A set of surveys was conducted among elementary school students to provide basic information on exposure patterns to television newscasts on the local and national level. (Author/STS)

When children watch television, they can assess the reality of what they are seeing. Content judged unreal may have less influence on viewers than does content judged real. This study examines children's reality judgments about television series featuring families with children. Participants included twenty-seven 7-year-olds, nineteen…

A request by Senator John O. Pastore for an inquiry into the effect of televised crime and violence and anti-social behavior by individuals resulted in the formation of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Television and Social Behavior. The committee report consists of the conclusions reached by 12 behavioral scientists after a review of 40…

Questionnaires were given to second, third, and fourth graders examining relationships between television viewing habits and prosocial behavior. Results indicated the fewer programs watched and the more prosocial their content, the more likely a child was to exhibit prosocial behavior. Each variable accounted for about one percent of the variance.…

In the midst of a growing national debate about the role of television as a de facto "sex educator" for young people today, this survey asked parents nationwide in the fall of 1996 about their views on kids and television. A random sample of 853 parents and children ages 6 to 15 were surveyed by telephone (the data reported here focus on…

The results of a field study, a controlled experiment, and clinical observations on the educational effects of "Sesame Street" on Israeli children are summarized in this report. An overview section presents the general format and major findings, the next section describes the background setting of the studies, a method section covers the…

In March of 1972 the Aspen Program on Communications and Society convened a meeting which brought together the Surgeon General, staff members connected with the Surgeon General's Report on Television and Violence, and social scientists. The purpose of the meeting was to evaluate the Report, which had just been issued. This conference report…

A study of four public television stations was conducted in 1972 as part of a Ford Foundation research project. The major focus of the study was on WNET-TV, a very high frequency (VHF) station. The viewer population was sampled by random telephone dialing. In 5025 interviews, questions were asked concerning viewer characteristics, viewing hours,…

A 1955 survey of the effects of television on 10 to 14 year-old children in Great Britain is reported. A discussion of the problem investigated is presented first--the impact of television on children. Next a summary of the main findings is offered detailing the amount children view and the way in which different children react to television. A…

Examines the effects of exposure to United States television programs on Icelandic respondents aged 11 through 14, with regard to respondents' attitudes toward the United States and knowledge of United States culture. (GW)

Studies a large sample of Dutch children. Finds that a positive-intense daydreaming style was stimulated by watching nonviolent children's programs and was inhibited by watching violent dramatic programs, while an aggressive-heroic daydreaming style was stimulated by watching violent dramatic programs and inhibited by watching nonviolent programs.…

In an effort to identify critical evaluation skills, interview information is analyzed looking at four types of differences: differences between age groups, differences between children who did and did not change their attitudes after viewing an entertainment program, differences among those who ascribed varying degrees of credibility to…

Survey of students (grades 6-12) reveals that those who were heavy viewers of crime shows were more likely to have anticivil libertarian attitudes. Results indicate that television entertainment may be an important source of political learning. (PD)

Presents a survey of family television viewing habits in relation to the so-called "family hour." Evidence supports the assumption that children's viewing subsides after the end of this period; however, substantial numbers of children continue to view television beyond this period. Program preferences of parents and children were also surveyed.…

This study examines children's interpretations of a visual convention used in television interviews and incorporates as a framework Flavell's theory of the development sequence of understanding television (1990). Thirty-four children were individually shown a videotape of two people talking in an interview on a television news program. Children…