Wonder Woman 1984: When Lack of Diversity Makes Wonder Woman Lose Her Wonder

If you were to ask the typical moviegoer who is the first female superhero you think of, chances are they would say Wonder Woman. While other female superheroes do exist (say Catwoman or Storm for example), they often take a backseat to the male protagonist, serving as a romantic interest or cliche rather than as a nuanced, complicated character. So when Wonder Woman came out in 2017, it provided a much-needed breath of fresh air in an overly saturated male-centric superhero genre. Seeing Princess Diana in her native land with her sister warriors of Themyscira by her side inspired millions of girls around the world, telling them that they too could be the heroes of their own story. 

But while Wonder Woman (2017) pushed the boundaries of representation and diversity forward, its sequel, Wonder Woman 1984, failed to break new ground, sacrificing the empowering plot of its predecessor for empty spectacle. And the consequences were considerable. While Wonder Woman (2017) boasted a B Mediaversity rating, 93% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, and 76 Metascore, Wonder Woman 1984 suffered from a measly C- Mediversity rating, 59% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, and 60 Metascore. So what went wrong?

Where Wonder Woman 1984 Went Wrong

The film opens with a breathtaking flashback sequence, showing a pivotal moment in the life of young Diana, years before she’d become Wonder Woman. As she competes against fellow Amazons twice her size and age in feats of strength and skill, a perfect euphony of swift camerawork, quick editing, and an epic score fills the screen. The scene showcases Diana’s fearlessness and teaches her the virtue that truth triumphs over deception. Unfortunately, the rest of the film pales in comparison, whether it be in visual cohesion, story structure, or emotional impact.

To start things off, the film treats Barbara, Diana’s coworker at the Smithsonian Institution, as a two-dimensional plot device that reduces her to the strange girl trope. The two bond over a meal discussing how they fit in society, but beside that, Barbara’s role in the film becomes apparent: so Diana can have a big (poorly rendered) CGI fight with a physically imposing antagonist in the third act that seemingly every superhero film has. Considering the lack of nuanced female friendships in superhero films, it’s a shame that the screenwriters favored a heterosexual romance with Steve Trevor rather than exploring a potential relationship between Diana and Barbara, especially given that Wonder Woman is canonically bisexual in the comics. This was a perfect opportunity to represent the LGBTQ+ community that has been historically underrepresented, particularly within the superhero genre.

Instead, the film relies on what we are used to in superhero films, a heteronormative relationship in which the superhero’s purpose is based on their partner. Romance has the potential to be resonating and meaningful, but in Wonder Woman 1984, it feels forced and undeserved, especially given the context of how Steve sacrificed himself in Wonder Woman (2017). Diana’s abilities are regained only when she learns to let go of Steve, and there’s something deeply depressing and illogical about a female superhero whose identity is intertwined so much with a man that she is willing to lose her powers for him. Also, what is going on with the man whose body has been magically overtaken by Steve? Does he have a family or a job? Is he in the white man’s sunken place? Doesn’t Diana, who is supposed to be a beacon of truth and morality, find the notion of Steve inhabiting another man’s body problematic? The plot could have focused on this as the consequence of Diana’s wish, as it would have been much more thematically resonating for her to struggle with choosing her moral code over her love for Steve.

And that begs another question, why doesn’t Diana miss her Amazon sisters or her mentor who inspired her to believe in truth in the opening scene? Wonder Woman (2017) devoted the entire first act to the Amazons, portraying them as warriors, politicians, caregivers, and complex women with nuanced relationships. It set the standard for a feminist plot that didn’t pander to its audience but empowered them. The sequel would have benefitted from furthering this story arc by venturing deeper into Paradise Land, home of the Amazons of Themyscira. Instead, it takes place in a mostly white D.C., even though the city has been majority-Black since the 1950s and white residents made up just 26% of the population in 1984. It also relies on a banal plot device in a stone that can grant wishes, which seems more like a lazy deus ex-machina. rather than something original and exciting. Diana’s wish doesn’t cause a chain of events that lead to her losing her powers, they just magically disappear as a tradeoff for the sake of the plot and theme.

Lastly, I want to talk about the theme of the film: truth. Wonder Woman 1984 bashes the viewer in the head with this theme through dialogue that lacks subtlety and relies heavily on telling the audience rather than showing them. Its connection with the main plot seems incoherent at worst and passable at best, reducing the complex issue of longing for what you don’t have into something that is black and white (reminiscent of Kendall Jenner “solving racism” by handing a police officer a Pepsi) rather than addressing class differences and social/economic inequality. Barbara wants to be cool and confident so that she can become likable, but must stay a nerd because if she wishes to be like Diana then she becomes a cheetah? That just seems cruel and anti-feminist. And the film’s solution of Diana magically convincing the entire world to stop being greedy over the span of a painfully ignorant monologue was as tone-deaf as when Gal Gadot sang “Imagine.” The world may be beautiful if you’re a gorgeous Amazon superhero, but for most people, telling people to put rose-colored glasses over their terrible situation is patronizing. I’m sure the filmmakers’ intentions were in the right place, but the execution of the theme was mediocre and is obviously pandering to today’s political climate, sacrificing its authenticity in the process.

Why It Matters

You might be thinking, why do all of these things matter, can’t Wonder Woman 1984 solely be based on entertainment value? While I would argue the film doesn’t even meet that quota, we as a society cannot settle for mediocrity. And from a financial standpoint, there is a great benefit to having authentically inclusive representation. Yes, there is content that represents underrepresented communities in a profound way, but there’s still a huge room for improvement before we can get complacent. Very few films have the audience and reach that the Wonder Woman banner has, which is why it’s so important that the film, along with movies that have similar platforms, empower underrepresented communities instead of kicking them to the curb. Yes, there will be bumps and bruises along the way, but that’s to be expected with generational long-lasting change. The late great novelist James Baldwin put it best, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” Take risks as creatives and challenge the status quo, and then just maybe Wonder Woman can have a shot at getting back her wonder.

Actionable Insights

1. Take tests like the Race in Entertainment Media (R.E.M.) Test to help evaluate Authentically Inclusive Representation in your content.

2. Use your platform to empower underrepresented communities instead of avoiding them in your film.

3. Hire more women and POC in behind-the-scenes positions who can incorporate their lived experience into the plot, otherwise, their characters’ storylines may lack authenticity or even be depicted as raceless.

4. Write characters that defy both negative and positive stereotypes to help prevent prejudice and discrimination.

5. Showcase stories that are authentically diverse, as meaningful representation consists of more than simply casting women and people of color.

Jeremy Hsing

CSS Intern

Disclaimer: The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this blog belong solely to the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers.

How to Achieve Authentic Racial Diversity in Hollywood Media

When I was younger, between the ages of 2 to 9 years old, there were only a few Black characters with whom I genuinely connected. Of course, I found great examples of characters who shared my identity in Rugrats’ precocious Suzie Carmichael and The Proud Family’s spunky Penny Proud, among others. However, I knew what to expect as the general unspoken rule: the characters who shared my racial identity would not appear as the active protagonists in my favourite shows. The hours that I spent watching TV after school often left me feeling disappointed and hungry for the well-rounded experiences that I saw conveyed in stories about characters with other racial identities.

As I got older, the children’s media landscape began to include more Black characters who were not only present but were also richly-developed and thoughtfully portrayed. I learned about the power of these media representations first-hand in 2009, when The Princess and the Frog premiered. Princess Tiana appeared on-screen as an ambitious, hard-working, resilient Black woman and changed my world. For the very first time, I saw myself fully represented in a daring and capable being who actively pursued her own happy ending. For the very first time, I imagined myself as an adult who could overcome any challenge and achieve my biggest dreams. Soaring eagerly upon the winds of change that Tiana brought about, for the next few years I spent every waking hour telling anyone who would listen about the deep beauty that I found in Tiana’s dreams. Throughout elementary and high school, I collected every film-related book, incessantly researched the film’s development, and made a hobby out of setting and achieving big goals to ensure that I could keep pace with Tiana’s signature brand of ambition. With every stellar grade that I achieved, I was rewarded with the internal glow that I imagined Tiana felt when she got her restaurant. “Almost There” became my mantra and my anthem.

My relationship with Princess Tiana is far from unique. Across the country, children are discovering, identifying with, and learning from the characters that they encounter as they spend over 4 hours each day watching TV, playing video games, and browsing websites. During these impactful hours, children are both constructing their identities and learning how to perceive others, particularly those from social groups with which they have little contact. Indeed, the inclusion of racially diverse characters in children’s media has increased over the past 2 decades. A recent report that I co-authored with the Toronto-based Children’s Media Lab revealed that between 2018 and 2019, 49% of animated characters on Canadian children’s television shows were depicted as people of colour; an increase from the estimate of 35% that was given one year earlier in a report which focused on both live-action and animated programs. Although these changes should be commended, since kids and teens are now engaging with media more than ever before, it is crucial to move beyond simply including racially diverse characters in stories. It is time for content creators to authentically portray racially diverse characters, as this will foster a genuine appreciation for diverse identities and inclusion.

When storytellers develop narratives, characters, and worlds that support well-rounded depictions of race, they create standout content that will reach wide audiences and inspire generations of viewers to live and breathe the social harmony for which our society hungers.

Authentic Representations of Race Strengthen Kids

While there are many real-life resources that children use to shape their identities, media offers children something truly unique: the opportunity to see themselves and their cultures represented in fantasy. When Princess Tiana entered my life in 2009, not only did she inspire me to imagine myself as a talented, resourceful leader who could deftly navigate life’s unexpected bayou adventures; she also showed me that I could accomplish these things while embracing my ethnic and racial identities. As Disney’s first African American princess, she pulled me off of my couch and into her lively world so that I could become the protagonist of my own life. The long-term impacts of media characters on children are well-documented beyond my experience.

