Is TV usurping family quality time?
Jan 18, 2007
Ruth Matoya, a lecturer of Counselling Psychology at Bugema Adventist University, says such rules and beliefs kill family opportunities to communicate.
Ruth Matoya, a lecturer of Counselling Psychology at Bugema Adventist University, says such rules and beliefs kill family opportunities to communicate.
“During a family meal, family members, especially children have an opportunity to talk to each other and to assert their individuality,†she said. “As the family talks about things, parents have a chance to appraise the children without being judgmental. Parents also learn to treat their children according to their different personalities and understand the strengths and weaknesses of each child,†Mutoya says.
And those traditional beliefs? “It is fine to eat together as a family but men should sit as men, and girls with their mothers. It is a sign of respect,†said Hajara Seviri, a businesswoman.
“There is no way a girl will rub shoulders with her dad at table, we learnt that from our grandparents. That is good manners in a true African sense,†she adds.
There is also the role that traditional society accords women. Whenever children had their meals, it was more likely that it was with their mother and not father. Matoya sees this as a sign of the relative freedom that men and boys enjoy.
“It is still normal today for fathers and their sons to stay out till late unlike women, who have to do the cooking regardless of whether she has other tasks away from home,†she says.
Then there is that 20th century device called the television. Apart from tradition, TV is reported to have played a big role in hindering families from eating together. Even when they sit at table together, they eat as they watch television. Thus, no meaningful talk at the dinner table, no bonding between family members, no asking for that shiny new bicycle you saw in the shop window, and no discussing Christmas gifts. More than 60% of the children in the study said they eat their meals while watching TV.
Dr. Karen Cullen, a paediatrics professor at Baylor College of Medicine and a behavioural nutritionist in Texas, USA, warns that watching TV during mealtime leads to bad eating habits.
“It is known that people who watch television while eating tend to tune out their natural hunger and satiety cues. This encourages overeating and thus weight problems,†Cullen says. Ever heard of the couch potato?
Matoya insists that eating together helps build communication skills, and children learn to listen to each other and express themselves properly. Does your neighbour shout all the time and never listen? He or she probably watched TV while eating when growing up.
But it is still not quite doomsday yet, because at least most Ugandan families are still having Sunday lunch together. Of the children surveyed, an overwhelming majority (80%) said they shared a meal with their parents on Sundays.
“Looking back, maybe that dinner table was not such a pain after all if, as the Harvard guys say, there are ‘nutritional, emotional and academic advantages’ to eating together at mealtimes. Even if I had to eat all those greens!â€
“During a family meal, family members, especially children have an opportunity to talk to each other and to assert their individuality,†she said. “As the family talks about things, parents have a chance to appraise the children without being judgmental. Parents also learn to treat their children according to their different personalities and understand the strengths and weaknesses of each child,†Mutoya says.
And those traditional beliefs? “It is fine to eat together as a family but men should sit as men, and girls with their mothers. It is a sign of respect,†said Hajara Seviri, a businesswoman.
“There is no way a girl will rub shoulders with her dad at table, we learnt that from our grandparents. That is good manners in a true African sense,†she adds.
There is also the role that traditional society accords women. Whenever children had their meals, it was more likely that it was with their mother and not father. Matoya sees this as a sign of the relative freedom that men and boys enjoy.
“It is still normal today for fathers and their sons to stay out till late unlike women, who have to do the cooking regardless of whether she has other tasks away from home,†she says.
Then there is that 20th century device called the television. Apart from tradition, TV is reported to have played a big role in hindering families from eating together. Even when they sit at table together, they eat as they watch television. Thus, no meaningful talk at the dinner table, no bonding between family members, no asking for that shiny new bicycle you saw in the shop window, and no discussing Christmas gifts. More than 60% of the children in the study said they eat their meals while watching TV.
Dr. Karen Cullen, a paediatrics professor at Baylor College of Medicine and a behavioural nutritionist in Texas, USA, warns that watching TV during mealtime leads to bad eating habits.
“It is known that people who watch television while eating tend to tune out their natural hunger and satiety cues. This encourages overeating and thus weight problems,†Cullen says. Ever heard of the couch potato?
Matoya insists that eating together helps build communication skills, and children learn to listen to each other and express themselves properly. Does your neighbour shout all the time and never listen? He or she probably watched TV while eating when growing up.
But it is still not quite doomsday yet, because at least most Ugandan families are still having Sunday lunch together. Of the children surveyed, an overwhelming majority (80%) said they shared a meal with their parents on Sundays.
“Looking back, maybe that dinner table was not such a pain after all if, as the Harvard guys say, there are ‘nutritional, emotional and academic advantages’ to eating together at mealtimes. Even if I had to eat all those greens!â€