Protecting children from the dangers of “ virtual violence ”

Follow me on Twitter @drClaire There has been a lot of violence in the world in the past few weeks — and many of our children have been watching it. That’s not a good thing. Between mainstream media and social media, violence reaches far past the places and people it directly affects. Whether it’s the latest shooting, the latest terrorist attack, or some other act of violence, television and other media can bring it into every home, every cell phone, and every computer. The recent rise in cell phone videos shared on social media — often raw, unedited, and shocking — has increased the prevalence and reach of violence even further. Add to that the violence in movies — even G-rated movies — and video games and, as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) said in their policy statement entitled Virtual Violence, “Media violence is woven into the fabric of American children’s lives.” The last comprehensive assessment of “screen” violence was done in 1998, and it found that the typical child will have seen 8,000 murders and 100,000 other acts of violence (including rape and assault) before middle school. That was 18 years ago, 7 years before YouTube began and 9 years before the first iPhone was released. Just think what those numbers are now. The AAP released the policy statement because they want people to understand that exposure to “virtual” violence, through news, social and entertainment media, can be bad for children. Multiple studies have shown th...
Source: New Harvard Health Information - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Behavioral Health Children's Health Parenting Source Type: news