One study revealed that for children whose racial identities were misrepresented in media, watching television was linked to decreases in self-esteem due to an absence of characters who positively reflected their identities. Other studies have revealed that negative representations of Latinx and Black characters lead viewers to feel ashamed and less positive about their social groups. In a landmark study, researchers found that Indigenous American adults who saw stereotypical representations of their cultures felt less positive about their identities, and predicted that they would achieve less in the future than those who did not see the stereotypical representations.  

The inclusion of authentic, racially diverse characters is particularly impactful for children who are members of underrepresented groups. Seeing characters who not only look like them but who also share their experiences can help them to absorb positive messages that boost their self-esteem. Additionally, when children who are not from underrepresented groups see these rich characters portrayed, they may learn how to respect and empathize with individuals from other racial groups.

Authentic Representations Create Excellent Content

A list of the top-grossing films of 2019 in the US shows that authenticity sells. Many of the films that appear on the list, such as Frozen 2 and The Lion King, were created by production and development teams that travelled to the countries that appeared in their films and learned about the cultures that they depicted.

Lived experiences are particularly crucial when depicting characters from diverse racial groups. Acclaimed films such as the Oscar-winning and high-earning Black Panther and Pixar’s animated Soul (which has already been nominated for 2 Golden Globes and received 3 trophies from the Critics Choice Super Awards) were developed by directors, producers, and writers who shared their characters’ identities and experiences. As a result, they captured nuances that made the films deeply resonate with diverse audiences which, in turn, enabled the films to become blockbusters.

Films and television shows that feature authentic representations of race also stand out because they depict dynamic, three-dimensional characters that defy common tropes. This is important because children more strongly remember and connect with characters who have well-rounded and relatable qualities. In fact, many leading resources that offer tips for developing compelling stories advocate for the creation of detailed characters who have believable desires and fleshed out personality traits. When racially diverse characters are depicted as dynamic individuals who both inhabit and shape their worlds, they easily captivate viewers with their enduring appeal and attract a loyal fan base.

Authentic Representations Evoke Change

While it is crucial for all children to see themselves represented on the screen, creating characters through which viewers can also hear themselves, see their diverse abilities portrayed, and embrace their unique personalities can also dismantle harmful racial stereotypes and biases. A recent analysis of contemporary media showed that Black characters are often portrayed as unemployed and aggressive individuals. Other findings were that Latinx characters tend to be portrayed as individuals who are unintelligent and short-tempered; East Asian characters are often portrayed as characters who fulfill the “Model Minority” stereotype; and Arabic characters are often portrayed as criminals. While inauthentic representations persist, research shows that positive, authentic representations of people of colour can make public attitudes towards these groups more positive.

With the exciting possibility of making an enduring impact across the media landscape, content creators have an opportunity to transform films, TV shows, and video games into powerful catalysts for positive social change.

Actionable Insights

1. Encourage writers, directors, artists, and other industry professionals who have diverse racial identities to share their authentic stories.

2. When representing racially diverse characters, consult with as many individuals who share characters’ races, cultures, and experiences as you can. Since no single experience will apply to all individuals from a given racial group, consult with diverse experts at every stage of content development and production.

3. Create racially diverse main characters who have a variety of personality traits, quirks, abilities, appearances, and conflicts that make them relatable and able to stand on their own.

4. Hire voice actors who share characters’ racial identities. Many talented voice actors are aware of the impact that authentic representations have on young audiences, and are eager to work on projects that champion authentic stories.

5. Hold frequent user testing and focus group sessions with members of the racial group that you are depicting, to ensure that your characters and stories are respectful and resonate with your target audience.

The compelling strength that Tiana brought to my world through her well-developed personality ignited my decision to become a children’s media consultant: a role that has enabled me to watch and contribute to the trend of increasing authentic diversity in media by supporting industry leaders. During and beyond Black History Month, I celebrate and acknowledge storytellers’ efforts to authentically represent racially diverse characters so that their stories can be remembered and relished long after the credits roll. While we have trends yet to change, I truly do believe that we are almost there.

Josanne Buchanan, BSc.

Children’s Media Consultant at OK Play / Research Assistant at Children’s Media Lab

Teen Blog Competition - February 2021

What would Leslie Knope do? Reflect on your own experiences and share your perceptions about how civic engagement is portrayed on TV.  How do you think it could be better addressed? Feel free to draw from what you have perceived to be negative and/or positive portrayals.

Winning Entry: 

Poppy McElrue, 14

Civic engagement is the active participation of individuals or groups aiming to address public concerns. This includes volunteering to help a community, working to maintain and improve living spaces, or voting in government elections. These are activities we’re familiar with, and may even be involved in, partially due to the effect of the media. We watch television from a young age - our perceptions of politics and widespread issues are shaped significantly by our exposure to shows. Clearly, the TV industry is an important tool for influencing communities, so when it comes to civic engagement, what does it do right and wrong?

A TV show that stands out in the field of civic engagement is Parks and Recreation. It follows main character Leslie Knope, a relentlessly optimistic, cheery government employee. While most of the main cast work in the parks department of Pawnee, Indiana, the show as a whole covers many topics relating to politics and public service. Parks and Recreation presents civic engagement as what it truly is - people working to address public issues, despite the difficulty they may face. For me, Leslie Knope is the embodiment of what it means to be a public servant. The show focuses significantly on Leslie’s pursuits of happiness, justice and equality, showing her unconditional love for her community. Despite most of the show surrounding Leslie, it is ultimately about how her active spirit encourages those around her, and by the end of the series she rarely faces a challenge without the support of her friends. The show’s core messages of friendship, love and public service is what makes it such an influential and positive representation of civic participation, showing the difference it can make to many lives.

Despite this, I believe that in the industry of show business there is an evident lack of representation for civic engagement. Politics is a well-covered subject, whether through positive or negative portrayals, but other areas of public service are constantly overlooked. This may seem insignificant, but it could have a profound effect on how community engagement is perceived. Civic participation in younger generations has declined over recent years - many young people choose not to vote or participate in politics. To combat this,  the TV industry must play a part: many young people are avid TV-watchers or Netflix-bingers. More positive portrayals of civic engagement on TV, similar to Parks and Recreation’s influential messages, are useful tools for encouraging our society’s youth to contribute to their community.

Civic engagement is a crucial part of maintaining democracy. To encourage more people to participate, portrayals in TV should aim to be accurate, engaging and positive. Characters like Leslie Knope are incredibly influential - if a show like Parks and Recreation can encourage thousands of young people to become more engaged in society, imagine how many more would participate if other shows also presented civic engagement as it truly is - an essential, powerful and inspirational way to aim for the greater good.

Food Issues: Telling a Truer Story About Our Relationships with Food

Take a moment to think of the last time you saw “food issues” portrayed on television or film. No, I’m not talking about the most recent season of the Great British Baking Show. (Although I’m certainly open to talking about it.) When I say “food issues,” picture a character with an emotionally laden relationship to food. Someone for whom a slice of cake is not just a slice of cake.

Think back. If you can remember a time at all, I’m guessing food issues looked one of two ways: Perhaps it was someone who refused to eat. Alternatively, perhaps it was someone who ate with abandon. Either way, I bet she was young, I bet she was straight, I bet she was white – and I bet she was a she. I bet she was either very thin or very large, and nowhere in between.  

If you yourself have food issues, or if you have friends and family members who do, you already know that this picture isn’t quite right. In reality, the presentation of food issues varies as much as the people they afflict. The question for storytellers is this: How can food issues on-screen look like those in real life? How can we get it right?

What are food issues? 

Food issues are not eating disorders. (Eating disorders have quite strict diagnostic criteria.) That being said, food issues are similar to eating disorders in that they may include cognitive, emotional, and behavioral components. Food issues frequently develop during adolescence, when greater cognizance of social, cultural, and familial pressures collides with the reality of changing bodies. In the scientific literature (this article, for example), food issues are sometimes defined by behaviors -  things like fasting or eating very little, skipping meals, vomiting, abusing laxatives, or over-exercising. But there are also cognitive and emotional components: guilt, preoccupation, dissatisfaction. There’s the process of second (and third, and fourth) guessing before putting something in your mouth. (Am I really hungry? Maybe I’m just bored! Or thirsty!) Often, there’s hunger – hunger that’s more emotional than physical, hunger that results from not just days but years of distrusting one’s own appetite. Those are food issues, and each component – behavioral, cognitive, and emotional – belongs on-screen.

Actionable Insights

Here are three ways storytellers can more accurately depict food issues.

1. Show diversity and intersectionality. While the portrayal of food issues on television might suggest otherwise, food issues do not predominantly affect white, straight, young, cisgender women. Although food issues often develop in adolescence, they are also common in postmenopausal women. Further, research suggests that food issues disproportionately affect historically marginalized groups, such as sexual, gender, and racial minorities. Although cisgender men are affected at lower rates, their odds increase as they age. Building intersectional portrayals of food issues will not only improve the accuracy and relatability of your characters but may further empower diverse audiences to examine their own food-related thoughts, feelings, behaviors.

2. Show what food issues actually look like. Evidence suggests that food issues will be supremely relatable to your audience. Seventy-five percent of women endorse the idea that their weight or shape directly impacts their happiness. About half of US adults dieted in the last year (including over 25% of those who are at a “normal” or below-normal weight), and at least 30% of people resort to unhealthy methods of weight loss, such as fasting and purging through an array of compensatory behaviors.

   However, food issues don’t often get a fair cameo. They don’t have to involve sneak-eating in the middle of the night or disappearing to the bathroom after a meal. Rather, perhaps your characters simply feel shame around their appetite (no surprise, when the diet industrial complex uses words like “guilty” or “sinful” to describe food). Perhaps your characters are “good” throughout the week, in order to “afford” a “cheat meal” or “cheat day” on the weekend. Perhaps they have internalized the toxic idea that a good meal is something one must “earn” or “budget for” through tracking steps or counting calories. Perhaps they turn down social invitations simply because the proposed restaurant doesn’t have low-carb options or hasn’t posted their nutrition information online. These are examples of realistic and nuanced ways to portray food issues.

