheo-
ries and related research to examine what is known about infant media
use. The review provides evidence both for and against each theory.
Theimportanceofinfantslearninghowtowatchandlearnfromscreenme-
diapresentationsisindicatedandthenewworldofmediatowhichbabies
areexposedisdiscussed.
viii Contents
InternetBullying 623
Ed Donnerstein
There is substantial literature on the impact of the mass media on chil-
dren’s and adolescents’ health and development. The question of what
role new technology plays in the media’s influence is now a subject of
bothreviewanddiscussion,particularlyregardinghealthrisksandinter-
vention.Thisarticletakesabrieflookatonlineusageandthetheoretical
mechanismsthatmightmakeInternetaccessmoreproblematicinterms
of risks, compared with more traditional media such as television and
film.Oneoftheserisks,knowntodayascyberbullyingorInternetharass-
ment,isscrutinizedindetail.
ProsocialEffectsofMedia 635
Marjorie J. Hogan
Parents, teachers, health care providers, and other caring adults worry
about the harmful influence of media messages and images on children
and teens and wonder how to recognize and encourage positive and
healthyuseofmedia.Fordecades,expertshavecommentedonthepower
ofmedia.Mediadepictionscanleadtonegativeattitudesandbehaviorin
some young viewers. This article discusses whether prosocial, tolerant,
andcooperativeattitudesandbehaviorcanbelearnedandimitatedbychil-
drenandadolescentsandwhethermediacannurtureorstimulatecreativity
oractivelypromotehealthandwell-beinginyoungconsumers.
VideoGames:Good,Bad,orOther? 647
Sara Prot, Katelyn A. McDonald, Craig A. Anderson, and Douglas A. Gentile
Videogamesareapervasivepastimeamongchildrenandadolescents.The
growingpopularityofvideogameshasinstigatedadebateamongparents,
researchers,videogameproducers,andpolicymakersconcerningpoten-
tial harmful and helpful effects of video games on children. This article
providesanoverviewofresearchfindingsonthepositiveandnegativeef-
fectsofvideogames,thusprovidinganempiricalanswertothequestion,
arevideogamesgoodorbad?Thearticlealsoprovidessomeguidelines
tohelppediatricians,parents,andothercaregiversprotectchildrenfrom
negativeeffectsandtomaximizepositiveeffectsofvideogames.
TheNewThreatofDigitalMarketing 659
Kathryn C. Montgomery, Jeff Chester, Sonya A. Grier, and Lori Dorfman
Because of their avid use of new media and their increased spending
power,childrenandteenshavebecomeprimarytargetsofanew“media
andmarketingecosystem.”Thedigitalmarketplaceisundergoingrapidin-
novation as new technologies and software applications continue to re-
shapethemedialandscapeanduserbehaviors.Theadvertisingindustry,
inmanyinstancesledbyfoodandbeveragemarketers,ispurposefullyex-
ploitingthespecialrelationshipthatyouthhavewithnewmedia,asonline
marketingcampaignscreateunprecedentedintimaciesbetweenadoles-
centsandthebrandsandproductsthatnowliterallysurroundthem.
Contents ix
ChildhoodObesityandtheMedia 677
Melanie Hingle and Dale Kunkel
Thisarticleassessestheroleplayedbymediaincontributingtothecurrent
epidemicofchildhoodobesity.Electronicmediause,oftenreferredtoas
screen time, is significantly correlated with child adiposity. Although the
causalmechanismthataccountsforthisrelationshipisunclear,itiswell
establishedthatreducingscreentimeimprovesweightstatus.Mediaad-
vertising for unhealthy foods contributes to obesity by influencing chil-
dren’s food preferences, requests, and diet. Industry efforts have failed
toimprovethenutritionalqualityoffoodsmarketedontelevisiontochil-
dren,leadingpublichealthadvocatestorecommendgovernmentrestric-
tionsonchild-targetedadvertisementsforunhealthyfoods.
