Some people opine that these days, the key aspects which affect a child’s development are pop culture, media and the surrounding people. An opposite view is that family holds greater significance. While media and friends play a large role, the importance of parental affection must not be overlooked as it is the chief factor. This essay will discuss both perspectives.
On the one hand, children often tend to imitate either the people they admire or the image, which is acknowledged by society. This implies that the impact of media, pop culture and the people nearby is immense, because children are always inevitably affected by them. To illustrate, during the 90’s in Kazakhstan, many underaged people took up smoking as it was perceived “cool” by peers and romanticized in films. This example highlights that children and teenagers tend to imitate the socially accepted behavior models
On the other hand, parents are always in control of children’s exposure to media or who the children are friends with. This suggests that parents may configure the media material a child can consume and a child’s perception of trends and popular behavior models. For instance, a survey conducted in the USA in 2021, has found that children, with whom the parents actively discuss the online content and peers, were 40% less likely to encounter risky situations. This survey demonstrates that parental involvement plays the most crucial role in filtering external influences and ensuring a child’s healthy development
To encapsulate, while media, pop culture, and peers significantly influence a child’s development, parental guidance remains the most crucial factor, since it may change a child’s perception of media and peers’ behavior.