Limiting how much exposure to media boys have

147

Transcription:

It is important for parents to limit their son's exposure to television, movies and video games. Much of what boys learn that is unhealthy about manhood they learn from these sources. Male characters in these media are far more likely than female characters to engage in all kinds of risky behaviors like drinking alcohol, smoking tobacco, using drugs, engaging in risky and violent behavior. What is worse is that they are rarely shown suffering the real life consequences of these behaviors. Unlike female characters who are far more likely to get sick or injured or die. Recently there has been a surge in media glorifying risk taking and making risky driving making it extreme sports and binge drinking cool. Most of this is done by boys and men. Now sophisticated research show that exposure to that media actually is linked to risky behavior. That is particularly true for interactive media like video games which are played mostly by boys. Boys spend 4 times as much time as girls playing video games. Those boys are at greater risk for involvement in these risky activities. Tragically each day in the United States 18 boys under age 15 die. Nearly all of these boys die violent preventable deaths. Limiting our sons exposure to television, video games and movies is an effective way to improve their safety and well-being.

Video Categories: ALL PARENTS, Parenting, Setting Limits, TEEN, Technology and Media, TV and Screen Time, Video Games

Learn about: Limiting how much exposure to media boys have from Will Courtenay, PhD,...

Transcript

Expert Bio

Will Courtenay, PhD

Psychotherapist

Dr. Will Courtenay, “The Men’s Doc,” is an internationally recognized expert in helping boys, men and fathers, and a psychotherapist, consultant, distinguished author, researcher, keynote speaker, radio host, and consultant to and speaker at schools and universities. His new book is titled Dying To Be Men. The American Psychological Association calls him, “a leading psychologist in the field of masculinity” and Who’s Who in America calls him a “foremost achiever in his field.” As one of the world’s leading innovators in the health of boys and men, he has a documented history of success in shaping and promoting this new field, as well as new perspectives on fatherhood, boyhood, and masculinity. Dr. Courtenay received his PhD from the University of California at Berkeley and has served on the clinical faculty in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the University of California, San Francisco, Medical School. He is the Founding Editor of the International Journal of Men's Health. Dr. Courtenay is a powerful, effective voice about boys and men, heard nationally on radio and television – including CNN, Good Morning America, World News, Fox News, ABC News, NBC News – and seen in print – including NY Times, LA Times, Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report, NPR, Newsweek, USA Today, and Chicago Tribune. Dr. Courtenay is a contributor to Esquire Magazine.