The quality of TV programmes for children in Serbia, as seen by children and their parents

Abstract

There is no research in Serbia about media habits of children or the quality of TV programs for children. This research was done on 458 children aged 9­11, and 412 parents from four towns in both suburban and rural areas in Serbia. Most results concur with the findings of foreign researches. The main results are: almost half of the children are unselective when watching different programs on TV, usually without parental knowledge or guidance; children are significantly more satisfied with the quality of television programs than parents while the parents think that the quality is average; two thirds of parents significantly underestimate the influence of TV programs on children; programs for children contain a lot of violence; both children and parents think that the worst part about programs for children is that they are not educational or inclusive (very low rate of socially disadvantaged groups in these programs). The results also show that TV programs for children in Serbia have to be significantly improved and that the influence of TV programs on children and adolescents has to be addressed.