3. Show that “not bad enough” is bad enough. Food issues need not progress into a full-blown eating disorder in order to suck the joy, spontaneity, and inspiration from life. Take it from me: About two years ago, I tried my hand at “intermittent fasting,” or the practice of eating all of one’s daily calories in a relatively short window of time. A podcast or two had claimed that intermittent fasting would “heal my gut” by giving my organs a “rest” – but of course, I was unconsciously hoping for weight loss, too. Nearly every day for nine months, I spent the workday hungry. I got winded on the stairs to my office. In afternoon meetings, I worried whether I’d be too hungry to think. When anyone (a friend, a partner) offered me food outside my allotted eating window, I made up a lackluster excuse to avoid it.

In short: while I didn’t qualify for any specific eating disorder, food issues rendered my life in grayscale. To appease my food issues, I was quite literally sacrificing my performance in the two areas that mattered most to me: work and relationships. Portraying a more subtly problematic relationship with food can convey an important message to your audience: “not bad enough” is plenty bad enough. “Not bad enough” still takes our freedom away.

Why get it right?

As a storyteller, you might be asking yourself this: If food issues aren’t real eating disorders, and if food issues really are as common as this article states, do they really deserve their own storyline? Why bother with these painstaking and nuanced portrayals? Aren’t there more important things to do?

Only you can answer that question. Perhaps there are better uses of your time. For me, there aren’t. As a storyteller myself, I have found immense relief and gratification in telling real stories (often my own story) about food issues. I have heard from readers, friends, and fellows in diet recovery that the stereotypical eating disorder narrative just doesn’t cut it; more often than not, it leaves them feeling ignored, unseen, or needlessly triggered.

I have also experienced it from the other side. That is, I have experienced the transformative power in hearing my own food issues told by someone else. For example, when I learned that my two favorite authors - the late Caroline Knapp, and the bestselling author Glennon Doyle – have themselves struggled with food and body, I was forced to face a key question: How much freer would these women be if they’d made peace with food? And more importantly: How much more free will I be when I do the same?

Give your audience the gift of this question.

Anna Joliff, she/her/hers, MS Counseling Psychology

Research Specialist for the Social Media and Adolescent Health Research Team (SMAHRT)

Finding Your Spark in the Digital Age

Growing up in the American school system, my English teachers always obsessively praised Shakespeare as the greatest playwright to ever exist, assigning his plays as part of our required reading. Whether it be Othello, Romeo & Juliet, or Hamlet, I often struggled to grasp the content and message of his plays. However, one quote from Shakespeare has always stuck with me. In the play As You Like It, Jacques says “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” 

The Digital Age

In today’s digital age, we are constantly performing for each other every moment of every day. Social media has blurred the line between audience and performer. We stare at our small rectangular screens for affirmation and self-worth, constantly comparing ourselves to the accomplishments and livelihoods of others. What do we want more than to lie in our bed at the end of the day and just watch our life as a satisfied audience member? Whether it be LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or TikTok, we are constantly reminded that there are people who are more attractive than us, who are more accomplished than us, who are better than us. Now, these platforms aren’t inherently bad. We are more connected with our friends and family around the world than ever before. Information has never been more accessible. However, the algorithms have created a system where we aren’t the consumer, but the product. This can take a toll on an individual, especially in a capitalist society that demands that we perform as a measurement of success. We’re constantly questioned by teachers, neighbors, friends, and family about what we want to be when we grow up. Is it a realistic and sustainable goal? How can you actively pursue it?  Do you have a back-up plan? And the consequences are considerable. As the pandemic continues, the number of people reporting anxiety and depression nationwide is at an all-time high, hitting young people the hardest. Thus, content creators and industry decision-makers have a moral responsibility to address these issues, as what we view on-screen reaches beyond entertainment into the topics of mental health, identity, and purpose.

My Experience

When I first went to college, I began having panic attacks for the first time in my life. Moving away from home and becoming independent was something I was not prepared for. I just felt overwhelmed by all of these expectations and responsibilities to perform. Still, the stigma around mental health especially in the Asian community dissuaded me from seeking help. I powered through it on my own, with some successes and many failures along the way. However, by my junior year, the panic attacks became so unbearable that I knew it was time for the last resort and I decided to seek therapy.  And I’m glad to say that it’s been of tremendous help. Don’t get me wrong, I still get anxious, but I’ve slowly begun to learn to take everything one step at a time, to appreciate the little things, and most of all, to not align my self-worth with my accomplishments. Being an avid film lover, I wondered if there was a movie that captured my lived experience but could not find one that truly spoke to me. Then, on Christmas Day, Disney+ released their latest installment to the Pixar canon, Soul.

Finding Your Spark

While movies are meant to entertain, I’ve always been drawn to films that inspire. Soul accomplishes both by treating its audience not as mindless zombies but as capable, intelligent beings with articulate thoughts. Its central theme is that finding a purpose or passion isn’t what makes someone a person — just existing, and living, makes you a person. True fulfillment can only be found when we stop performing for others and find beauty in the everyday things that life has to offer. It can be the effervescent glow of sunlight as it gleams through our bedroom window, the taste of morning brewed coffee, the sound of laughter with a loved one, or the smell of the sky after a night of pouring rain. Getting through a tumultuous 2020 is an award in itself, you shouldn’t feel self-critical if you didn’t get your dream job or GPA. Having goals is normal, but don’t let your dreams and the desire for success distract you from the beauty of life, otherwise, you’re at risk of it becoming an obsession and you may become like one of those monsters in Soul, withering your life away filled with regret once death comes knocking. Your spark isn’t a passion, it’s the very essence, or soul, that indicates a human is a human and you are ready to live.

In Pixar’s previous film Inside Out, Riley has an imaginary friend named Bing Bong who I consider to be the greatest Disney Pixar character ever. He represents the spirit of childhood within us all, and he sacrifices himself so that Joy could get back to headquarters, causing Riley to forget him in the process. It represents that we must lose our childhood innocence to function in society, but I argue that it’s that exact childlike wonder that holds the key to our fulfillment. Life itself is simply meant to be lived, so enjoy the little things and be grateful for what you already have instead of longing for what you don’t. As creatives, you can teach your audience through your content to learn more from young people, maintain that youthfulness in your soul, and most importantly, never forget your Bing Bong.

Actionable Insights

• Treat your audience with intelligence and don’t be afraid of weighty themes

• Write characters that don’t tie their self worth with their passion/career, and instead live a balanced lifestyle

• Start a conversation about using social media responsibly, emphasizing the content rather than the screen time

• Emphasize in plot points the importance of actively living every day with gratitude, finding joy in the little things, and not comparing one’s self to others

• Provide resources and supplemental material for children and adolescents seeking help

Jeremy Hsing

CSS Intern

Gender Representation On-Screen

Children begin to form ideas and concepts of gender early on in life. Specifically, by age 2, children start to use gender to guide their social and learning preferences and by age 3, children’s awareness of gender develops into a rigid social category and they become increasingly aware of basic gender stereotypes. With this, it can be argued that preschoolers are particularly vulnerable to these types of stereotypical messages both in society and in the media. 

Although children gather (and observe) a lot of information about gender from their parents, peers, and teachers, screen media also plays a large role in children’s learning about gender and gender roles. Children in the 21st century are spending significant amounts of time watching, engaging, interacting, and communicating with a range of media and media characters. However, when closely examining the types of characters they are interacting with (specifically in children’s television programming), scholars have found a consistent presence of one-dimensional, stereotypical characters that are often defined by their social group, such as their gender. Specifically, these stereotypical portrayals are largely evident when examining the appearance and behaviours of female media characters.

For example, content analyses have consistently observed that girls/women characters are significantly more likely to be thin and sexualized than male characters (e.g., wearing revealing clothing). It has also been found that male characters are more likely to engage in problem-solving than female characters, specifically by using STEM and physical power, whereas females are more likely to use magic and talking to solve problems.

Regular engagement with these types of characters can alter and influence children’s beliefs and attitudes about various issues (e.g. gender roles) and might largely impact children’s perceptions about different groups of people. Recent studies have found that exposure to stereotypical television clips led to different effects than counter-stereotypical clips. For example, Bond (2016) discovered that girls who watched a stereotypical clip of a television show, were more likely to express interest in stereotypical feminine careers and were less likely to draw a female when asked to depict what they thought a scientist looked like. 

Overall, it is clear that media has the power to shape children’s beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours about gender and content creators must be actively aware of this as they create new projects. 

Actionable Insights

Here some actionable insights for content creators: 

• Aim for gender parity and gender equality. Male characters should not consistently outnumber female characters—they should be equal and featured in the same types of roles (e.g., lead roles). 

  • This also means increasing the number of diverse characters in the cast, who may not identify as male and/or female. 

• Showcase women and female-identifying characters in complex and intricate roles instead of rigid, simple, and stereotypical roles. 

  • A character’s gender should not define who they are. There is nothing wrong with behaving or appearing in a gender stereotypical manner, but consistently portraying women/female-identifying characters this way can be harmful. Give these characters more substance! 

• Create multi-dimensional characters. 

  • Develop detailed character profiles that showcase the different layers to a character. If we want children to see themselves reflected on-screen, we must create realistic characters who have human-like qualities. This means showing all sides of a character—regardless of gender (e.g., strengths and weaknesses, varying emotions and personalities, struggling and overcoming obstacles, etc.). 

Adrianna Ruggiero

Ph.D. Student, Ryerson University

Junior Fellow of the Center for Scholars and Storytellers

Gaming and the COVID-19 Pandemic

As an avid gamer, I’m very familiar with the all-too-common phrases from parents about my gaming habits. From Mom telling me to “put my Nintendo away and go outside” to Dad worrying that “I should be spending more time with friends.” Their concerns were similar to most parents with teenage children, worrying about the effects of video games on my social health and academics.

