Do Cartoons Negatively Impact A Childs Development?

Cartoons are a universal phenomenon we have all watched or have at least heard of at some point in our lives. Cartoons are animated series that specialize in and market to being enjoyable and entertaining to young children. Cartoons come in a vast number of genres, lengths, animation styles, storytelling techniques, outcomes and much more. More specifically some of the most watched cartoon genres are comedy, adventure, fantasy, mystery, horror and educational. Although cartoons are marketed for children, some teenagers and adults like to watch cartoons for various reason like to reminisce, to watch with their child or sibling or to kill time. But just because teenagers and adults may like to watch cartoons, the largest community of consumers for cartoons are still young children.

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This is important to keep in mind when you realize that some parents, educators, and guardians are becoming alarmed at what kinds of ideologies and thoughts their young children can learn from the innocent and silly cartoon shows they believed their young child to be watching. Some cartoons can bring thoughts and actions of violence, aggression, foul language, cartoon dependency and more. On the other hand, some parents see cartoons as an early start on learning, free and easy entertainment, positive role models, and the learning of valuable lessons of friendship, honesty, loyalty and much more. No side is entirely correct because both sides have their strengths and weaknesses to their arguments so, it is ultimately up to each parent to decide what is acceptable and unacceptable for their young children to consume. 

Many parents and specialists have started to come to the realization that cartoons are not the most suitable option for young children. As research develops and more negative impacts become known, cartoons are starting to feel like they may do more harm than good.

 To simply grasp why and how young children can be negatively impacted by cartoon watching, understanding the brain development of a young child is crucial. In the article, “Cartoons’ Effect in Changing Children Mental Response and Behavior” written by Khaled Habib and Tarek Soliman, we read, “These connections that are formed by the brain create our habits, way of thinking, memories, and mind. At the age of three, a toddlers brain would have created about thousand trillion Synapses, which is nearly double what he would have when he grow to an adult.” (Habib & Soliman, 2015) We learn that yes, young children’s brains develop connections and habits from what they absorb in their day-to-day life. We also learn that half of the synapses the brain creates are created at the age of three. If half of the synapses are created by the age of three and young children are left absorbing negative cartoons all day. I am left wondering how this will affect young children and their development. 

One of the biggest concerns that parents and experts have with young children absorbing too much of cartoons is the violent and sexual or explicit content. The article mentions that violence in cartoons will result in uncertainty or hesitation when anticipating situation results or in said child repeating those violent scenes and carrying them out. (Habib & Soliman, 2015) Both of these outcomes lead to young children losing logical thinking skills and the ability to think for themselves. In addition, the article covers their experimental results and reveals, “The conductors of the experiment concluded that Cartoon TV Series has great Influence over the children. A cartoon has the major portion of the children attention and time more than any activity the child performs.” (Habib & Soliman, 2015) 

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Because most parents believe cartoons would never cause harm to their young children, these young children are usually left unaccompanied when watching said cartoons. While the parents have control of what their young children are watching, most are blissfully unaware of what negative consequences cartoons may lead to. We also discover that, “As well as cartoons do change the children behavior, it also changes their spoken language, as they intend to intimate the cartoons character.” (Habib & Soliman, 2015) Cartoons have the ability to negatively alter language, actions and mindset of these young children’s minds who are starting to develop and form their own connections and paths. 

Through much research and conducted experiments we learn that during a young child’s first years, their brain is making constant connections and thoughts from what they observe, we learn about possible negative effects, and we receive the experimental overview as evidence. This is enough for some to want to steer away from all cartoons but for some, the pros outweigh possible cons.

On the other hand, some parents and specialists fully believe that cartoons will help their young children’s development better while being entertaining and educational. In the article “The Multifaceted Impact of Cartoons on Child Development,” by Bharath, we read, “Research supports that children who regularly watch educational cartoons exhibit improved academic performance and a greater enthusiasm for learning. The ability of these programs to address social and emotional skills alongside academic content further enhances their educational value, helping children develop a well-rounded set of competencies.” A lot of parents, educators, and specialists like cartoons because they are able to teach alot of different life skills. 

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 Not only do cartoons have the ability to teach life skills but we learn that cartoons can improve academic performance from simply watching and engaging in cartoons! To add onto that, young children can learn how to express and deal with certain emotions because of cartoon watching. As later discussed in the article, “The Multifaceted Impact of Cartoons on Child Development,” we learn, “This emotional learning contributes to the development of emotional intelligence, which is crucial for forming healthy relationships and coping with life’s challenges.” Leaning how to cope and express emotions at young ages are skills that can shape and determine how young children behave and act in more complex situations. 

One last thing a young child can learn from cartoons is having culture awareness and learning to be more inclusive. In the article, “The Multifaceted Impact of Cartoons on Child Development,” it states, “For example, when children see characters from various ethnicities, religions, and family structures interacting positively, it can challenge stereotypes and promote acceptance.” Besides promoting acceptance, young children can feel represented within cartons if they see a character that looks like them or celebrates certain holidays like they do. 

