Socialization: Media and Peers

1
Socialization Media and Peers

• Chapter 16

2
(No Transcript)
3
(No Transcript)
4
Media Ownership

• 1945 1 of homes
• 1950 about 10
• 1955 about 60
• 1960 almost 90
• 1980 almost 98 52 more than one
• Current numbers are slightly higher

5

• Figure 16.1. Average number of hours per day that
  American children and adolescents spend watching
  television. FROM LIEBERT SPRAFKIN, 1988.

6

• Development of Television Literacy
• Ability to understand
• Prior to 8 or 9, process content in a piecemeal
  fashion
• Explicit vs. implicit information
• 2nd, 5th, and 8th graders were shown a film

7

• In moderation, not likely to impair
• Cognitive growth
• Academic achievement
• Peer relations

8
Televised Aggression

• Possible effects
• direct imitation
• general increase
• desensitization

9
Methodological Problems

• Experimentation
• Ethics
• Overexposure
• Observation

10
Televised Violence

• 58 of programs between 6 am and 11 pm contain
  violent scenes, often in the form of repeated
  aggressive acts against a victim that go
  unpunished
• 73 of the violent scenes had a perpetrator who
  neither displayed remorse nor received any
  penalty or criticism
• Most dont show victims experiencing serious
  physical harm few condemn violence or depict
  alternative ways of solving problems
• Over 1/3 embedded in humor, rises to 2/3 for
  childrens shows
• 9 above average in childrens programming

11

• TV violence instigate aggression?
• Positive correlation
• Experimental results
• Longitudinal studies

12
Research Experimental

• Bandura Bobo doll studies
• Reward or no consequence imitated a lot, those
  who saw punishment didnt
• Similar results with cartoons
• Criticisms
• Used doll instead of human victim
• Didnt use real TV shows

13
Research Experimental

• Liebert Baron (1972)
• 5-6, 8-9 y/o watch 6 minutes of TV
• experimental
• chase, 2 fist fights, 2 shootings, and a knifing
• control
• sports program track and field events
• Box with red and green buttons
• Choice of toy (violent, nonviolent)

14
Research Observational

• try to document relationship between naturally
  occurring TV viewing and naturally occurring
  violence
• several studies have found a relationship between
  a preference for violent TV programs and the
  level of aggression

15
Other Effects of Televised Violence

• Approval of Violence
• Mean-world beliefs
• Desensitization Hypothesis

16
Commercials

• Desire for product
• Request for advertised product
• Consumption of advertised product

17
Social Stereotypes

• Gender stereotypes
• Generally negative, can be a positive influence
  if roles are reversed
• Stereotyped views of minorities
• Usually negative
• However, if portrayals are positive, can reduce
  stereotyping

18
TV and Childrens Health

• One of the strongest predictors of future obesity
  is the amount of time spent watching TV
• Also promotes poor eating habits
• Snacking during TV, eat what is advertised

19
Beneficial Effects of TV

• Educational Television and Childrens Prosocial
  Behavior
• Watching prosocial programming lead to more
  prosocial behavior
• Only lasting effects if adult monitors programs
  and encourages actions

20
Beneficial Effects of TV

• Television as a Contributor to Cognitive
  Development
• Limited research on very young children
• Preschool children Sesame Street
• Improved cognitive skills
• Numbers, letters, vocabulary, classification,
  ordering
• Beneficial for all children, regardless of SES

21
Computers

• 1996 over 98 American public schools used as
  instructional tools
• 2003 over 60 American homes over 50 homes
  with internet

22
Computers

• Computer-assisted instruction
• Learn more, enjoy school more
• Discovery programs presented as games are best
• Word processing programs
• Increases writing skills
• Computer programming
• Facilitates cognitive and metacognitive
  development

23
Computers

• Concerns about Video Games
• Moderate correlation between playing violent
  video games and real-world aggression
• Actively involved in performing violence
• Reinforced for successful symbolic violence
• May be more serious than TV violence

24
Computers

• Concerns about Social Inequalities
• Economically disadvantaged families may not have
  a computer at home
• Boys were more interested in computers
• Gender gap has disappeared

25
Computers

• Concerns about Internet Exposure
• Web exposure helps with research for school
  topics
• Chat rooms can lead to cybersexual relationships
  and potential exploitation
• Web is a recruiting tool for cults and hate
  organizations

26

• Figure 16.7 Developmental changes in childrens
  companionship with adults and other children.
  ADAPTED FROM ELLIS, ROGOFF, CROMER, 1981.

