The Effect of TV on Our Lives11111111111111111
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The Effect of
Television on our Lives
THE EFFECT OF
TELEVISION ON OUR LIVES
by
Gary Ruskin
from
Scientific American
,
February 6, 2002
1
.
Perhaps
the
most
ironic
aspect
of
the
struggle
for
survival
is
how
easily
during
reasonably
interesting
ones
just
as
well.‖
organisms
can
be
harmed
by
that
which
they
desire.
The
trout
it
caught
by
the
f
isherman'’ lure, the mouse
by cheese. But
at least those creatures
have the excuse that
bait
and
cheese
look
like
sustenance.
Humans seldom have that consolation.
The
temptations that can disrupt their
lives are
often
pure
indulgences.
No
one
has
to
drink alcohol, for example. Realizing
when
a diversion has gotten out of
control is one
of the great challenges
of life.
2
.
Excessive
cravings
do
not
necessarily
involve
physical
substances.
Gambling can become compulsive; sex can
become
obsessive.
One
activity,
however,
stands
out
for
its
prominence
and
ubiquity
—the world’s most
popular leisure
pastime,
television.
Most
people
admit
to
having
a
love-
hate
relationship
with
it.
They
complain
about
the
―bob
tube‖
and
―couch
potatoes,‖ then they settle into their
sofas and grab the remote control.
Parents
commonly
fret
about
their
children’s
viewing
(if
not
their
own).
Even
researchers
who
study
TV
for
a
living
marvel
at
the
mediums
hold
on
them
personally.
Percy
Tannenbaum
of
the
University
of
California
at
Berkeley
has
written: ―Among life’s more
embarrassing
moments
have
been
countless
occasions
when
I
am
engaged
in
conversation
in
a
room while a TV set is on, and I cannot
for
the
life
of
me
stop
from
periodically
glancing
over
to
the
screen.
This
occurs
not only during
dull conversations but
3
.
Scientists
have
been
studying
the
effects of television for decades,
generally
focusing on whether watching
violence on
TV correlates with being
violent in real life.
Less
attention
has
been
paid
to
the
basic
allure
of the small screen
—
the
medium, as
opposed to the message.
4
.
The
term
―TV
addiction‖
is
imprecise and laden with value
judgments,
but
it
captures
the
essence
of
a
very
real
phenomenon.
Psychologists
and
psychiatrists
formally
define
substance
dependence as a
disorder characterized by
criteria
that
include
spending
a
great
deal
of time using the
substance; using it more
often
than
one
intends;
thinking
about
reducing
use
or
making
repeated
unsuccessful
efforts
to
reduce
use;
giving
up important social,
family or occupational
activities
to
use
it;
and
reporting
withdrawal
symptoms
when
one
stops
using it.
5
.
All
these
criteria
can
apply
to
people
who watch a lot of television. That
does not mean that watching television,
per
se,
is
problematic.
Television
can
teach
and
amuse; it can reach aesthetic heights; it
can
provide
much
needed
distraction
and
escape.
The
difficulty
arises
when
people
strongly sense that they ought not to
watch
as much as they do and yet find
themselves
strangely
unable
to
reduce
their
viewing.
Some
knowledge
of
how
the
medium
exerts
its pull may help heavy viewers gain
better control over their lives.
1
The Effect of Television on our Lives
A body at Rest Tends to Stay at Rest
6
.
The
amount
of
time
people
spend
watching
television
is
astonishing.
On
average,
individuals
in
the
industrialized
world
devote
three
hours
a
day
to
the
pursuit
—
fully
half
of
their
leisure
time,
and
more than on any single activity save
work and sleep. At this rate, someone
who
lives to 75 would spend nine years
in front
of
the
tube.
To
some
commentators
this
devotion
means
simply
that
people
enjoy
TV
and
make
a
conscious
decision
to
watch it. But if that is
the whole story, why
do
so
many
people
experience
misgivings
about
how
much
they
view?
In
Gallup
polls
in
1992
and
1999,
two
out
of
five
adult
respondents
and
seven
out
of
10
teenagers
said
they
spent
too
much
time
watching
TV.
Other
surveys
have
consistently shown that
roughly 10 percent
of adults call
themselves TV addicts.
7
.
To study people’
s reactions
to TV,
researchers
have
undertaken
laboratory
experiments in which they have
monitored
the
brain
waves
(using
an
electro-
encephalograph,
or
EEG),
skin
resistance
or heart rate of
people watching television.
To
track
behavior
and
emotion
in
the
normal
course
of
life,
as
opposed
to
the
artificial
conditions
of
the
lab,
they
have
used
the
Experience
Sampling
Method
(ESM).
Participants
carried
a
beeper,
and
we signaled them six to
eight times a day,
at
random,
over
the
period
of
a
week;
whenever they heard
the beep, they
wrote
down
what they were doing and how they
were
feeling
using
a
standardized
scorecard.
8
.
As
one
might
expect,
people
who
were
watching
TV
when
the
researchers
beeped
them
reported
feeling
relaxed
and
passive.
The
EEG
studies
similarly
show
less
mental
stimulation,
as
measured
by
alpha
brain-wave
production,
during
viewing `than during
reading.
9
.
What
is more surprising is that the
sense
of
relaxation
ends
when
the
set
is
turned
off, but the feelings of passivity and
lowered
alertness
continue.
Survey
participants
commonly
reflect
that
television
has
somehow
absorbed
or
sucked
out
their
energy,
leaving
them
depleted.
They
say
they
have
more
difficulty
concentrating after viewing than
before.
In
contrast,
they
rarely
indicate
such difficulty after reading. After
playing
sports
or
engaging
in
hobbies,
people
report
improvements
in
mood.
After
watching
TV,
people’s
moods
are
about
the
same or worse than before.
10
.
Within
moments of sitting or lying
down
and
pushing
the
―power‖
button
,
viewers
report
feeling
more
relaxed.
Because
the
relaxation
occurs
quickly,
people
are
conditioned
to
associate
viewing
with
rest
and
lack
of
tension.
the
association is
positively reinforced because
viewers
remain
relaxed
throughout
viewing, and it
is negatively reinforced via
the
stress
and
dysphoric
rumination
that
occurs once the screen
goes blank again.
11
.
Habit-forming
drugs
work
in
similar
ways. A tranquilizer that leaves the
body rapidly is much more likely to
cause
dependence
than
one
that
leaves
the
body
slowly,
precisely because the user is more
aware
that
the
drug’s
effects
are
wearing
off.
Similarly,
viewers’
vague
learned
sense that they will feel less relaxed
if they
stop
viewing
may
be
a
more
significant
factor
in
not
turning
the
set
off.
Viewing
begets more viewing.
12
.
Thus,
the
irony
of
TV:
people
watch
a great deal longer than they plan to,
even
though
prolonged
viewing
is
less
rewarding.
In
the
ESM
studies
the
longer
people
sat
in
front
of
the
set,
the
less
satisfaction they said
they derived from it.
When signaled,
heavy viewers (those who
consistently
watch more than four hours a
day)
tended to report on their ESM sheets
that they enjoy TV less than light
viewers
did (less than two hours a
day). For some,
a twinge of unease or
guilt
that they aren’t
doing
something more productive may also
accompany
and
depreciate
the
enjoyment
of
prolonged
viewing.
Researchers
in
Japan,
the
U.K.
and
the
U.S.
have
found
that
this
guilt
occurs
much
more
among
2