But with the novel coronavirus setting the entire world into a time of uncertainty, where social isolation is prevalent, we turn to media and entertainment. Video games provide comfort and support as we battle a social capital standstill. While parents of teens worry about video games negatively impacting their children, they can find comfort in research that shows how collaborative video games positively influence individuals. Online gaming could prove to be a great source of social support, as well as a means to create prosocial environments (social behavior that benefits society or other individuals other than the individual themselves) both on-screen and off-screen.

Games such as ‘World of Warcraft’ (WoW), ‘Among Us,’ and even ‘Call of Duty’ encourage group play through collaborative tasks, adventures and characters that naturally compliment different players’ abilities. These Massively Multiplayer Online-Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) allow thousands of individual players to come together to play in an immersive and detailed environment filled with adventures and quests. In games like these, prosocial behavior is encouraged and rewarded. Players have a sense of obligation towards other members of their ‘guild’ (groups of players that play games together) as they go through quests and raids, offering a social structure in which prosocial behavior is essential to success. These types of collaborative and social games can be particularly useful for users with physical disabilities that hinder their movement outside the home, or in the current socially isolated state of the world.

These MMORPGs are highly social environments that allow for strong friendships to form and many of them utilize chat features and messaging boards to connect players. The “Social Side of Gaming” expands on the benefits of collaborative gaming on video game players, stating that sharing online space within games enhances the formation of social capital and fosters friendships offline. Some researchers attribute this type of gameplay to the idea of being “alone together,” which in times of social isolation and social distancing can be a positive psychological and cognitively clinical advantage. In simpler terms, gaming can reduce the stress of isolation and help facilitate social interaction and friendships in teens.

Being alone together within games allows players the autonomy to choose their gameplay while also providing a rich social environment. Many players utilizing MMORPGs indicate that a very social environment is their primary factor for choosing to play these types of games. The academic research also suggests that the “gameplay within these virtual worlds is enhanced because players not only use them as the game originally was intended to be played but also as arenas in which to explore new relationships, new places, and themselves.” Online gaming also contributes to a higher social capital amongst groups in games with more interactive play, thus creating social ties that extend outside of the game itself. This shows us that online gaming creates bridges for social networks that then create outlets for social support and social capital. 

Many of these online interactive games allow players to be “more of themselves” than they otherwise would be as their offscreen self, adding to the enjoyment of the games and creating a social benefit for those who may not be able to do so in real life. In these uncertain times, it seems to be reasonable to relax on video game restrictions and allow teens the ability to connect in whatever way they are able to. The social atmospheres and ability to collaborate with other individuals just might be the key to this new online world we are collectively experiencing. It might not be a good old-fashioned hangout with friends, side-by-side, but for avid gamers it feels just the same. 

Parents reading this might still be a little skeptical, and content creators might wonder “so what next in gaming creation?” So, here are some tips for parents to help relax their minds and even bond with their gamers a little more, and some advice for content creators on what to include in your next game.  

Actionable Insights

Here are Actionable Insights for Parents on Video Games and their Teens: 

• Not all games are created equally. Check the age rating on any games you might get your kid.

• If you are able to, play the game. Understanding the dynamics of the gaming world will help you understand the social world your kids are in.

• Take an interest in what your child is playing. Ask about the characters, the narratives and objectives, and if there is a multiplayer option, play the game with them. The more invested you are in their play, the more information you get about your child’s social needs.

• Use content restrictions on games for younger children. Many MMORPGs have filters where you can designate the age range of other players that your child can interact with. (i.e. only players between the ages of 13-16 can interact on the game)

Here are Actionable Insights for Content Creators of Video Games:

• Write diverse characters that rely on interaction and prosocial behavior to succeed in the game.

• Create reward systems that increase the likelihood of helping behavior and punish antisocial behavior.

• When writing NPC (Non-player Characters), take a special interest in developing side quests that encourage everyday helping behaviors (i.e. an older woman asking a character to retrieve her chickens or deliver her mail for her).

• Create info guides for parents on your game to help facilitate communication between players and caregivers.

Michelle Leccese, MA Psychology

Embracing Technology as a Tool for Healthy Attachments in Adolescence

Thirteen-year-old Kayla is dragged away from her social media by the interruption of her father's voice at the dinner table. Dad is trying to connect but Kayla rejects him, preferring the world inside her phone. At first glance, this scene in the 2018 film Eighth Grade feeds into common stereotypes that teens are bewitched by social media, which causes them to withdraw from their parents and become obsessed with peers. But does technology really take adolescents away from parents?

To understand this question, our research team in the department of psychology at UC Santa Cruz, designed a daily diary study to look at how teenagers are balancing time with parents and friends through face-to-face and computer-mediated communication. Contrary to stereotypes, our study found that adolescents who spent more time communicating with friends via technology also spent more, not less, time with parents compared to those who had less contact with friends. Likewise, Eighth Grade ultimately rejects the idea that adolescents use technology to get away from parents and instead paints an authentic portrait of how teens use their phones to explore new horizons while maintaining closeness with parents. In one illustrative example, Kayla uses technology to connect with her peer group but when she is upset and wants to leave the pool party of a popular girl at her school, her dad is just a phone call away to support her. 

The teenage years are important for the expansion of healthy attachments, which includes feelings of emotional support, trust, and commitment in close relationships alongside feelings of autonomy and a sense of personal boundaries. Attachment styles begin to develop in the early stages of life based on interactions between infants and their caregivers. When babies receive predictable and appropriate care, they will begin to develop a secure attachment style in which they feel safe enough to explore their expanding world and trust they can seek the close support of an adult when in need. If these basic needs are not met, a child may develop an anxious or insecure attachment style in which they lack the ability to depend on their parents, creating a pattern of behavior that impacts how secure and confident they will feel in future social relationships. The nature of attachment shifts during adolescence and the crucial task is for parents to recognize their child’s growing needs for autonomy—adolescents who feel that their parents respect their personal choices are more likely to feel emotionally close to parents and will transfer that healthy balance of closeness and autonomy to future relationships. 

In the latter half of the 20th century in Western cultures, adolescents’ development of emotional attachments to friends and romantic partners has been marked by greater distance from parents. Might we see less distance from parents with the convenience and portability of communication technologies making it easy for adolescents to stay connected while exploring on their own? Our study asked 169 high schoolers, ages 14 to 18, to complete daily diary surveys about their social interactions before bed for six consecutive days. On the last day of the study, the teens filled out a survey about their relationships with friends and parents. The survey also included scales to assess adolescents’ feelings of autonomy in relationships with their parents. The results suggested that technology can be used to enhance both autonomy and closeness during periods of transition in parent-adolescent attachments. The more adolescents communicated with friends and parents via technology, the more face-to-face time and emotional closeness they had with them. The study also found that the more teens communicated with their parents via technology, the more they felt a combination of autonomy and emotional closeness with them. Teens who texted more frequently with friends were more likely to make decisions independently from parents. Contrary to fears that technology is making us less social, our findings illustrate how digital tools are helping teens connect in new ways that honors their growing needs for autonomy. In Eighth Grade, Kayla illustrates these findings when she develops new friendships with older high schoolers and a boy in her grade. As a result of this independence, Kayla spends more time socializing with her dad, too. 

Thinking of the phone as a transitional object is helpful for understanding how teens are balancing autonomy and closeness with parents in the digital age. During childhood, transitional objects offer children more independence while also providing connectedness and safety. Transitioning a child’s human contact through an object like a blanket or toy reminds them of their parents. Likewise, a smartphone provides the same support for teens. Not only does the phone create opportunities for freedom, it also grounds teens - like we see with Kayla at the pool party in Eighth Grade - in knowing they can connect with their parents anytime and anywhere, which may lay the foundation for ongoing secure attachment with parents even as teens form new emotional attachments outside the family. 

Take Away Message for Storytellers 

Eighth Grade parallels our research by showing that Kayla’s phone provides her new opportunities for socioemotional growth and social identity in her journey from childhood to adulthood. Eighth Grade resists exploiting the idea that adolescents use technology to replace parents with friends. Instead, it shows a true to life image of teens using social media to navigate their complex worlds of friends and family. This is what Eighth Grade does so well—it shows how important communication technologies are for Kayla’s growing independence and for her feelings of trust and support with her dad during a somewhat turbulent time of transition. The film makes a deliberate choice to show how Kayla uses communication technologies to support, not hinder her development. Our research also supports this more positive view of communication technologies. Ultimately, storytellers should continue to find ways to portray teens using digital tools for both autonomy and closeness, seeing these goals as compatible rather than contradictory. 

Actionable Insights

• Show characters in parent-child relationships engaging in healthy online communication

• Show young characters using technology to connect offline in face-to-face interactions with friends and family

• Show adolescent characters who use technology to gain independence and maintain closeness with their parents 

Zoe Peterson

Department of Psychology, UC Santa Cruz

Adriana Manago, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Psychology, UC Santa Cruz

Collaborator of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers

Based on the article: Manago, A.M., Brown, G., Lawley, K., Anderson, G. (2020). Adolescents’ daily face-to-face and computer-mediated communication: Associations with autonomy and closeness to parents and friends. Developmental Psychology, 56, 153-164.

What’s in a Story? How Sociomoral Narratives Can Inform Our Approach to Superhero Media

As someone who has been fascinated with superheroes since elementary school, I am amazed at the explosion of superhero media (cartoons, live-action shows, and films) since the mid-90s. As a scholar, I find myself considering how this boom may be partially related to the core features of superhero narratives—features that have little or nothing to do with superpowers and larger-than-life missions. In particular, I am intrigued by the intersection of children’s development of sociomoral concepts (how youth understand actions that have moral consequences) and the superhero content they consume. Can these stories influence how children develop their sense of morality, particularly when co-viewing sparks family discussions? I will dig deeper into this question. But first, I want to begin with some research into how children process sociomoral concepts through the stories they tell. 

Note: Although my scholarly interests lie in superhero narratives, these features are often present in other forms of children’s media. I am also aware that for various reasons, parents and guardians may have different views on the appropriateness of superhero media given the amount of violence.

What are some core features of narratives?