27
Importance of Peers

• Harlow
• Anna Freud Sophie Dann

28
Developmental Course of Peer Relationships

• 0-2 months
• 3-4 months
• 6 months
• 6-12 months
• Second year
• 2-5 years

29
Peers Play

• Sociability during the Preschool Period
• Nonsocial activities
• Onlooker play
• Parallel play
• Associative play
• Cooperative play
• Play also becomes more cognitively complex with
  age
• Predicts future social competencies

30

• Heather My mother yelled at me. Lets say you
  gave me a spanking, Kathy ONeil
• Kathy No, my name is Annie
• Heather Lets say you gave me a spanking. And I
  call you mom.
• Andy (talking on phone) Hi, Kathy
• Heather No, her name is Annie

31

• Boy playing father. Girl playing mother.
• Boy So long. Ill see you later. Its time to
  go to work.
• Girl Hey, wait for me! I gotta go to work too!
• Boy Hey, my mom dont workyou stay here.
• Girl Well my mom workslotsa womens works you
  know. My mom is a perfessor at the college.
• Boy O.k. then, just hurry so we wont be late.
  Are you sure you wanna work?

32

• Functions of play in early childhood
• Play in individualistic societies teaches
  children to be individuals
• Play in collectivistic societies teaches children
  to keep egos under control, promotes group
  harmony
• Teaches effective communication
• Provides chances for compromise
• Allows for emotional understanding

33

• Peer Sociability in Middle Childhood and
  Adolescence
• 6-10 years like formal games
• Contacts occur in peer groups
• Interact on a regular basis
• Provide a sense of belonging
• Formulate norms
• Develop a hierarchical organization

34
Friendships

• Gottman recorded conversations of friends
• 3-7
• 8-12
• 13-17

35

• Early adolescence
• Form cliques 4-8 same-sex members sharing
  values
• Midadolescence same-sex cliques interact
  forming heterosexual cliques
• Cliques may also merge into crowds similar
  attitudes and activities
• Help form an identity, pave way for dating
  relationships

36

• Dunphy observed adolescents
• isolated unisexual cliques
• unisexual cliques in group interaction
• upper status members form heterosexual clique
• Crowd
• disintegration of crowd

37
Peer Acceptance and Popularity

• Positive Nominations
• Rating Scale
• positive nominations index of number of friends
  
• rating scale measure of overall acceptability,
  likeability

38
Peer Acceptance and Popularity

• Popular
• Rejected
• Neglected
• Controversial
• Average-status

39

• Why Are Children Accepted, Neglected, or Rejected
  by Peers?
• Parenting styles - warm, sensitive and
  authoritative parenting results in likeable
  children
• Temperamental characteristics -
• Irritable, impulsive children may have negative
  reactions with peers, causing rejection

40

• Cognitive Skills
• Popular children have well-developed role-taking
  skills
• Rejected children tend to score lowest on IQ
  tests
• Social Behaviors
• Popular children are warm, cooperative, and
  compassionate

41

• Neglected children are often shy or withdrawn,
  but have good social skills
• Worry about their social anxiety
• Rejected-aggressive children
• Alienate peers by forcefully dominating them
• Overestimate popularity
• Rejected-withdrawn children
• Socially awkward, immature, react to criticism
  with aggression
• Withdraw when they begin to be actively excluded

42
Differences Between Popular and Unpopular Children

• Gottman observed K-4 in four situations
• Popular with popular
• Unpopular with unpopular
• what do children do when entering a group of
  children who are already playing together?

43
Teaching Social Skills

• Asher 3rd and 4th graders were given 6 sessions
  of coaching over a 4 week period
• results improved ratings on play with
  question at end of training and one year later
• Hartup 3 to 6 year olds