Original scientific paper
The Media in Children’s Leisure Time: Communicating Media Contents
Vlasta Ilišin
Abstract
The present paper analyzes data gathered in a recent research into the role
of the media in the daily lives of Croatian children. The sample consisted of
1,000 elementary school pupils, grades five to eight.
It was found that – apart from peer group socializing – the use of the media
was the most frequent leisure time activity. The most watched programmes
were movies and quiz games. The function of the media is primarily entertainment,
but there are indications that their educational role is somewhat more
prominent than in the adult audiences. Although the presence of the media in
children’s free time is very strong, the discussion of the media contents (films,
music, books) varies: it is quite frequent in conversations within the peer
groups, but much less so in conversations with parents. Variations in this regard
are very small, mainly in terms of age and educational performance. Surprisingly
enough, the parents’ educational level has no effect on the use of the
media by their children or on the frequency of communication in the family
about the media contents. Thus, while parents are held to be most responsible
for preparing their children for the selective use of the media, they are not (yet)
equipped for the role of media educators.
Keywords
socialization of children; leisure time of children; mass media; usage of mass media; communication of children and parents
Hrčak ID:
23306
URI
Publication date:
10.12.2003.
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