Since 2000, scholars investigating sociomoral development in children and adolescents have turned to narratives – asking children to recall or discuss morally consequential social interactions – to better understand how youth make sense of these experiences. Their findings can be broken down into three key features. These are youth’s ability to use storytelling to: (1) distinguish between different interpersonal acts, (2) attend to varied perspectives, and (3) appreciate the complex nature of certain moral acts.

1. Comparison of different interpersonal acts. In a study examining children’s stories about times where they have harmed a friend and have helped a friend, researchers found that the participants tended to reference emotions when they had done harm more often than when they had been helpful. In an earlier study involving mother and child relationships, emotional consequences tended to be applied differently. In these instances, the child’s feelings, such as pride, were considered more frequently in the help narratives. In the harm narratives, the discussion focused more on how the others involved might have felt, such as sadness. 

2. Comparison of perspectives within interpersonal acts. In addition to distinguishing between harm and help narratives, research in this area has also compared viewpoints in narratives where someone was harmed or treated unfairly. In these cases, children described situations where they harmed someone (perpetrator) and situations where they were harmed (victim). Researchers found that in stories where the child was the perpetrator, they were more likely to: (1) consider both their own perspective and that of the other person and (2) justify the harm by arguing it was necessary. When narrating experiences related to social exclusion, youth referenced a victim’s hurt feelings and anger when they were the victim more often than when they were the perpetrator. 

3. Comparison of age differences. Although important, evidence pointing to the roles of the nature of the act (harm vs. help) and the person’s vantage point within the situation (perpetrator vs. victim) make up only part of the story. Indeed, evidence suggests that in many ways age also matters. With respect to harm narratives, trust violation as a feature of the social experiences was more common in the narratives of adolescents than those of children. Moreover, in the same study it was found that compared to preschoolers, older children and adolescents were more likely to reference their own attempts to make sense of or construe the harm incidents. In the social exclusion study, older children and adolescents tended to describe themselves as active perpetrators as opposed to passive perpetrators. In both of these studies, older participants more often provided mixed evaluations of the harmful/exclusionary acts (e.g., thinking it was wrong in some ways but not others).

In essence, these studies show that youth can understand and articulate their experiences as perpetrator and victim, and as those who help and those who harm; especially as they get older. However, they sometimes have difficulty considering: (1) emotions associated with and (2) multiple perspectives within those experiences. Such findings present an opportunity for superhero content creators to rethink how they use characterizations and plot points to broach moral concepts for their audience, particularly children and adolescents. Parents may also use these superhero narratives as a potential aid with their youth’s development of these sociomoral concepts. 

How might these findings inform content creation and co-viewing?

Given that: (1) social life inevitably includes instances of harming and being harmed by others and (2) superhero media prevalently features harm-related (i.e., violent) events, below are three practical suggestions related to family viewing of superhero media based on the above findings (concerns with the violent content of superhero media notwithstanding). These recommendations apply to both content creators and parents/guardians. 

Actionable Insights

1. Differing motivations of superheroes and supervillains. Since superhero narratives contain conflicts between superheroes and supervillains, one recommendation for content creators is to make the motivations behind characters’ actions salient (e.g., through flashback episodes and origin stories). This would allow parents/guardians to discuss the characters’ differing motivations with their youth, focusing on the potential link between characters’ emotional experiences and their subsequent decisions to harm and/or help others. 

2. Shifts in perspective to explore diverse consequences of harmful actions. Another recommendation for creators is to explore parallel worlds, or the idea that in a different world, the same character lived a very different life. These kinds of events can provide opportunities to engage youth in “what if” discussions focused on the potential relationship between a person’s vantage point or perspective within an event involving harm, and their understanding of that event.

3. Morally complex or morally gray characters and actions. Lastly, through the use of narratives that include morally complex acts or characters, content creators can provide opportunities for families to consider issues or events that contain both moral (e.g., harm and fairness) and nonmoral (e.g., psychological) elements. How youth attempt to make sense of these events may offer some insight into the extent to which they believe certain social experiences were morally complex, and thus not as “black and white” as the parent/guardian may have initially assumed.

Justin Martin, Ph.D.

Professor at Whitworth University

Supporting Science in an Age of Denial

As the world grapples with the ongoing devastation of climate change coupled with a global pandemic, it’s more important than ever that we turn to science for answers and solutions. Unfortunately, political agendas are clouding objective scientific data, making it increasingly difficult to protect our most vulnerable populations and preserve the planet for our youth.

In the United States, this problem runs all the way up to our highest office. During a September meeting with California officials to discuss the recent scourge of wildfires – one of many spikes in natural disasters that scientists have definitively linked to climate change – the president disregarded the scientific data presented to him. 

“I don’t think science knows, actually.”

As a concerned citizen and a professional writer, I find it deeply frustrating when politicians engage in fictional storytelling – weaving narratives to bolster their personal agendas at the expense of those they’ve pledged to serve. Even though many of us content creators are engaged in crafting works of fiction, I believe that it’s our civic responsibility to practice what Ernest Hemingway preached.

“The writer’s job is to tell the truth.”

 In order to do that, let’s check in with what science actually does know about climate change. NASA recently compiled a vast collection of international studies from peer-reviewed scientific journals, reporting that 97% or more of actively publishing climate scientists have come to the same consensus, with over 95% certainty. The destructive impact of climate change is “the result of human activity since the mid-20th century and proceeding at a rate that is unprecedented over decades to millennia.”

With such overwhelming scientific data in our hands, why would anyone, particularly those with the power to mitigate humanity’s role in this accelerated planetary destruction, deny that climate change exists? To answer this question, we need to take some advice from the 1976 film All the President’s Men.

“Follow the money.”

 After compiling data from every country, Statista found that the world’s top oil producer – the United States – was also home to the world’s most climate change deniers. “Other countries with high rates of deniers were Saudi Arabia and Australia, two more countries reliant on oil products for exports or use at home. Scandinavian countries also ranked highly, with oil nation Norway recording the second-highest rate of people believing in climate change not caused by humans.”

 When you look at this data alongside the fact that just 100 fossil fuel companies are responsible for 71% of global emissions, and then factor in a recent study showing that oil and gas companies give more money to congress members with voting records against the environment, some clear motivations come into focus behind the false narrative of climate change denial. The same people who deny climate change also claim that solutions like the Green New Deal are too expensive, even as Scientific American reports that “such policies are now more urgent than ever” and “offer a timely framework for future fiscal stimulus.”

Naomi Oreskes, a Harvard historian of science, pointed out the familiar ways in which the COVID-19 crisis has echoed the steps of climate change denial. “First, one denies the problem, then one denies its severity, and then one says it is too difficult or expensive to fix, and/or that the proposed solution threatens our freedom.”

The threat-to-freedom narrative invoked against scientifically proven life-saving masks rose to a new level when President Trump himself contracted COVID-19, along with several others in the White House. In the aftermath of these diagnoses, which arose following a largely maskless political gathering, the administration affirmed that there would remain no mandatory mask mandate in the White House because wearing a mask is a “personal choice.” This declaration came hot on the heels of a Cornell University study that analyzed over 38 million news articles about the pandemic and revealed that, “the president of the United States was the single largest driver of misinformation around COVID.”

President Trump has continuously pushed to reopen the economy, even when COVID cases were peaking in July and a senior scholar with the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security reported, “It’s very clear that the increasing caseload is due to premature relaxing of the containment measures.”

This rush to reboot the failing economy in a reelection year has coincided with a campaign to reopen schools so that parents can return to work. At a September rally, President Trump claimed that the virus affects “virtually” no young people – a direct contradiction to a World Health Organization report from a month earlier citing that the proportion of young people with COVID-19 had tripled in five months.

 Indeed, when it comes to both climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic, the health and prosperity of our youth are in immediate and existential jeopardy. But even as they face overwhelming climate grief and anxiety over an uncertain future, our younger generations are not standing by and letting their elders destroy their world without a fight.

UNICEF reported an uptick in youth activism online in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic; and youth-led organizations like The Sunrise Movement have gained swift momentum in the fight for a climate revolution. As young people work to shift the narrative from apathy and despair towards action and revolution, professional storytellers should follow suit.

Actionable Insights

In the face of false narratives that disregard science and threaten our planet’s future, here are some actionable insights for content creators:

1. Avoid treating climate change or COVID-19 data as a subjective or partisan issue. Stick to objective scientific facts and call out unfounded lies for what they are.

2. Show the roots of science denial in the fossil fuel industry and the motivations of politicians who accept money from such interests.

3. Depict the ways in which youth are impacted by the destructive politics of older generations, including the very real emotional toll of climate anxiety.

4. When depicting the devastating impact of climate change in your stories, combat apathy and despair by highlighting real-world solutions, offering hope for a reimagined future.

5. Rather than showing social media as a corruptive scourge of our youth, authentically portray the young people who are using it to spread accurate information and rally social movements.

6. Depict Gen Z and Gen Alpha characters not through self-involved stereotypes, but rather as a civically involved group fighting for their own future.

As Susan Ostermann wrote in her article “Why Politicizing Science is a Problem” for Notre Dame University’s Keough School of Global Affairs, “integral human development in the coronavirus era requires us to consider the dignity of the individual person, whose health and safety in this case depends on the availability of accurate information, expert guidance and responsible political leadership.”

In the absence of such responsible political leadership, let’s use our platforms as storytellers to uphold accurate information and expert guidance, promoting health and prosperity for all. The fate of the human race is our story to tell, but only the truth will ensure us a happy ending.

Brian McAuley, MFA

WGA Screenwriter

Adjunct Professor, Columbia University

Collaborator of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers

Disclaimer: The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this blog belong solely to the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers.

Mining 21st-Century Skills at Home with Technology

This article is part of our #LearningAtHome2020 series with the Child & Family Blog and BOLD  

Just one year ago, the phrase “learning at home” may have conjured different images for parents and educators, unless home-schooling was already the norm. Families the world over have experienced disruptions to daily life and the challenges of distance learning brought on by the pandemic. Teachers with a reluctance for technology in the classroom have had to make an abrupt shift to reach their students. Parents who have chosen to limit their children’s time with digital devices have been challenged by the inevitable increase in screen time as education went virtual. The line between work and home life has blurred, just as the line between screen time and simply, time, is ever-blurring.  

