KiwiParent from Parents Center NZ Test Volume | Page 18

The value of the baby DVD industry
alone has been estimated at
between $200 and US$500M.
Research is yet to fully catch up with
the efforts of this industry but a
growing number of studies indicate
this trend may be more harmful than
the marketing campaigns would
have us believe.

tots
toddlers
& TV:

The potential harm

While TV watching has been a common activity
for several decades, the huge increase in TV and
other media targeted at and watched by very young
children has been described as “a large uncontrolled
experiment on today’s infants and toddlers.”
New Zealand's Brainwave Trust investigates.

Viewing
habits
As is usually the case
with research, findings
differ somewhat, however they
indicate that young children are
watching TV well before the end of
their first year of life. The median
age at which children begin watching
television is nine months, with some
as young as three months. The
rise of infant TV viewing began in
the late 1990s and has become an
increasingly common occurrence.
Today, in the US at least, over 90% of
children begin watching TV regularly
before the age of two.
The issue of a child’s age is an
important one, as what may be
beneficial, or at least harmless, at
one stage of development may be
detrimental at another. For example,
while Sesame Street has shown
some benefits for three to five year
olds, this is not the case for younger
children.
The average amount of time spent
watching television for children
under three ranges from one to
three hours per day. When one
considers how much time young
children are sleeping, this may
equate to around 30% of their
waking hours. In fact for many young
children they are spending more
time watching television than any
other waking activity.
A large number of children are
watching even more, with 30% of
American families having a television
on all the time, even when it is
not being watched. Viewing habits
developed in early childhood tend
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