Caillou, Mere-Exposure Effect, and the Internet
The second-most complained about children’s show that I am aware of is Caillou (first being Teletubbies). The primary complaint from parents is that the title character is whiny, and teaches children how to throw tantrums. One feature scientists look for to gauge the intelligence of an animal is if they can learn from watching an example. Children can learn from example, even a cartoon one, which is an indication of intelligence. In fact, being able to learn information from each other, and pass habits down to younger generations is very important. But so is staying sane. No one wants to deal with a whiny kid. We should be careful, therefore, not to normalize whining. If your child picks up bad habits from Caillou or any other show, I recommend that you stop showing it to them.
Consider the mere-exposure effect. The mere exposure effect states that we develop a preference for things that we are familiar with, even if we have no positive associations with them, necessarily. The more a person is exposed to something, the better they feel towards it.
The internet and television prioritize views. Which means that the things that we are most likely to look at and share are the things people will keep making, and that we will keep seeing. The things we keep seeing will be the things that we think are normal, okay, and even pleasant, cute, and true.
It isn’t just children’s shows that teach dramatic tantrums. It’s that gif you shared about throwing someone out of a car, or about crying when you don’t get attention. Seeing these things so often, even if we feel they are the extreme at first, will normalize our perception and teach us that we can do similar things without consequence. You can only see “treat yo self” so many times before wondering if you really should care about financial responsibility.
Because immature behavior is far more dramatic (read: sharable), that is what you’ll see.
Immature behavior includes rudeness, irresponsibility, and selfishness. That means that we are prone to feel okay with those behaviors. I request that you look at your philosophy, and question the parts that may be self-centered. I also request that we share the things that we want to grow.
