Watch out naysayers, Carla Engelbrecht Fisher does not give into the fear that “digital media is going to harm or delay children’s development.”
Citing research from NPD and Kaiser, children’s digital media is a popular and pervasive part of their lives. Similar to my thoughts in the SuperSize Me post, digital media consumption simply requires a balanced media diet.
“A little TV here, a little gaming here, a little outdoor time there, a little water-table time here, sandbox time, block play, dancing, singing, napping, eating, food play, etc. Too much of any one thing can obviously lead to problems,” Carla said.
Unfortunately, though we wouldn’t point fingers, lots of critics blame children’s video games for anything from social and psychological problems, to academic and physical health problems.
The research studies, Carla says, “are all over the place. Some combine games with television, some barely differentiate between types of violence. The most aggravating (to me) of the studies assume that television or games are causing a ‘displacement effect’ where time spent with media replaces other, more developmentally worthwhile activities. The problem being, those studies assume that anything is better than television or games…”
To properly refute the fears and criticism, Carla believes researchers need to do more to make the case. From learning how children are consuming these technologies and understanding the quality of the interactions, to building the best products for them and inspiring further research, without evidence no one can say digital media is bad.
However, the onus is not just on the research community. Controlling media intake is everyone’s responsibility, said Carla. “Save for the youngest of children, I’m a huge proponent of media literacy. Most adults could use a serious lesson in it, never mind their children.”
This concludes my interview with Carla, but don’t worry, we’re having coffee later in the month. I will be sure to pick her brain some more. If you are interested in Carla’s work, she is speaking at the Game Developers Conference in California on Wednesday March 25. Her session is entitled, Little Hands, Foul Moods, and Runny Noses 2.0: The Research You Should Know When Making Games for Kids
Wired and Crazy Kids 