Dr. Jody talks about Sex and TV
The recent study on the effect of TV sex on teens’ actions reminds us once again how important it is for parents to watch suggestive TV with their kids and talk about what they see. Parents need to discuss their own beliefs about sex and sexual behavior at this crucial developmental stage in their teens’ social lives. Our children want and need to talk to us as parents and yet often feel they cannot. Parents must talk about sex, alcohol and other drugs and not leave this job up to the schools their adolescents attend. This can be challenging especially since sex can be an uncomfortable and reaction-provoking topic. However, learning how to actually stop and have a dialogue, and listen to what our adolescents are saying is critical. Learning to see the world through our adolescent’s eyes is a wonderful and challenging goal for which parents can strive and helps create a bit of objectivity. When we engage with our children in this manner, we will be able to determine what type of TV viewing they can handle.
While the study did not address exposure to sexual content found on the Internet, the sexually explicit material teens see surpasses what most have access to on TV. In addition to images, there are sexual chat rooms in which the potential for dangerous exploitation is high. The main issue, however, is that parents need to interact with their adolescents about sexual messages and behaviors and be aware of what is occurring in their kids’ daily lives. Although this is not always easy to determine, if there is no dialogue there will be no information.
One of the most challenging times for parents is during the adolescent phase when the child is developing an adult sense of self. It is a time of learning for both teens and parents and a wonderfully rich time of life where new skills are required. Sexuality is a behavior and like other behaviors it is our job as parents to help our young people develop a clear knowing of how to be safe and to make good decisions. Although all children need adult mentors...It is the parents who lead the way. They frequently get more information from us as parents on how to eat vegetables than how to approach their sexuality. Social learning theory says that information is learned from what others say about a behavior as well as what they do. Join with your children to help guide them.
The recent study on the effect of TV sex on teens’ actions reminds us once again how important it is for parents to watch suggestive TV with their kids and talk about what they see. Parents need to discuss their own beliefs about sex and sexual behavior at this crucial developmental stage in their teens’ social lives. Our children want and need to talk to us as parents and yet often feel they cannot. Parents must talk about sex, alcohol and other drugs and not leave this job up to the schools their adolescents attend. This can be challenging especially since sex can be an uncomfortable and reaction-provoking topic. However, learning how to actually stop and have a dialogue, and listen to what our adolescents are saying is critical. Learning to see the world through our adolescent’s eyes is a wonderful and challenging goal for which parents can strive and helps create a bit of objectivity. When we engage with our children in this manner, we will be able to determine what type of TV viewing they can handle.
While the study did not address exposure to sexual content found on the Internet, the sexually explicit material teens see surpasses what most have access to on TV. In addition to images, there are sexual chat rooms in which the potential for dangerous exploitation is high. The main issue, however, is that parents need to interact with their adolescents about sexual messages and behaviors and be aware of what is occurring in their kids’ daily lives. Although this is not always easy to determine, if there is no dialogue there will be no information.
One of the most challenging times for parents is during the adolescent phase when the child is developing an adult sense of self. It is a time of learning for both teens and parents and a wonderfully rich time of life where new skills are required. Sexuality is a behavior and like other behaviors it is our job as parents to help our young people develop a clear knowing of how to be safe and to make good decisions. Although all children need adult mentors...It is the parents who lead the way. They frequently get more information from us as parents on how to eat vegetables than how to approach their sexuality. Social learning theory says that information is learned from what others say about a behavior as well as what they do. Join with your children to help guide them.