We learn that from watching and engaging in cartoons young children can improve their academic performance, learn how to express and handle complex emotional issues, empower inclusivity and cultural awareness and so much more from learning with cartoons! This plus so much more continue to be the reason for parents, educators, and specialists to continue and support the viewing of cartoons for their young children.

There are many similarities and differences from both sides surrounding cartoons and their effects. Both sides went on different paths to express how they felt about cartoons. So, they did not directly disagree with much. 

Both sides did mention screen time but then one side dug deeper and went into the negative effects and ways to avoid these said negative effects while the other side only stated statistics and left it at that. Bharath adds, “Extended periods of screen time can lead to several health issues, including obesity, poor posture, and eye strain.” And Habib and Soliman add, “2 - 5 years old children watch cartoon 32 hrs. Weekly. 6 - 11 years old children watch cartoon 28 hrs. Weekly.” So, both sides acknowledge the screen time but one spoke about the effects, recommendations, and compromises while the other side mentions the statistics and leaves it at that. 

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Both sides tented to agree more than disagree but one of the biggest things they can agree on it that cartoons can be a great education tool. For example, Bharath adds, “The format of educational cartoons leverages engaging narratives, vibrant visuals, and memorable characters to make complex concepts more accessible to children.” While Habib and Soliman state, “…children are attracted to the cartoon content much more than the academic traditional ways of learning, due to the well written scenarios, audio & visual effects, and colors. These factors are enough to cause the child to absorb information dozens better than that absorbed from a teacher in a classroom.” Both sides can understand and recognize that cartoons can be great learning tools for young children because they are more likely to be visually appeared to cartoon shows than regular teaching styles. 

Both sides can also agree that cartoons can change how young children behave. Both sides speak on the negative and positive effects young children can pick up from cartoons. Bharath writes, “The balance of positive and negative influences in cartoons underscores the importance of context and content selection.” While Habib and Soliman say, “All these and much more are skills that could be filled in a cartoon and absorbed by the child brain if it is delivered in a correct attractive way. A Cartoon hero could be the child’s model for years.” And they later add, “It could contain content that would confuse the child with what he experiences in real life, it could contain directions that contradicts with the parents orders.” 

Both sides acknowledge the fact that cartoons can be positive and negative role models. They also understand that young children are extremely likely to be influenced by these role models and may carry out positive or negative actions.

Both sides of the argument come with their strengths and weaknesses. Bharath tended to stick to a standard informational text. We learned about the historical evolution, early animation, achievements, modern animation and technological breakthroughs, cognitive development regarding educational content, creative and imaginative growth, emotional learning, the good and bad behavior modeling, inclusivity, gender roles, health issues, advertising impact, parent guidance and much more. 

While we learned a ton of information, I think Bharath’s argument could have been a lot stronger if they added in experiments or statistics so you can actually see how much a young child’s brain and actions can change from watching cartoons. Appealing more to logic would have helped with this specific argument because it is something that effects young children and being logical about their development is important. 

On the other hand, Habib and Soliman started off with pointing out research from Michigan University stating how long children watch cartoons weekly and gave numbers concerning young children and television access. They later continue to speak about how the brain of a young child develops. In this they point out common misconceptions, tables, and facts. They acknowledge that cartoons can be a great learning tool because young children are more likely to prefer learning from cartoons than the standard way. 

They reviewed three experiments that were conducted to see if cartoons do impact young children’s actions and behavior. Following each experiment, they provided pie charts, tables, all experiment information, results, and conclusions. They later show multiple instances where seductive sexual content was found in cartoons. They gave multiple examples and provided pictures of the content. Lastly, they covered laboratory and field experiments of violent cartoons and their effects. 

All of the information provided made it clear to what extent young children can be affected but I think their argument could have benefited from less experiments and more informational writing.

Neither argument was able to fulfill a simple solution for all. Both sides contained their strengths and weaknesses within their points and positions. Both sides agreed that cartons can be a great teaching tool and that cartoons can impact their behavior whether that be positively or negatively. 

The sides begin to differ when one speaks about the creative freedom, emotional learning, and health concerns while the other dives into brain development, effects on behavior, experiments concerning violence and showing where seductive sexual content can be found. 

After absorbing both sides I found that cartoons can negatively impact a young child’s development. There are many experiments that prove that young children tent to copy or mimic what they see their favorite characters doing. This can lead to possible acts of violence being carried out and copied. There are various instances where a cartoon character can be put into provocative clothing, poses and more. Young children can also fall victim to advertising using their favorite cartoon characters. The advertising can use popular cartoon characters with or consuming unhealthy foods which will make young children want those same unhealthy foods, if not moderated correctly it may lead to possible health concerns. 

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But young children can also use cartoons to help increase their imaginative growth, creative freedom, emotional learning, reinforced stereotypes, inclusive mindset, and modernized gender roles. Children can also learn many amazing values like honesty, friendship, teamwork and can learn from positive role models. Cartoons are a staple for young children. I think they can do so much good for young children. 

The concerns regarding violence, sexual content, aggression, and health concerns are extremely valid. But if you monitor what your young child is watching, set screen times and ask them what they learn from each episode. Cartoons can be very helpful in shaping a well-rounded smart and kind child.