Effect of cartoon viewing habits on developmental skills and attention span of preschool children
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18203/2349-3291.ijcp20221376Keywords:
Preschool children, Cartoon viewing habits, Attention span, Developmental skillsAbstract
Background: Mass media has an important role in the development of behaviour of children as they are exposed to it at very young age itself. Computers, television, video games and other entertainment media have become a part of their day-to-day life. The present study aimed at identification of the effect of cartoon viewing habits on developmental skills and attention span of preschool children.
Methods: The correlational research study was conducted on consecutively selected 200 preschool children from selected schools of Calicut district. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to identify the cartoon viewing habits of children and four tests (colour cancellation test, number cancellation test, colour trails test and Knox cube test) were used to detect the attention span and Vineland social maturity scale was used to detect the developmental skills. Through individual interview data from 200 preschool children and their parents were collected during a period of 6 weeks after validating the tools and the data analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics.
Results: Children who watched fewer cartoons have more social quotient (98%). Developmental skills are more in younger children (96%). Cartoon viewing habits have significant association with age, gender, birth order, number of siblings, and the class of study. Significant relationship between cartoon viewing habits and developmental skills.
Conclusions: The study concluded that to assess the impacts of cartoon viewing habits on developmental skills and attention span of preschool children revealed that increased duration of cartoon viewing can have detrimental effect on the attention span and developmental skills of preschool children.
Metrics
References
Kaiser family foundation. The centre on media and child health. The effects of electronic media on children ages zero to six: A History of research. Available at: http://www.kff.org/entmedia/upload/ the-effects-of-electronic-media-on-children-ages-zero-to-six-a-history-of-research-issue-brief.pdf. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
The good and bad effects of TV on your kid. Available at: http://www.raisesmartkid.com/all-ages/1-articles/13-the-good-and-bad-effects-of-tv-on-your-kid. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
How TV can ‘rewire’ brains of tiny tots. The Washington Times. 2004 April 18. Available at: http://www.washingtnotimes.com/news/2004/apr/ 18/20040418-102127-5656r/. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Boyse K. Television and children. Available at: http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/index. htm. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
How TV affects your child. Available at: http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/family/tv_ affects_child.html. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Boseley S. Ban under-threes from watching television, says study. Available at: http://www. guardian.co.uk/society/2012/oct/09/ban-under-threes-watching-television. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Lillard AS, Peterson J. The immediate impact of different types of television on young children’s executive function. Pediatrics. 2011;4:52-9.
Choma CJ, Hossler S, Leu R, Nelson D, Ray S, Wilcox B, Ybarra B. Effects of cartoons on children. Available at: http://www.bgsu.edu/departments/ tcom/faculty/ha/tcom/103fall2004/gp9/. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Why Kids and Adults Love to Watch Cartoons. 2011. Available at: http://emilgen2011.hubpages. com/hub/Why-Kids-and-Adults-Love-to-Watch-Cartoons. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Lillard AS, Peterson J. The Immediate Impact of Different Types of Television on Young Children’s Executive Function. Pediatrics. 2011;45:102-9.
Klein S. Study: Too many video games may sap attention span. Available at: http://edition.cnn. com/2010/HEALTH/07/05/games.attention/index.html. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Banchonhattakit P, Duangsong R, Muangsom N, Kamsong T, Phangwan K. Effectiveness of Brain-Based Learning and Animated Cartoons for Enhancing Healthy Habits Among School Children in Khon Kaen, Thailand. Asia Pac J Public Health. 2012.
Zimmerman FJ, Christakis DA, Meltzoff AN. Television and DVD/Video Viewing in Children Younger Than 2 Years. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2007;161(5):473-9.
Wade, L. Study: some cartoons are bad for children’s brains. Available at: http://thechart.blogs.cnn. com/2011/09/12/study-some-cartoons-are-bad-for-childrens-brains/. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Francis L, BIRCH LL. Does Eating during Television Viewing Affect Preschool Children’s Intake?. NIH Public J. 2006;106(4):598-600.
Children's reaction to cartoon violence. Available at: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/ 15374417909532878#.Ucldlvlabq4. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Koolstra CM, Beentjes JWJ. Children's vocabulary acquisition in a foreign language through watching subtitled television programs at home. Edu Technol Res Develop. 1999;47(1):51-60.
Doheny K. Fast-Paced Cartoons May Hurt Kids' Attention, Memory. Available at: http://children. webmd.com/news/20110909/fast-paced-cartoons-may-hurt-kids-attention-memory. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Chonchaiya W, Pruksananonda C. Television viewing associates with delayed language development. Available from: http://onlinelibrary. wiley.com. Accessed on 20 November 2021.
Tomopoulos S, Dreyer BP, Berkule S, Fierman AH, Brockmeyer C, Mendelsohn AL. Infant media exposure and toddler development. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2010; 164(12):1105-11.
Wartella E, Ettema JS. A Cognitive Developmental Study of Children's Attention to Television Commercials. Commu Res. 1974;1(1):69-88.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