BodyImage,EatingDisorders,andtheRelationshiptoAdolescentMediaUse 693
CarsonA.Benowitz-Fredericks,KaylorGarcia,MeredithMassey,
BrinthaVasagar,andDinaL.G.Borzekowski
Historicallyandcurrently,mediamessagesaroundbodyshapeandsize
emphasize the importance of being below-average weight for women
and hypermuscular for men. The media messages around physical ap-
pearance are not realistic for most and lead to body dissatisfaction for
mostadolescents.Interventionsdesignedtomitigatetheinfluenceofneg-
ativemediamessagesonadolescents’bodyimagearepresented;how-
ever,mosthaveshownlimitedsuccess.
SchoolDaze:WhyareTeachers andSchoolsMissingtheBoatonMedia? 705
Victor C. Strasburger
MostAmericanschoolsare50yearsbehindinincorporatingnewtechnol-
ogyintotheclassroomandusingmediawisely.Someexpertsestimatethat
65%oftoday’sgrade-schoolstudentsmayendupdoingjobsthathavenot
evenbeeninventedyet.Abundantevidencenowexiststhatchildrenand
teenslearnpreferentiallyfromthemedia,yetthemediaareoftenfrowned
onastoodistractingforstudentsortoodistantfromthebasic3Rs.Amer-
icanschoolsarefailingintheirfundamentalresponsibilitytostudents.Ed-
ucatorsneedtolearnhowtousemediaandnewtechnologywisely.
TenYearsofTeenHealthFX.com:ACaseStudyofanAdolescentHealthWebSite 717
Dina L.G. Borzekowski, Cathy McCarthy, and Walter D. Rosenfeld
TheInternet,incontrasttoin-personinteractionswithhealthproviders,al-
lowsanonymousandnonpunitive easeofaccess.Adolescentshavelong
sought honest, direct answers to important but embarrassing questions
abouthealth;emergingtechnologiesprovideavenuetoobtainrelevantinfor-
mationwithoutgeographic,time,financial,andpersonalbarriers.Thisarticle
isacasestudyofTeenHealthFX.com.Thoseinterestedinhowyouthaccess
onlinehealthinformationcanlearnofthepositiveandnegativeaspectsof
deliveringmessagesthroughtheInternet.Thisarticlediscussestheprocess
involved in creating and maintaining TeenHealthFX and the challenges of
providingonlinehealthinformationtoadolescentsvianewtechnology.
Index 729
Children,Adolescents,andtheMedia
Preface
VictorC.Strasburger,MD
GuestEditor
Itisacompletemysterytomewhysomepeopledon’t“getit”—themediarepresentone
ofthemostpowerfulforcesshapingyoungpeople’slivestoday.Potentially,themedia
canhaveaneffectonvirtuallyeveryconcernthatparentsandpediatricianshaveabout
children and adolescents—sex, drugs, aggressive behavior, school performance,
obesity, eating disorders, even sleep. And when young people are now spending
7-11hours a day with media, it seems like a no-brainer. So why don’t some people
understandthis?
IhopethisissueofPediatricClinicswillgoalongwayinconvincingthenay-sayers
that media are not onlyimportant, theyare now crucial in young people’s lives. And
that media can be a force for good or not-so-good. Yo—Hollywood and Madison
Avenue—wedonothateyou.Wejustwishyouwouldunderstandthatwiththebillions
ofdollarsyoumakeeveryyear,youhaveapublichealthresponsibilityaswell.Aswe
adolescent medicine specialists always counsel parents never to say to their teen-
agers: we wish you would dobetter! American media are absolutely amazing some-
timesinagoodandpositiveway(I’lljustmentionTVshowslikeSesameStreet,The
Wire, Modern Family, Glee, and Nature and a few recent movies like March of the
Penguins,ToyStory,Hugo,WarHorse,TheKing’sSpeech,andBully).
I want to thank Kerry Holland at Elsevier for her support and encouragement for
doingthisissueandalloftheauthors—whoaresomeofthefinestmindsinthefield
ofAmericanmedia—forcontributingtheirexpertise.
