Teens who shun TV may relate better to peers

Teens who spend less time glued to screens may relate better to peers

A new study at the University of Otago has some good news for parents worried that restricting TV viewing might make it more difficult for their children to relate to their friends.

The newly published study found that young people who watched more TV tended to
have poorer relationships with both their friends and parents.

The findings, published in the March issue of the Archives of Pediatric and
Adolescent Medicine, come out of the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and
Development Study and the Youth Lifestyle Study. The studies were conducted 16
years apart and show that, although the nature of screen-based entertainment has
changed, the association with family relationships appears to be the same.

Dr Richards says that there have been some concerns among parents that their
children might feel excluded if they were not watching the same TV programmes as
their friends.

“However, our findings give some reassurance that it is fine to limit TV viewing. In
fact, it may result in stronger relationships between young people, their friends and
their parents,” she says.

The study involved 3,043 New Zealand adolescents aged 14 to 15 in 2004. The teens
completed a confidential questionnaire about their free-time habits, as well as an
assessment of their attachment to parents and peers.

The researchers also assessed interview responses from 976 members of the Dunedin
Study who were 15 years old between 1987 and 1988.

Strong relationships with parents and friends are important for healthy development
from teenage years into adulthood, Dr Richards says.

“With the rapid pace of evolution in screen-based technologies, ongoing research is
needed to monitor the effect they are having on the social, psychological and physical
well-being of young people.”

Dr Richards is based in the Cancer Society Social and Behavioural Research Unit and
the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Research Unit.

Her co-authors include Professor Rob McGee, Associate Professor Sheila Williams
and Associate Professor Bob Hancox of the Department of Preventive and Social
Medicine and Dr David Welch, now at the University of Auckland.

ENDS

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