I’m sure your family could use a break from the math or literacy talk, so I’m going to give you some ideas on how you can encourage your children’s development of 21st-century skills such as critical thinking, communication, and creativity through digital play. This is not nearly as daunting a task as it seems. After all, parents and caregivers are children’s first educators and the home environment is their first classroom. Children learn, develop, and make sense of their world through play. But just as screen time and “time” are increasingly intertwined, our use of digital media as tools for learning needs to evolve. We need to literally think outside the TV or touchscreen box and not be constrained by it.

An example of a playful, open-ended digital world is the video game, Minecraft. In Minecraft, the sky is the limit--within this world, players are bound by their own imaginations. For this reason, Minecraft presents many opportunities to foster a number of 21st-century skills.

The 4 Cs: Communication, Collaboration, Creativity, and Critical Thinking

Video games abound with opportunities for social connection and collaboration. Collaboration involves two or more people in a shared effort to learn or solve a problem together. Susan Danby and colleagues provided detailed accounts of children helping each other succeed in various digital environments, and in various regions of the world (Norway, Sweden, and Australia). They provided an example of Australian siblings, ages 4 and 7 years old, traversing a shared digital world (Minecraft) as they acquired resources and combatted zombies. Even though the two children were on their own devices, they engaged in play that demonstrated communication patterns indicative of collaboration and instruction. Children who play games together learn perspective-taking and must consider each others’ shared knowledge.

While the potential to learn and develop 21st-century skills in massive multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) such as Minecraft exists, transferring these skills to the real-world is less straightforward. When I was the lab manager at the Swinburne Babylab in Australia, I remember entertaining a sibling of one of our research participants. I say “entertaining,” but in reality, I provided him with scrap paper and colored pencils and his imagination took care of the rest. I was so impressed as he explained that he was drawing and planning a building that he would later construct in Minecraft. This is just one example of how the digital world and the physical world can connect to encourage the transfer of skills, such as creativity.

In addition to creativity, researchers have also found that playing Minecraft encourages critical thinking and problem-solving; students who used Minecraft to accomplish various tasks commented on how the game-design forced them to think outside the box. This innovative and creative approach to problem-solving was also shown in a group of 13 year-olds who completed an 8-week workshop in which they were asked to create and explain their products in Minecraft. After the workshop, students’ scores on a test of creativity improved, and their teacher also observed improvements in the students’ creativity. Not only does Minecraft enable the user to have creative freedom, but it can also encourage players to seek information from outside resources, such as reading content on forums or watching or creating Youtube tutorials, etc. This multimodal literacy is referred to as metagaming.

Actionable Insights

Content creators can provide learning opportunities for children by:

1. Creating open-ended environments that lack an explicit goal, “freedom of play”

2. Providing opportunities to help characters. Prosocial content promotes prosocial behaviors such as helping and empathy.

3. Having more tools to choose from to encourage greater creativity in problem-solving.

4. Providing opportunities to interact with and explore the environment. 

5. Encouraging replayability by making sure the game experience isn’t linear or the same every time. 

Content creators can help parents create learning opportunities for their children by:

1. Providing a curriculum with suggestions on how to take the digital content to the real world and practice specific skills, depending on the goal.

   • e.g., plan a garden in Minecraft and then plant a real garden  

2. Recognizing that the digital world extends beyond its intended medium, and children can create educational videos for others to improve their gameplay or participate in online forums to share ideas. 

Happy playing!

Brittany Huber, PhD

Collaborator of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers 

Supporting Parents with Children’s Distance Learning

This article is part of our #LearningAtHome2020 series with the Child & Family Blog and BOLD  

If you’re a parent of a school-aged child - or know a parent - you know about the anxieties and challenges around children’s distance-learning. Earlier this year when many states shut down schools for in-person learning, teachers and parents scrambled to support kids in making the quick transition. Parents’ and caregivers’ roles shifted overnight,  requiring them to be co-teachers and co-learners as they tried to support kids with distance learning. And this is just the parents who are able to stay home with kids. Many parents had to go to their job sites and leave their kids to fend for themselves. Months later, it is clear that distance learning is not going away. Many schools will transition back to hybrid learning, which means some will be in-person and some at-home. There have been, and will also likely be, more outbreaks that cause some re-opened schools to shut down again.  

In March, Common Sense Media launched Wide Open School to support parents with distance learning. This new service curates the best-of-the-best free learning activities for kids and resources for families that make at-home learning easier through user-friendly daily schedules,  activities to support children’s social and emotional well-being, digital citizenship, and materials that address learning and thinking differences. 

So based on what parents and children are experiencing right now at this moment in time, what should children’s media creators do to support families? Consider the following tips on supporting parents with their children’s learning. 

Address Character Education 

Character Education and social-emotional learning (SEL) is in great need (and great demand) both by parents and schools. SEL content is some of our top-requested content on Wide Open School. With the combination of the coronavirus pandemic, economic downturn, civil unrest, police violence, and school closures, there are extreme pressures on the mental health of kids and families. Including characters, stories, and learning that develop characteristics for children such as community, perseverance, humility, empathy, and self-control helps build strong, resilient children. See Common Sense Media’s article Building Character Strengths with Quality Media and our report Tweens, Teens, Tech, and Mental Health for support in thinking about these issues. 

Model caregivers and children learning together 

Some parents may have rarely supported their children’s schoolwork. They may lack role models to show them how to be a co-teacher and co-learner with their child, or how to be a collaborator with their child’s teacher. Content producers can illustrate and normalize life-long learning as an ongoing and cross-generational practice, in which caregivers, older siblings, and children are learning together and supporting one another. Whether it’s providing advice or showing a parent sitting with a child engaging in their distance learning, or tips for parents such as the importance of having children follow their distance learning schedule, parents need to see examples of what their role could be. Moreover, parents are searching for high-quality educational content to supplement their child’s at-home learning. Suggesting exceptional, research-based apps, websites, and games for parents to use in conjunction with their child’s school learning will provide much-needed help. 

Encourage media balance 

Screen use has been increasing over the years, even before the pandemic hit. On average, daily screen/device use at home is about three hours for two through eight-year-olds,  5 hours for tweens,  and 7 hours for teens (Common Sense Media, 2017, 2019). These amounts have increased due to the addition of distance learning time. Heavy media use is associated with physical and mental health problems. Though we know that not all screen time is created equal, we need to encourage media balance, which means balancing media use with other meaningful activities in everyday life. For example, in schools, Go Noodle is so popular, especially for 5-13-year-olds, because it gets kids up and out of their chairs and moving their bodies. Getting the body moving and taking tech breaks helps reduce stress and improves focus and mental clarity.  Content creators might want to consider building these kinds of intermissions into their programming. 

Foster digital citizenship 

The importance of digital citizenship - thinking critically and participating responsibly online - has come to the forefront, especially as kids do distance learning. Parents are looking for guidance to help their kids make good choices about protecting their online privacy, being kind and civil communicators, and thinking critically about the things they see online (discerning misinformation). Companies such as Disney have run campaigns to address digital citizenship issues, including cyberbullying. But beyond social awareness campaigns, kids need to see examples of ways they could handle “digital dilemmas” that come up in their lives such as: What do I do if I see someone say something mean or hurtful online? What should I consider before sharing a photo or video? How can I tell if something I see online is true or not? Successful digital learning - both at school and at home - starts with digital citizenship. 

Actionable Insights

Children’s media producers can serve the present needs of caregivers and children by:

1. Creating content that addresses character education and supports social-emotional learning.

2. Providing models for how children and their caregivers can best interact with one another and educators while engaging in at-home learning. 

3. Encouraging children to take breaks from screen time in favor of physical and screen-free activities.

4. Fostering digital citizenship so kids behave safely and participate responsibly online. 

Kelly Mendoza, PhD

Senior Director of Education Programs, Common Sense Education

Collaborator of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers 

School Closures, Stay-At-Home Orders, and Screen Time

The Importance of Educational Television Programs to Children’s Learning During the COVID-19 Pandemic

We’ve all been there…whether it’s with your own child, a younger sibling, or the kid you are babysitting, we have sighed in exasperation while handing over our cell phones or turning on the TV so we can do our daily tasks without distractions. Turning to media as a form of a modern day “babysitter” is all too common when caregivers are in a pinch and need a last resort to keep kids busy and happy. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, more parents and siblings are working from home while their young children attempt remote schooling and look for ways to fend off the boredom of quarantine.

Unsurprisingly, there has been a substantial increase in total TV usage in the US since the beginning of the pandemic, with daytime TV viewing for kids (ages 6 to 11) and teens (ages 12-17) both increasing around 300% on average. Throughout COVID, kids have been using media as their primary source of entertainment, information, social connection, and education. Young children and teens say their use of media is mostly due to boredom and other options being inaccessible to them. This is especially true of TV consumption, particularly for preschoolers who have less autonomy in manipulating technology but can passively sit in front of a television screen. As quarantine has stretched on, the attitudes of parents about limiting screen time, social media usage, and engagement with online entertainment in general have eased considerably, with many entirely giving up on trying to regulate their children’s media habits. How many hours a day your child is watching TV is less of a concern when you are trying to work from home and juggle the demands on your attention around the household. Now, with young children spending more time on screens during the day than ever before, it is the responsibility of adults and content creators to ensure that the programming available to children is approached with an understanding that the content is central to life as a kid during the pandemic.  

