Raise Children, Not Consumers
Popular culture, few could argue, attempts to manipulate your children’s needs and wants and motivate them to buy food, toys, clothing, electronics, and other products that have no redeeming value, are unhealthy, or send them the wrong messages. Popular culture is big business, to the tune of $1.2 billion a year in advertising in 2010, a double-digit increase over 2009. Research has also shown that children have influence in their family over the food and drink purchases of $100 billion each year, much of it unhealthy. Popular culture wants you to raise consumers, not children! The line between entertainment and advertising is becoming increasingly blurred. For example, The Hub, a television network aimed at children that has a 50 percent ownership stake by the toy manufacturer Hasbro was launched in 2010. Commercials aside, this channel’s programming is basically a direct marketing platform for selling Hasbro toys. Additionally, the recent technological advances have enabled companies that market to children to create “supersystems” around their brands that incorporate 360-degree multimedia universes devoted exclusively to selling their products that include television shows, web sites, YouTube videos, fan clubs, Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, and video games, as well as traditional advertising. As Robert Iger, the President of Walt Disney, comments, “Reaching dramatically and deeply,…” has allowed Disney to, “...enter the hearts and minds of people all over the world.” Do you really want Disney and the like to enter your children’s hearts and minds? I sure don’t.
Read MoreLatest News: Invited to Speak at International Sports Conference in Qatar
I have been invited to speak at the Aspire4Sport International Sports Conference to be held in Doha, Qatar (the host of the 2022 soccer World Cup) on November 12-14. I have been asked to speak on the role of sport psychology in maximizing athletic performance. I will also participate in a panel discussion exploring the […]
Read MoreParenting/Education: Play, not Flashcards, Promote Healthy Academic and Life Development
A great read that invalidates the current parenting and educational zeitgeist of rushing children into academics. As the article describes, play, and the life and cognitive skills it teaches, is the best predictor later educational attainment. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/23/simon-says-dont-use-flashcards/ The lessons to be learned: Put away the iPads and flashcards, fire the tutors, choose preschools and kindergartens […]
Read MoreParenting: Parents Must Step Up to the Technology Challenge!
It’s hard enough these days for parents to even keep up with all of the latest technological developments. It’s even harder to stay informed of the latest research on the effects of technology on our children. In our already incredibly busy lives, it’s downright exhausting trying to stay abreast of what technology our children are […]
Read MoreTechnology: The Growing (and Dangerous) Gap Between Information and Wisdom
The Internet is a truly remarkable advancement in our ability to access information. Just about anything we could possibly want to know is now just a few keystrokes away. But , as with most technological innovations, for every benefit to our lives, there is a potential cost as well. With the universe of information now […]
Read MoreParenting: Kids 3.0: How to Raise Healthy Kids in a Tech World
I chose the metaphor of computer software with its evolving versions because it seemed to be relevant the children’s development in so many ways. Because my ideas about the role of technology in our lives is not only about the meeting of children and technology, but also what seems like their integration, the metaphor seemed […]
Read More