Teens and Screens --Helping Kids Manage Their
Electronic Worlds
Gregory Ramey, Ph.D.
Vice President for Outpatient Services
Pediatric Psychologist
December 3, 2009
Media Consumption of a Typical U.S. Teenager as measured by Nielsen
TV
3 hours,
20 minutes
DVR
8 minutes
DVD
17 minutes
Console Gaming
25 minutes
PC
52 minutes
including
applications
Internet
23 minutes
Online video
If they watched,
watched 6 minutes
PC Games
1 in 10 played,
today
Mobile Voice
6 minutes
Text-Messages
96 sent or
received
Mobile video
If they watched,
watched for 13
minutes
Mobile Web
1 in 3 used
Video on an MP3
Player
1 in 4 watched
Audio-Only MP3
Player
1 in 2 used
Newspaper
1 in 4 read
Movie Theater
Went once in the
past 5 weeks
For directional purposes only, this table estimates daily U.S. teen media use across a variety of platforms based on a range of Nielson
sources from 2008 and Q1 2009. Details of these estimates are contained in the body of this paper. Source: The Nielson Company
Should you monitor your teen’s
internet usage?
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Ye
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Ye
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No
1. No
2. Yes
3. Yes, but only if I had
concerns based upon
past problems
Social Networking
•
•
•
•
•
•
51 % of teens check their sites more than once a day.
22 % check their sites more than 10 times a day.
39 % have posted something they later regretted.
37 % have used the sites to make fun of other students.
25 % have created a profile with a false identity.
24 % have hacked into someone else's social networking
account.
• 13 % have posted nude or seminude pictures or videos of
themselves or others online.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/08/10/MN9T1954T7.DTL&tpe=pr...#ixzz0PO6iEGOj
Virtual Friendships
• Josh Evans and Megan Meier
Top Internet Searches By Kids
Ages 8-12
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
You Tube
Google
Facebook
Sex
My Space
Porn
The Internet has generally fostered a
more positive discussion of sexuality.
1. True
2. False
se
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Tr
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Video Games
• $2 billion in sales in 1½ years
– (Wii, Dance Dance Revolution, EA Sports Active)
• Kids under 12 account for 24% of sales
• 57% of kids ages 2 to 12 play videogames
• 75% of 10 to 14 year olds play games
At what age should children get
their own cell phones?
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0%
18
ye
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15
-1
7
ye
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so
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12
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4
6-8 years old
9-11 years old
12-14 years old
15-17 years old
18 + years
68
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Text Messages
Ages
Calls
Texts
<12
137
428
13-17
231
2,899
18-24
265
790
Cell Phones and Cheating
• 35% of teens with cell phones report using
cell phones to cheat on exams
• Less than half thought texting answers to
friends was cheating
Texting and Driving
• Among truck drivers, collision risk is 23 times
greater than non-texting drivers
• College students, 8 times greater risk for car
accidents
Should you monitor your child via
the GPS unit on the cell phone?
1. No
2. Yes
3. Yes, but only if I had
specific concerns
0%
0%
Ye
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Ye
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No
0%
TV Commercials
• Fat-producing foods are eaten or talked about
5 times more often in kids’ shows than adult
programs
• 1 hour of kids TV = 2.6 instances of eating or
talking about unhealthy foods
Predicting Teen Sexual Behavior
• 6-18 year olds
– Every hour the youngest group (6-8) watched
sexual content increased their chances of having
sex in adolescence by 33%
• University of North Carolina Study, 2006
– Positive correlation between teens exposed to
media with high sexual content and likelihood of
sex by 16 years of age
TV and Teen Pregnancy
• Teens exposed to the most sexual content on
TV were twice as likely to get pregnant before
age 20
• Encourages/normalizes sexual activity in
early adolescence
• Promotes inconsistent use of contraceptives
Potential Risks of Watching Violent
Television Programs
• Less sensitive to the pain of others
• More fearful
• More likely to act aggressively --- imitation of
role models
Pleasures and Pitfalls of Kids’ Electronic
Worlds - Risks
• May provide too easy an escape from the real world
• Less time with family and friends
– 28% reported spending less time with family
members, up from 11% in 2006
– Drop from 26 hours/month to 18 hours/month
• Increased technology positively correlated with
adolescent sleep deprivation
• Electronic addiction
• Extensive television watching related to increased
obesity, premature sexual activity, aggression,
overall passivity, and poor school performance
Pleasures and Pitfalls - Risks
• Increased likelihood of being victimized --sexually or emotionally
• Combined with driving, texting/cell phones
represent a serious risk
• Cell phones can serve as a negative
psychological umbilical cord
Pleasures and Pitfalls of Kids’ Electronic
Worlds - Benefits
•
•
•
•
Fun, entertaining, and exciting
Positive educational benefits
Tremendous opportunities for social support
Mechanism to deal with real issues in a safe
and timely manner
– Chat rooms
– Social networks
– Texting
Which best describes your view of
technology (computers, cell phones,
phones, video games)?
1. Family life is more enjoyable
with these technological
advances.
2. The disadvantages of
technology outweigh the
positive effects on family life.
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Suggestions for Parents – Cell Phones
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Have your child pay part of the cost.
Monitor text messages.
Place limits on phone and text messaging.
Discuss respect and etiquette.
Have an explicit discussion of sexting with
your child.
6. Establish privacy and safety rules.
7. Develop rules consistent with your child’s
level of responsibility.
Suggestions for Parents - Internet
1. Become computer literate.
2. Utilize parental controls consistent with your
child’s developmental level.
3. Keep the computer in a public setting for
younger children.
4. Limit, prohibit, or monitor participation in social
networking sites.
5. Be concerned about excessive internet usage.
6. Review safety rules and family expectations.
Suggestions for Parents - Television
1. Limit TV availability.
2. Do not put a television in your child’s bedroom.
3. Discuss issues of morality, sexuality, and
values.
4. Don’t be reluctant to label programs as toxic --and discuss why.
5. Engage in family activities as an antidote to
passive viewing of media.