Another area of a typical child’s daily life that has been drastically altered by the coronavirus is education and schooling. School closures and the rapid shift to remote learning have created gaps in access to social and educational resources, rendering many children vulnerable and struggling at home. Numerous K-12 schools and school districts, for example the Los Angeles United School District, have recently announced plans to remain closed for in-person instruction until January 2021. Educators have projected that students who remain enrolled in school this fall without in-person instruction will lose 3-4 months of learning, even with access to an average quality of remote instruction. The outlook is bleaker for those with connection to low-quality remote instruction or even none at all. As a result, glaring inconsistencies in educational availability and quality, both with regard to resources of schools and in the home, have made the gross inequities in the US education system difficult to ignore. With this in mind, what steps can be taken to facilitate the continued learning and development of children and teens during quarantine?

Here is the basis of what we know so far: (1) school-aged children are spending significantly more time watching daytime TV and (2) many children will not have access to in-person schooling this fall, which will result in unequal and exacerbated learning gaps. So, what if stations started broadcasting high quality educational media content created for children of specific age groups more frequently during the day while parents are busy working? Would this make the increased time children are spending watching TV during the pandemic worthwhile, by simultaneously increasing their opportunities for learning? As it turns out, the answer is yes!

Media technologies have positive effects on the social and cognitive abilities of children, provided that media content is developmentally appropriate and emphasizes active engagement. For example, engagement with PBS educational media content resulted in academic improvements across the disciplines, including English language arts, mathematics, and science. Additionally, popular educational programs such as Sesame Street and Blue’s Clues have been shown to improve academic achievement and school readiness of children. These educational TV shows designed around a narrative curriculum are successful in teaching children intended lessons about both cognitive and social skills. Storytelling is a crucial medium for children to keep learning through the pandemic, but it is the nature of the content that they are watching which determines which, if any, educational gains they are making. 

The opportunity for learning through educational media is not limited to academic lessons, but also applies to the development of social skills. This provides a promising avenue to teach children about new norms and expectations during the COVID outbreak, such as wearing a mask in public and using hand sanitizer. Another feature of educational media that is well suited to the pandemic, is that it has been found to be most effective when it encourages children to be active rather than passive viewers, creating a connection between on- and off-screen activities. This connection could be established through supplemental activities inspired by the narrative of the media content, such as completing a hands-on, creative project or by encouraging outdoor exploration after watching an episode. Such activities and active engagement with media in general are not only beneficial to children’s academic learning through educational media, but also to the facilitation of enriching off-screen activities that can be done in the home during the current period of quarantine. 

 Actionable Insights

Here are some actionable insights for children’s content creators during the COVID-19 pandemic to keep kids who are unable to attend in-person classes learning by capitalizing on the large increase of TV viewing among children during quarantine: 

1. Keep in mind that school-aged children are spending upwards of 3 times the amount of hours watching TV since the pandemic. Developmentally appropriate television content is even more important now that kids are spending more time at home in front of screens.

2. Don’t rely on parents to monitor and regulate children’s media habits during the pandemic. Ensure that the options available to them are high quality and support active engagement from the viewer. 

3. Educational programming is successful in teaching viewers intended lessons, both related to cognitive and social gains. This suggests that new norms and conventions surrounding COVID-19 can be effectively taught to children through television content. Focus on incorporating simple language and easily understood examples when featuring the pandemic in storylines. Click here for our child-friendly COVID-19 Lexicon. 

4. Children who watch educational television programs have greater academic success and higher levels of school readiness than those who do not. Therefore, incorporate educational content into narratives to keep kids learning during school shutdowns. This has the potential to help combat learning loss associated with remote instruction.

5. Educational programming should engage children with both the world on-screen and off-screen. Create opportunities for children to connect the narrative they are watching on-screen with the world they are living in.

Emily Raich

CSS Intern

How the Pandemic Can Teach Kids About Compassion

What if this crisis became an opportunity for children to deepen their sense of care?

As a homebound parent with a preschooler, I’ve felt an array of emotions over the past few months during the coronavirus pandemic. I’ve felt sadness and worry about how many people are becoming ill, while being confounded by trying to juggle homeschooling and my own work responsibilities.

But I’ve also felt a great deal of gratitude for the kindnesses that have punctuated so many of my days lately, like when a neighbor left herbs from her garden at my gate or when a faraway friend whom I haven’t heard from in years sent text messages of love.

These positive experiences have affirmed to me that when times are difficult, our common human response is not to show reckless disregard of others but to show compassion.

We often assume that emergencies automatically lead to panic, but research consistently shows that people tend to act in solidarity and turn toward each other with a sense of togetherness. They volunteer, donate supplies, and spread goodwill, strengthening social bonds and helping everyone be resilient together.

“Affiliative, supportive, prosocial behaviors are more common, where widespread sickness and debility evoke acts of mutual aid among members of a community in crisis,” explains Steven Taylor, professor and clinical psychologist at the University of British Columbia, in his book The Psychology of Pandemics.

Compassion—noticing others suffering and being motivated to provide relief to them—grows early on in life. Five-month-old babies prefer helpers over hinderers. When babies between eight and 10 months old see people bump their knees or hurt their fingers, they already show the seeds of empathy with facial expressions, vocalizations, and gestures that reflect concern and a desire to understand others’ distress. By 14 months old, toddlers help others by handing them objects out of reach.

How can parents help their children realize their instinctual capacity for compassion during the coronavirus pandemic? Scientists have suggested three ways that children develop compassion that are relevant to these times.

1. Show compassion to kids so they experience receiving it

During the pandemic, many of our children are feeling uncertainty and upheaval, just like us parents. They miss school, their friends, and playing sports like they did before. For young children who don’t have the breadth of words to express their worries and fears, or older children who don’t have the emotional agility to get through tough moments, it can be overwhelming.

As a result, our kids may be irritable or have more meltdowns and tantrums than usual. But rather than seeing children as uncooperative, parents can consider whether their behavior is simply an indication that they might be suffering, too.

If we offer children warmth and tenderness when their routines are turned upside down, we can soothe them in their own time of need. Parents can extend compassion by making space to help their children become better aware of and process their feelings. Acknowledging and being sensitive to our children’s emotions can act as a salve and help them to see that this moment of hardship will eventually pass.

Parents can also frequently talk to their children about all the members of their extended family and broader community who have cared for them both recently and in the past. For example, parents can tell and retell their children stories of neighbors who brought gift baskets after their pet died or dropped off dinners when a grandparent was in the hospital. These conversations serve to remind children that they are connected to a network of people who are a generous source of compassion from which they can draw strength during times of suffering.

Receiving compassion offers kids a firsthand experience of what it feels like. 

2. Teach kids to practice self-compassion

In turn, just as children receive compassion from parents, they can also learn to offer it to themselves.

When children are having a hard time during the pandemic, parents can encourage them to listen and respond to their bodies and minds with greater awareness, acceptance, and kindness. For example, parents of older children can teach them to take self-compassion breaks to handle stressful moments.

For younger children, this might mean guiding them to first pause and notice their tense muscles, rapid heartbeats, and racing thoughts. Ask them to recognize that they’re having a moment of hardship and children all over the world are having these kinds of moments, too. Teach them to breathe deeply from their bellies and offer themselves words of tenderness like “May I feel calm.”

Parents can also encourage their younger children to cultivate self-compassion by planning enjoyable activities to look forward to after a hard day of homeschooling or after realizing summer vacation plans are cancelled.

Self-compassion allows children to process and cope with difficult emotions. Eventually, it can help them see their common humanity—that everyone suffers sometimes—and know that it’s all right to feel bad.

Tending to their intense emotions helps children be restored and renewed, which in turn prepares them to serve others. Overwhelming personal distress can make children singularly self-focused and less able to attend to others’ suffering. Self-compassion practices can help them be more able to orient toward others and extend compassion to them—which is the last step.

3. Encourage kids to extend compassion to others

During the coronavirus pandemic, even though children are inclined to help, it can be hard for them to know exactly what they can do.

Children can start with small acts of compassion as a family—sending kind thoughts to essential workers, regularly FaceTiming with isolated older or immunocompromised family members, or helping gather canned goods for the local food bank. Parents can also review these other ideas from Youth Service America to help inspire children toward compassionate acts.

Research suggests that small differences in language matter when we’re encouraging our kids to help. Parents can nurture young children’s motivation by inviting them to “be a helper,” which can instill in them a compassionate self-identity. But there’s a catch: When tasks are too difficult and children experience a setback, those who were asked to “be a helper” are less likely to try to help again compared to children who were simply asked “to help.” So, in circumstances when children might not succeed at helping with something, it’s better to just ask them “to help.”

Even young children have undoubtedly picked up on their radar that life right now is quite a bit different than it used to be. What if this pandemic became an opportunity for them to learn that being human during hard times involves transformation and resilience, and that compassion helps us all to thrive?

Maryam Abdullah, Ph.D.

This article originally appeared on Greater Good, the online magazine of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley.

Five Ways to Reduce Racial Bias in Your Children

How do we combat racial prejudice? New research reveals how parents influence the formation of bias in children.

Children notice difference across racial lines. Even from a very young age, babies scan a face differently if it belongs to someone of a different race, suggesting that racial bias may be hardwired.

But noticing difference is not the same as having negative or positive beliefs around difference. Those types of judgments develop over time and are influenced by many things, including the social climate children grow up in and the experiences they have that confirm or disprove their biases.

This is where parenting comes in. Though it’s clear that parents are not solely responsible for biasing their kids one way or the other, science suggests that they do play a role—and an important one. In fact, their influence may extend well beyond a child’s early years and into adolescence.

Though how this works is not totally clear, recent research has shown that the process starts early and involves both explicit (deliberate) and implicit (unconscious) messages that parents send to their children. This is the good news: Parents can be a positive force in combating prejudice in their children. But the “bad news” is that kids can easily pick up prejudice from society at large unless parents do something about it.

Here are some of the ways that parents can help reduce negative bias in their children.

1. Expose kids to more positive images of other racial groups

Kids are immersed in negative stereotypes perpetuated by the media and culture, just as adults are. To counteract that, parents can expose kids through stories, books, and films to more positive, counter-stereotypical images of people from different racial and ethnic groups—including moral exemplars like Martin Luther King Jr. or Dolores Huerta. In studies with adults, this type of intervention has been shown over and over to be one of the most effective ways of decreasing bias.

