Television and children's executive function.
Children spend a lot of time watching television on its many platforms: directly, online, and via videos and DVDs. Many researchers are concerned that some types of television content appear to negatively influence children's executive function. Because (1) executive function predicts key developmental outcomes, (2) executive function appears to be influenced by some television content, and (3) American children watch large quantities of television (including the content of concern), the issues discussed here comprise a crucial public health issue. Further research is needed to reveal exactly what television content is implicated, what underlies television's effect on executive function, how long the effect lasts, and who is affected.
Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA. Electronic address: lillard@virginia.edu.
Angeline S
AS
Lillard
Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, Hubei, PR China.
Hui
H
Li
Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA.
Katie
K
Boguszewski
D001143:Arousal; D001288:Attention; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition; D056344:Executive Function; D006801:Humans; D013690:Television
Cognitive development; Executive function; Media; Preschooler; Television