Television has always been a constant presence in our homes and we watch it whenever we have the free time for pure entertainment. But are the kids in your house getting way too attached to the TV? Then it’s definitely time to stop their addiction as a study says childhood TV addicts are more likely to become criminals!
The University of Otago, New Zealand carried out this research by tracking the viewing habits of about 1,000 children born in the early 1970s from when they were aged five to 15, then followed up when the subjects were 26 years old to assess potential impacts. The study shows that children who watch excessive amounts of television are more likely to commit crime and show aggressive personality traits as adults.
The research which was published in the US journal “Pediatrics” found the childhood long exposure to television is strongly related to the anti-social behaviour in young adults. It said the link between the aggressive personality traits and excessive TV viewing remains statistically even when issues such as intelligence, social status and parental control were factored in.
“The risk of having a criminal conviction by early adulthood increased by about 30 percent with every hour that children spent watching television on an average weeknight,” co-author Bob Hancox said. He also said that although television did not cause all anti-social behaviour, their findings do suggest that reducing television viewing could go some way towards reducing rates of anti-social behaviour in society. The findings supported the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recommendation on children should watch no more than one to two hours of quality television programming a day.
Study said that it was possible the children have anti-social behaviour that lead to emotional desensitisation and the development of aggressive behaviour by watching it on TV. While the content of TV the children viewed are the primary factor of their anti-social behaviour, the social isolation between the children who spent hours watching the TV and the world is also another reason behind the behaviour.
Hancox said the anti-social behaviour contributes to the reduced social interaction with peers and parents, poorer educational achievement, and increased risk of unemployment.
While the study concentrated on children’s viewing habits in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but the further research was guaranteed into how advanced technology has affected the subsequent behaviour. He told Radio New Zealand that children playing a computer game that contains lot of violence that might stimulate shooting people might be even worse even though he doesn’t have any data on that.
Source: News Straits Times
