A Wake-Up Call For Parents

Research shows more time in front of the television may be damaging children’s ability to recognize emotions.

A study published in Computers in Human Behavior showed that 6^th graders who went five days without exposure to technology were better at reading human emotions.  The researchers sent a group of kids to an outdoor education camp where there was no access to electronic devices. 

The other group of kids went about their normal routine. 

At the end of the five day study period the kids were shown fifty faces and were asked to identify the feelings being modeled.  The students who went to the outdoor camp scored significantly higher when it came to reading facial emotions.

It seems that reducing access to screens and increasing opportunities to interact with other people in person improves children’s ability for face to face emotional interaction.    

There’s big takeaway’s in this and a big wake up call for parents.  Make sure your child is getting enough face to face social interaction.  Reduce screen time at home and sit on the floor and play with your child.  

 Use SmartGamesAndToys as a resource.  Toys like the Feelings Friend can be a great way to jump start teaching your child about recognizing emotions.