VictorC. Strasburger,MD
Departmentof Pediatrics
Division ofAdolescent Medicine
Universityof NewMexicoSchool ofMedicine
MSC10 5590,1Universityof NewMexico
Albuquerque,NM87131,USA
E-mail address:
[email protected]
PediatrClinNAm59(2012)xi
doi:10.1016/j.pcl.2012.03.028 pediatric.theclinics.com
0031-3955/12/$–seefrontmatter(cid:1)2012ElsevierInc.Allrightsreserved.
Children, Adolescents, and the
Media:
Health Effects
Victor C. Strasburger, MDa,*, Amy B. Jordan, PhDb,
Ed Donnerstein, PhDc
KEYWORDS
(cid:1)Media (cid:1) TV (cid:1) Newtechnology (cid:1)Internet (cid:1) Cyberbullying (cid:1) Sexting (cid:1) Medialiteracy
KEYPOINTS
(cid:1) Youngpeoplenowspend7to11hoursperdaywithavarietyofdifferentmedia—more
timethantheyspendinschoolorsleeping.
(cid:1) Researchhasshownthatchildrenandteenagerslearnfromthemedia,andtheirbehavior
canbeinfluencedbymedia.
(cid:1) Mediacanhavesignificanteffectsonhealth:eg,obesity,aggressivebehavior,substance
use,earlysexualactivity,eatingdisorders.
(cid:1) Mediacanbepowerfullyprosocialattimes.
(cid:1) Parents,clinicians,andschoolsneedtoadapttotheworldofnewtechnologyandunder-
standtheinfluencethatmediacanhaveonyoungpeople.
True,mediaviolenceisnotlikelytoturnanotherwisefinechildintoaviolentcrim-
inal.But,justaseverycigaretteonesmokesincreasesalittlebitthelikelihoodof
alungtumorsomeday,everyviolentshowonewatchesincreasesjustalittlebit
thelikelihoodofbehavingmoreaggressivelyinsomesituation.
—PsychologistsBradBushmanandL.RowellHuesmann1(p248)
“Something’sintheair,andIwouldn’tcallitlove.Likeneverbefore,ourkidsare
being bombarded by images of oversexed, underdressed celebrities who can’t
seem to step out of a car without displaying their well-waxed private parts to
photographers.”
—Leadarticle,Newsweek,February12,20072
OneerectpenisonaUSscreenismoreincendiarythanathousandguns.
—NewsweekcriticDavidAnsen3(p66)
a DepartmentofPediatrics,DivisionofAdolescentMedicine,UniversityofNewMexicoSchool
ofMedicine,MSC105590,1UniversityofNewMexico,Albuquerque,NM87131,USA;b Media
andDevelopingChildSector,AnnenbergPublicPolicyCenter,UniversityofPennsylvania,202
South36thStreet,Philadelphia,PA19104-6220,USA;c DepartmentofCommunication,Univer-
sityofArizona,1103EastUniversityBoulevard,POBox210025,Tucson,AZ85721,USA
*Correspondingauthor.
E-mailaddress:[email protected]
PediatrClinNAm59(2012)533–587
doi:10.1016/j.pcl.2012.03.025 pediatric.theclinics.com
0031-3955/12/$–seefrontmatter(cid:1)2012ElsevierInc.Allrightsreserved.
534 Strasburgeretal
AcigaretteinthehandsofaHollywoodstaronscreenisagunaimedata12-or
14-year-old.
—ScreenwriterJoeEszterhas4
Researchshowsthatvirtuallyallwomenareashamedoftheirbodies.Itusedtobe
adult women, teenage girls, who were ashamed, but now you see the shame
down to very young girls—10, 11 years old. Society’s standard of beauty is an
imagethatisliterallyjustshortofstarvationformostwomen.
—Best-sellingauthorMaryPipher5
[Mydoctor’s]onlygonetoonemedicalschool,butifyougoonline,youcanget
advicefromallovertheworld.
