Reread the article in Section. What type of observational

QUESTION:

Problem 22E

Reread the article in Problem from Section. What type of observational study does this appear to be? Name some lurking variables that the researchers accounted for.

        Reference Article:

Study: Educational TV for Toddlers OK

CHICAGO (AP)—Arthur and Barney are OK for toddler

TV-watching, but not Rugrats and certainly not Power

Rangers, reports a new study of early TV-watching and

future attention problems.

The research involved children younger than 3, so TV is

mostly a no–no anyway, according to the experts. But

if TV is allowed, it should be of the educational variety,

the researchers said.

Every hour per day that kids under 3 watched violent

child-oriented entertainment their risk doubled for

attention problems five years later, the study found.

Even nonviolent kids’ shows like Rugrats and The

Flintstones carried a still substantial risk for attention

problems, though slightly lower.

On the other hand, educational shows, including

Arthur, Barney and Sesame Street had no association

with future attention problems.

Interestingly, the risks only occurred in children younger

than age 3, perhaps because that is a particularly

crucial period of brain development. Those results

echo a different study last month that suggested

TV-watching has less impact on older children’s

behavior than on toddlers.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends

no television for children younger than 2 and limited

TV for older children.

The current study by University of Washington

researchers was prepared for release Monday in

November’s issue of the journal Pediatrics.

Previous research and news reports on TV’s effects

have tended to view television as a single entity,

without regard to content. But “the reality is that it’s not

inherently good or bad. It really depends on what they

watch,” said Dr. Dimitri Christakis, who co-authored

the study with researcher Frederick Zimmerman.

Their study was based on parent questionnaires.

They acknowledge it’s observational data that only

suggests a link and isn’t proof that TV habits cause

attention problems. Still, they think the connection is

plausible.

The researchers called a show violent if it involved

fighting, hitting people, threats or other violence that

was central to the plot or a main character. Shows listed

included Power Rangers, Lion King and Scooby Doo.

These shows, and other kids’ shows without violence,

also tend to be very fast-paced, which may hamper

children’s ability to focus attention, Christakis said.

Shows with violence also send a flawed message,

namely that “if someone gets bonked on the head

with a rolling pin, it just makes a funny sound and

someone gets dizzy for a minute and then everything

is back to normal,” Christakis said.

Dennis Wharton of the National Association of

Broadcasters, a trade association for stations and

networks including those with entertainment and

educational children’s TV shows, said he had not

had a chance to thoroughly review the research and

declined to comment on specifics.

Wharton said his group believes “there are many

superb television programs for children, and would

acknowledge that it is important for parents to

supervise the media consumption habits of young

children.”

The study involved a nationally representative sample

of 967 children whose parents answered governmentfunded

child development questionnaires in 1997

and 2002. Questions involved television viewing

habits in 1997. Parents were asked in 2002 about their

children’s behavior, including inattentiveness, difficulty

concentrating and restlessness.

The researchers took into account other factors that

might have influenced the results—including cultural

differences and parents’ education levels—and still

found a strong link between the non-educational

shows and future attention problems.

Peggy O’Brien, senior vice president for educational

programming and services at the Corporation for Public

Broadcasting, said violence in ads accompanying

shows on commercial TV might contribute to the study

results.

She said lots of research about brain development goes

into the production of educational TV programming

for children, and that the slower pace is intentional.

“We want it to be kind of an extension of play” rather

than fantasy, she said. Source: “Study: Educational TV

for Toddlers OK” by Chicago (AP), © 2008. Reprinted with

permission by The Associated Press.