How to choose the best television, movies, games and websites

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This topic is an overview about choosing the best media for children. The general principles are to choose programs that:

provide truth and diversity
are age specific
are suitable for their age group
are appropriately classified
Craig Anderson on Video Games
choosing for children - principles and charters

Children need truth and diversity

For optimal development children need access to a diverse range of media experiences that:

expand their horizons, rather than limit them
give them truthful insights into how other people live, relate, and solve problems
allow them to laugh

They need a story world that offers many variations and possibilities.

Themes of violence, and product linked TV programs, films and videos should be avoided.

Children need access to programs and products that are age specific

Children have different perceptions and understanding of visual content at different ages and stages. Young children will focus on images, and won't follow plots; camera angles can hinder understanding. Many themes can be tackled in children's programs but they need to be dealt with from the point of view of the child and their likely understanding.

Children have different perceptions and understanding of visual content at different ages and stages.
Young children will focus on images, and won't follow plots; camera angles can hinder understanding.
Many themes can be tackled in children's programs but they need to be dealt with from the point of view of the child and their likely understanding.

The Australian Broadcasting Authority's Children's Television Standards use five criteria to determine whether programs qualify for the ABA's special quotas for preschool children (P) or for primary school aged children (C). Programs must:

be made specifically for children or groups of children within the preschool or primary school age range, and
be entertaining
be well produced using sufficient resources to ensure a high standard of script, cast, direction, editing, shooting, sound and other production elements
enhances a child's understanding and experience, and
be appropriate for Australian children.

Children need programs or products that are suitable for their age group

While some programs or products will be made specifically for children, others of more general interest can be quite suitable for children to watch. These are usually classified G.

Use the classification system

A useful guide to whether a program or product is suitable for children of particular ages, is to check its classification. Most TV programs (excluding news and current affairs programs), all cinema films and home videos, and computer games must be classified. As a rough guide:

G · suitable for all ages to watch and / or play
G8 · only available for computer games
- indicates that the game is suitable for those eight and over
PG · parental supervision may be needed for children under 15 years
M15+ · content is not recommended for those under 15 years
MA15+ · has legal force
- access is available only to those 15 years and over except if accompanied by a parent or guardian
R18+ · has legal force
- access is only available to those 18 years and over

For more detailed information see Classification

On Television

On commercial TV there will be quotas of programs (one half hour per day for preschool children, "P" classified) and 260 hrs per year (or 5 hrs per week) for primary school aged children ("C" classified), that are classified by the ABA as meeting the above 5 criteria. Look out for these on commercial TV.

The ABC screens many quality programs made specifically for preschool children and for older children in the mornings and after school.

Computer Games

See Choosing good computer games

Internet

See Websites - selected sites and reviews

Craig Anderson on Video Games

A number of people have asked for advice on purchasing video games for children and adolescents. There are many wonderful nonviolent video games on the market. Some have some type of educational theme. Others are more purely entertainment.

I do not endorse particular products because doing so might lead to an appearance of a conflict of interest, which would detract from my primary role as a neutral expert scholar on video game effects.

However, I have developed the following set of guidelines to help people avoid purchasing video games that have features which research suggests can cause harm. One cannot simply judge by the ratings provided by the video game industry [B. Biggins] [in Australia's case, the OFLC, ] because even games rated as being appropriate for everyone (the ESRB rating of "E") [B. Biggins] [in Australia this is 'G"] sometimes contain aggressive aspects that are potentially harmful.

How can you tell if a game is potentially harmful?

Play the game, or have someone else demonstrate it for you.
Ask yourself the following 6 questions:
- Does the game involve some characters trying to harm others?
- Does this happen frequently, more than once or twice in 30 minutes?
- Is the harm rewarded in any way?
- Is the harm portrayed as humorous?
- Are nonviolent solutions absent or less "fun" than the violent ones?
- Are realistic consequences of violence absent from the game?
If two or more answers are "yes", think very carefully about the lessons being taught before allowing your child access to the game.

Below are web addresses of several useful web sites that parents will find very helpful. The first is a listing of my research articles which deal with media violence. The more recent ones can be downloaded from this web page. The last two book chapters listed may be of particular interest to people who are not behavioral researchers--they have less technical jargon than the articles written primarily for other researchers.

http://www.psychology.iastate.edu/faculty/caa/recpub.html

The web sites listed below are all explicitly constructed for a more general audience.

Craig A. Anderson
Chair Department of Psychology
Iowa State University