Published on 12, July, 2020
There is some contentious stuff out there about high levels of tv watching increasing the chances of a child becoming autistic. What if however children with autism/autism traits are more likely anyway to watch tv. I don't know if that is true, I'm just throwing it out there for debate.Possibly more time stuck in front of the box would mean less time engaged in imaginative play.I was a toddler in the late 50s/early 60s and apparently watched a lot of television. Nowadays a toddler watching lots of tv or videos would not be that unusual, but I'm not sure it was the case back in the late 50s/early 60s .
Apparently the only TV that I would sit still and watch as a very young child was 'Rainbow' and I became agitated whenever the camera moved away from 'Bungle', trying to peer around the side of the screen to see him off-screen.
I don't recall watching much TV until I was at least 10 or 12 and I think that was more to do with not enjoying playing with other children by then.
My earliest memory of TV was suddenly being captivated by a News item where I thought the presenter had said that Gorillas were armed and firing at the local people, the story gripped my imagination for days and days until I was telling my mother all about it excitedly and she explained about Guerrillas. It was such a disapointment :(
There is, of course, the other argument that continuous watching of TV will gradually erode your ability to think and make independent decisions.
Not me! I was busy playing with things, making discoveries and finding things out, why does this? what happens if that? From toddler onwards and even now!
I initiated a discussion a few months ago about whether AS is caused by teaching children to read at too young an age.
http://community.autism.org.uk/f/miscellaneous-and-chat/8857/is-as-caused-by-teaching-children-to-read-at-too-young-an-age
The NAS holds the position that ASD is genetic although this effectively places a hard limit on research into the true causes of ASD.
I am always extremely wary about such claims (such as T.V causes Autism) as, in my experience, they tend to have an underlying agenda such as, ‘it’s the parents or individuals fault,’ or that ‘Autism is something that could therefore have been avoided or can be controlled’ etc. Such seemingly innocuous ‘rumours’ can be very damaging, especially if they gather momentum in the ‘Trial by Media,’ hearsay arena,) to the plight of raising awareness and respect, and enabling effective support, for Neuro Diversity.
I think it's just that - contentious. To be honest, I think it's another nonsense. I spent a lot of time watching TV as a kid in the '60s - though probably not as much time as kids now spend engaged with gadgets. I was always engaging in imaginative play, though. In fact, I'd say the programmes I was watching - as well as children's stuff like Batman, adult stuff like The Prisoner, The Avengers, Z Cars, etc - all served to feed my imagination. They still do... even though I haven't had a TV for about 14 years! But now I have the internet!
I'm not sure if any serious (British) research has taken place into watching TV and ASD. What is notable is the gradual fragmentation of TV watching of children since the early 1990s and how in the past 10 or so years an increasing percentage of the younger generation has turned its back on broadcast TV for YouTube.
There is a discussion on another forum about people who don't watch social type TV programmes.
www.asd-forum.org.uk/.../index.php
I never watched any tv as a toddler because we didn't have a tv. I never played with other children either. I played with coloured toy bricks ( wooden and plastic).