The amount of time children view television with other family members was examined. The sample of 151 children was 6 through 17 yr. of age. Data were gathered by personal interviews conducted in the home. Analysis showed that children spent 75 min. per day (65% of their viewing time) watching television with family members, most often a sibling. When children did watch television with a parent, the parent was most likely the father. Rarely did the entire family view together.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AbelmanR. (1986) Children's awareness of television's prosocial fare. Journal of Family Issues, 7, 51–66.
2.
BowerR. T. (1973) Television and the public. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
3.
BryceJ. W.LeichterH. J. (1983) The family and television: Forms of mediation. Journal of Family Issues, 4, 309–328.
4.
DavisD. R.AbelmanR. (1983) Families and television: An application of frame analysis theory. Journal of Family Issues, 4, 385–404.
5.
GoodmanI. F. (1983) Television's role in family interaction: A family systems perspective. Journal of Family Issues, 4, 405–421.
6.
HopkinsN. M.MullisA. K. (1985) Family perceptions of television viewing habits. Family Relations, 34, 177–181.
7.
ISR Newsletter. (Winter 1985) How families use time. ISR Newsletter, 13, 3–4.
8.
JusterF. T.StaffordF. P. (Eds.) (1985) Time, goods, and well-being. Ann Arbor, MI: Univer. of Michigan.
9.
LawrenceF. C.TaskerG. E.DalyC. T.OrhielA. L.WozniakP. H. (1986) Adolescents' time viewing television. Adolescence, 21, 431–436.
10.
LovingoodR. (Ed.) (1981) Family time use: An eleven state urban/rural comparison. Blacksburg, VA: Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station. (Bulletin No. VPI-2).
11.
LyleJ.HoffmanH. R. (1972) Children's use of television and other media. Television and Social Behavior, 4, 129–256.
12.
MessarisP.KerrD. (1984) TV-related mother-child interaction and children's perceptions of TV characters. Journalism Quarterly, 61, 662–666.
13.
PalmerE. L.HockettA. B.DeanW. W. (1983) The television family and children's fright reactions. Journal of Family Issues, 4, 279–292.
14.
PearlD.BouthiletL.LazarJ. (Eds.) (1982) Television and behavior: Ten years of scientific progress and implications for the Eighties—Summary Report. Vol. 1. Washington, DC: National Institute of Mental Health.
15.
RobertsC. (1981) Children's and parents' television viewing perceptions of violence. Journalism Quarterly, 58, 556–564, 581.
16.
RobinsonJ. P. (1977) How Americans use time: A social-psychological analysis of everyday behavior. New York: Praeger.
17.
RossiterJ. R.RobertsonT. S. (1975) Children's television viewing: An examination of parent-child consensus. Sociometry, 38, 308–326.
18.
StonemanZ.BrodyG. (1981) Two's company, three makes a difference: An examination of maternal and paternal speech to their young children. Child Development, 52, 705–707.
19.
WilletsF.BealerR.CriderD. (1982) Persistence of most urban differences. In DillmanD. A.HobbsD. J. (Eds.), Rural society in the U.S.: Issues for the 1980's. Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Pp. 70–76.
