by Childrens Hospital Boston staff on October 28, 2011
Michael Rich, MD, MPH
Michael Rich, MD, MPH, is Children’s Hospital Boston’s media expert and director of Children’s Center on Media and Child Health. Take a look at his blog archive or follow him on Twitter @CMCH_Boston
Q:My father-in-law bonds with my 4-year-old son by playing video games. Recently, he bought a LEGO pirates game, rated for 10 year olds, and the two play it for about an hour every time they see each other. I love that they spend time together, but since they started playing this game, my son has become more violent. My father-in-law doesn’t see the problem, even though I’ve tried talking with him about it. Is there research that might help convince him to choose other bonding activities?
-Baffled over bonding in Palo Alto, CA
A: Dear Baffled,
You know your child better than anyone else, so you are most sensitive to a change in his behavior—and you are in the best position to guide him toward the person you want him to become. Full story »
by Childrens Hospital Boston staff on April 16, 2010
Michael Rich, MD, MPH
Media expert Michael Rich, MD, MPH, director of the Center on Media and Child Health at Children’s Hospital Boston, answers your questions about media use.
Last week he answered your questions about how to talk to your kids about scary stories in the news.
Here’s this week’s question:
Q: We just found out that our 6-year-old son has a central auditory processing disorder. We do not have TV or video games in our house, but when he visits friends’ houses, they sometimes play the older brother’s extremely violent video games, such as Call of Duty. Since there are fewer screens in our house, when he visits friends with these games, he is very eager to watch and play. Are these very violent games more damaging for children with a central auditory processing disorder? Would even a small amount of screen time with violent games have a harmful effect?
-Learning about Learning Disabilities, in Brooklyn, NY
A: Dear Learning about Learning Disabilities,
There seem to be a few questions here: How do violent media affect any child at age six? And does the central auditory processing disorder put your son at increased risk for being influenced by media? Full story »
by Childrens Hospital Boston staff on January 13, 2010
Thank you for your energetic responses both in the comments section here on the Thrive blog and on Children’s Hospital Boston’s Facebook page to my recent post about Call of Duty and other violent video games; this is exactly the type of public dialogue that I was hoping for when I started my Ask the Mediatrician Web site last year. We all use media in different ways and have very personal opinions about the value it brings into our lives, but their use also impacts society as a whole, and my hope is for all of us to continue to question if we’re using them in a beneficial way.
Related to the some of the responses to the post that said I misrepresented some of the things that happen in the game, I acknowledge that, even though I play video games, I have neither the skills nor the practice time to be a great gamer, so Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was demonstrated to me—I have not played it. I used the air terminal scene as an example of the game’s content, about which those of you with greater gaming experience have far more precise information and experience. Full story »
