MEDIA INFLUENCES ON CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS BENJAMIN PERKINS UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI, ARTS & SCIENCE, EXPLORATORY Introduction The purpose of this study was to investigate how media influences can affect children and young adult’s minds whether that be negative or positive. Research Question How does media affect children and young adult’s minds? Does it affect them negatively? Positively? Professional Implications It is always important to take a look at how media influences young children and teens especially if you are trying to be a teacher. As a teacher it is one of their duties to know where each student is coming from before they can teach the students. So understanding what influences their thinking such as popular movies, music, magazines, video games, etc. It is my goal from this assignment to understand more thoroughly what teens and young children face in today’s digital age. And I think after what I have researched I have gained a much better understanding of what they face. Results Article 1: In an interview with president of The Russian Association for Film and Media Education, Alexander Ferderov, he discusses why media education is important for students to learn. He says: To develop “knowledge about the history, structure, language, and theory of the media” To develop the "ability to perceive media texts" (to read their language) And "to acquire practical creative skills for working with media". (Fedorov 2) According to Fedorov media education's main goals are to: Develop critical thinking skills, Develop ability to understand media texts of all different forms, Teach students to experiment with the media. (Fedorov 2) Article 2: In a paper by author Sarah H. Smith she analyzes popular films and comes to the conclusion that girls are guided by popular movies to the scripting of their own sexual desires…she goes on, that girls should be sexy for boys and not have their own sexual desires. (Smith) She cites many movies popular among teens and which illustrate scripting of young girls’ desire such as Superbad, American Pie, Scary Movie, Cruel Intentions, and many others. Specifically from the movies she analyzed she found the following true: That desire in girls is unspoken: eye contact or smoldering gaze, biting or licking of lips, sexual touching. Only bad girls verbalize desire: in movies only girls who are branded “sluts” or girls who are impaired temporarily verbalize sexual desire. There are negative consequences to expressing desire: girls who express sexual desire lead to disaster (disease, pregnancy, rape, bad reputation, or loss of self-respect). Article 3: In this very interesting article over influences of violent video games by Douglas A. Gentile and J. Ronald Gentile they did a great job of listing reasons for why violent video games serve as excellent teachers. They discuss strategies such as: spiral curriculum practice to the point of mastery over learning clear objectives others. Article 4: My final research source was a study taken to see how boys and girls age 9-13 feel media portrays what they should look like. From the information in the questionnaire the authors analyzes the results and found: Boys were unsure what the media thinks they should look like which could mean that the media doesn’t exert an influence on them. Self esteem could be a reason for little influence of media on boys, levels of self esteem increase throughout adolescence in boys while girls it is the opposite. Girls in the study said that to be slimmer were influences on them from the media. The authors adds that research regarding influence of media links promotion of thinness with body dissatisfaction and the development of disordered eating practices. (Lawrie, Sullivan, Davies, & Hill, 2006)

REFERENCES References 1. Kaloshina, N., & Preece, A. (2006). Media education must become part and parcel of the curriculum. Thinking Classroom, 7(3), Retrieved from 2. Smith, S. (2012). Scripting Sexual Desire: Cultural Scenarios of Teen Girls' Sexual Desire in Popular Films, Sexuality & Culture, 16(3), doi: /s Gentile, D. A., & Gentile, J. (2008). Violent Video Games as Exemplary Teachers: A Conceptual Analysis. Journal Of Youth & Adolescence, 37(2), doi: /s Lawrie, Z. Z., Sullivan, E. A., Davies, P. W., & Hill, R. J. (2006). Media Influence on the Body Image of Children and Adolescents. Eating Disorders, 14(5), doi: /