—TeenagerquotedinTECHsexUSA,20116(p17)
Wearedoingouryouthadisserviceifwebelievethatwecanprotectthemfrom
theworldbylimitingtheiraccesstopubliclife.Theymustenterthatarena,make
mistakes,andlearnfromthem.Ourroleasadultsisnottobetheirpolicemen,but
tobetheirguide.
—danahboyd,20077
Mediarepresentoneofthemostpowerfulandunderappreciatedinfluencesonchild
andadolescent development and health.More than 50yearsofmediaresearch and
thousandsofmediaeffectsstudiesattesttothepotentialpowerofthemediatoinfluence
virtuallyeveryconcernthatparentsandclinicianshaveaboutyoungpeople:aggressive
behavior, sex, drugs, obesity, eating disorders, school performance, suicide, and
depression.8Althoughthemediacannotbeaccusedofbeingtheleadingcauseofany
of these health problems, they can make a substantial contribution. Yet media can
alsobepowerfullybeneficialinthelivesofchildrenandadolescents.Notonlycanthey
teachyoungchildrennumbersandlettersandincreaseschoolreadiness(eg,Sesame
Street),9themediacanalsoteachmoreabstractconceptslikeempathy,acceptance
ofdiversity,andrespectfortheelderly.10,11Clearly,muchmoreresearchisneeded,12
butclinicians,parents,schooladministrators,andgovernmentofficialsallneedtobe
awareoftheresearchontheeffectsofmodernmediaandactaccordingly(Fig.1).
“OLD”VERSUS“NEW”MEDIA
Accordingtoarecentreport,mediarepresenttheleadingleisure-timeactivityforboth
childrenandadolescents(Fig.2).13Youngpeoplespendmorethan7hoursadaywith
a variety of different media, but despite the onslaught of new media “gadgets”
Fig.1. (Copyright(cid:1)PatrickO’Connor/TheKent-Ravenna,OhioRecordCourier.Usedwith
permission.)
HealthEffects 535
Fig.2. Childrenspend>7hoursadaywithavarietyofdifferentmedia.(Reproducedwith
permissionfromKaiserFamilyFoundation.)
(Fig.3),14TVremainsthepredominantmedium,evenforteenagers(Fig.4).Presence
ofabedroomTVincreasestheaveragenumberofhoursofmediausetomorethan11
hoursperday(Fig.5)13,15andincreasestheriskofobesityby31%,16doublestherisk
ofsmoking,17diminishessleep,18andlessensparticipationinhobbiesandreading.8It
alsolessenstheabilityofparentstomonitortheirchildren’sviewinghabits(Fig.6).19
Televisionviewingisnowatanall-timehighintheUnitedStates.20BlackandHispanic
childrenspend5to6hoursperdaywatchingTV,comparedwith3.5hoursforwhite
youth.13,21WhathaschangedisthatTVisnotnecessarilyviewedonthetelevisionset
in the den anymore; increasingly, teens are downloading shows to their computers,
their iPhones, their iPads, and their cell phones. About 60% of young people’s TV
viewingconsistsofliveTVonaTVset,buttheother40%isnoweithertime-shifted
orwatchedonline,onmobiledevices,orDVDs.13Lessthan30%saythatthereare
parentalrulesabouthowmuchtimetheycanspendwatchingTV.13
But “new” technology has become increasingly important as well. Six years ago,
nearly one-third of 8- to 18-year-olds surveyed had Internet access or a computer
intheirbedroom.19Theincreasingavailabilityoflaptopcomputersinhomes,aswell
as wireless Internet access, means that children today can go online anywhere, at
Fig.3. Thepopularityofnewtechnologywithteenagers.(FromLenhartA,LingR,Campbell
S, et al. Teens and Mobile Phones. Pew Internet & American Life Project, April 20, 2010.
Available at: http://pewinternet.org/w/media//Files/Reports/2010/PIP-Teens-and-Mobile-
2010-with-topline.pdf.)