Though less is known about how this might impact children specifically, at least one study suggests that they benefit, too. Researchers presented white and Asian children ages 5-12 with four positive vignettes involving admirable black people (such as firefighters or doctors), admirable white people, or flowers and then measured the kids’ implicit biases towards black people. Being exposed to the positive vignettes significantly reduced implicit bias in children nine years of age and older—though not in the younger children.

According to lead author Antonya Gonzalez, this study suggests that showing older kids positive images of black people may counteract negative stereotypes in society.

“Hearing these stories, the kids are internalizing an association between the group they’re hearing about and positivity, and that counteracts the stereotypical associations that they may already have,” she says.

However, just because younger children were not moved by the stories in her experiment doesn’t mean we shouldn’t expose younger kids to positive images, as well, Gonzalez believes.

“If there were more exposure and more exemplars, there’s a chance that might be enough to change associations” in younger kids, too, she says.

2. Help your kids develop cross-group friendships

Research suggests that cross-race friendships are an important factor in decreasing prejudice, probably because they help decrease stress and fears of rejection that may occur in cross-group situations. Having a friend from another group may also remove barriers to empathy and caring, which in turn decreases prejudice.

Research shows that having contact with different racial or social groups—especially when that contact is warm and positive—helps to decrease prejudice and to encourage more cross-group friendships. In a study with school kids of various ages, students who had higher levels of cross-race contact—including cross-race friendships—were more likely to see the way race plays a role in social exclusion and to view that behavior negatively.

In a longitudinal study with adolescents, those who had cross-group friendships were less likely to develop biases against immigrants in their community, even if their parents or peers were biased. These studies suggest that cross-group friendships might help mitigate biases that could otherwise form.

In one study, German teens who established a cross-group friendship during a three-year period demonstrated lower prejudice toward immigrants at the end of the study than those who hadn’t. In addition, the teens were more likely to develop cross-group friendships when there were more kids from different groups and more positive social norms concerning cross-group friendships in their community. This suggests that opportunity—meaning, living in diverse neighborhoods or going to integrated schools—is important.

Psychologist Rodolfo Mendoza-Denton encourages parents to take an active role in supporting cross-race friendships in their kids by organizing play-dates, inviting kids over to their houses, offering rides to sporting events, and creating other opportunities for their kids’ cross-group friendships to form.

“The default is to do these things with people with whom you already have an affinity,” he says. “You need to help scaffold these social experiences for your kids and be more intentional if you want to be sure that cross-group friendships happen.”

3. Cultivate cross-group friendships yourself

Parents can help normalize cross-group friendships by role-modeling them for their kids. This may seem superfluous, but research has shown that children’s racial attitudes are less tied to parents’ explicit messages around race than to the racial makeup of the parents’ social network.

Why does having cross-race friendships have such a strong impact on bias? Mendoza-Denton says that when you develop a cross-race friendship, you incorporate your friend’s struggles, motivations, and thoughts into your own self-concept—not in a way that’s confusing, but more expansive. For example, he says, you start to feel what they feel and empathize with them: maybe sweating when they give a talk or suffering when they experience heartbreak. And that experience of “inclusion of the other in the self” decreases bias against that person’s social group.

“It’s so much more organic to reduce bias by developing intergroup friendships, because it changes your attitudes through a very human mechanism, which is the interpersonal,” says Mendoza-Denton.

Though adding people to your social group based simply on race is probably unwise, it’s possible to search for common interests with people of different backgrounds, making it more likely that a friendship will happen naturally. Once friendship grows, empathy develops organically, says Mendoza-Denton.

4. Talk explicitly about race and the effects of racism

Many black parents give explicit instructions to their kids about the importance of race in society and what they can do to mitigate any bias they encounter. But well-meaning white parents are less likely to bring up race with their children, perhaps fearing that doing so would mean they don’t value egalitarianism or believe in a “post-race” society. The problem with that approach is that not talking about race can create a vacuum of information, which leads children to absorb biases around them—often in ways that are counter to parents’ own held values.

In one study, researchers had white parents read books depicting racial issues to their preschool-aged children (under the guise of studying the effects of literature on learning) while being videotaped. Racial attitudes were measured and compared afterwards in both parents and their children.

Later analyses of the videos showed that many parents avoided mention of race—even if their children asked about it—and used “colorblind” approaches to the issues raised in the book. For example, they might say, “It’s important to be nice to everyone” rather than something about race. Though the parents assumed their kids would absorb their colorblind ideals and hold favorable views of African-Americans, the children’s views weren’t in line with these expectations, suggesting that a colorblind approach does not decrease biased attitudes in kids.

In fact, research suggests that parents need to be much more explicit about racism and its effects. When white parents were asked to have race-related discussions with their kids—either with or without watching educational videos about race—their children showed more favorable attitudes toward racial outgroup members only if their parents discussed race directly. Interestingly, though, the researchers had trouble getting the parents to have these discussions—even when instructed to do so as part of the study. Apparently, there are psychological barriers to discussing race among many Caucasian parents.

How can parents overcome these? It’s not easy, says Mendoza-Denton, because if you aren’t comfortable, you will avoid the topic. He suggests that parents need to increase their own comfort first by developing connections to people from other racial groups. That will make it easier for parents to have these conversations without resorting to fear and avoidance.

If you can overcome your own discomfort, there are many children’s books that expose kids to the values and experiences of different groups and could be conversation starters. Or you may want to follow Allison Briscoe-Smith’s advice on how to use the movie Zootopia to talk to your children about racial prejudice.

5. Work to combat biases in yourself

Research clearly shows that the impact of parent bias on kids shouldn’t be underestimated. Although explicit biases have negative effects on kids, implicit bias can also impact children.

In one study, researchers found that very young children exhibited more explicit negative bias if their mothers held implicit biases—regardless of their explicit messaging. There can be a mismatch between what parents say and their unconscious reactions toward minority groups—and children seem to pick up on this.

Though implicit biases may seem an impossible thing to control—after all, they are supposed to be unconscious—they are quite changeable with conscious effort. Research suggests that automatic biases can be countered by deliberate attempts to counter them, exposure to moral exemplars, or positive cross-race interactions. In other words, much of what influences children may also influence you.

Becoming more aware of subtle prejudices may be the first step, and you can always take an implicit bias test if you want to learn about yourself. But Mendoza-Denton believes that this information is most useful in parents who are truly willing to attend to their biases; otherwise, learning about their implicit biases could possibly backfire, making them feel exposed and defensive and increasing their avoidance of the issue.

In addition to developing cross-race friendships, he advises parents to read books, watch films, and consume media not aimed at them. For example, to understand the viewpoints and experiences of blacks, a white parent might read Ta-Nehisi Coates’s book Between the World and Me, or see the movie I Am Not Your Negro. Doing so may counter bias by enriching understanding of another’s point of view, especially if they are motivated to foster that understanding.

Parents may think that there is very little they can do to influence their children’s biases or feel that prejudice-reduction is a daunting task. But if we are to impact bias in the long-term, we must come to grips with how bias is transmitted early in life and fed by a system of segregation and negative societal views. Parents, it turns out, can make an important contribution.

Jill Suttie, Psy.D

This article originally appeared on Greater Good, the online magazine of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley.

Foster or Otherwise, Parenting is Parenting: Love, care, and try your best

Media content has the power to shape perceptions and views on a mass scale. Unfortunately, media portrayals of youth in foster care are often negative and perpetuate unhelpful stereotypes. In this special blog series, The Center for Scholars and Storytellers is exploring this topic from multiple perspectives to inform and inspire the creation of accurate, empowering, and socially responsible media portrayals of foster care. 

Marianne Guilfoyle, Chief Innovations Officer at LA-based Allies for Every Child and a key foster care advisor to the Center for Scholars and Storytellers, often remarks: “If I had a nickel for every person who said they had considered being foster parents…” And she is right. It’s not that people haven’t considered fostering, it’s that they’ve never seriously considered it. And far too often, their reason is that they don’t think they could do it. Indeed, multi-racial, same-sex couple Ching-chu Hu and Jim Van-Reeth, who have adopted four children through the foster care system, say they constantly hear comments such as “Oh, I could never do that” or “You’re stronger than me!” Their thoughts on this? “We believe most people on the planet naturally have the necessary tools to be foster parents -- to love and nurture a child.”  Positive media portrayal of fostering can play a large role in empowering people to see that they can indeed foster. We need to see more of these stories.

Another honest response they get from people interested in adoption are fears that adopting from the system is too “dangerous”, and international adoption will get you “safer” children with “less issues.” To this, Hu and Van-Reeth remark; “Children are amazingly resilient, and the issues we all face as parents are strikingly similar, whether a child is from the foster care system, international adoption, or is a biological child. The primary difference is that we came into it expecting challenges, whereas those with biological children may be caught off guard by difficulties if they arise.” Rich Valenza, founder of Raise a Child and himself a father of two children he adopted through the foster care system, echoed this sentiment, reflecting on how the conversations with other parents at school drop-off were often quite therapeutic. He noticed, “Whether raising your birth children or children through foster care, the parenting problems you face are pretty similar! You have expectations of what raising a child will be like, but the reality quickly sinks in for both scenarios that it’s often not the way you planned. You’ll never be fully prepared. You likely won’t hear “thank you for giving me an amazing life” from your foster children as you tuck them into bed, but it’s a safe bet that you won’t hear that from your birth children either.” Content creators should strive to show the parenting commonalities in raising children, from the struggles to the joys, regardless of how their children entered their lives. 

But this is not to dismiss the trauma that foster children experience in leaving their home, and whatever difficult life they may have endured previous to entering foster care (or within foster care). And this needs to be appropriately reflected in media, too. Valenza is a proud proponent of family therapy and removing all associated stigma, “Whether you have birth or foster children, all families can benefit from therapy-- it needs to be seen as a bonus to your life, an education into yourself.” In addition to recruiting foster parents, Raise a Child makes an effort to continually support parents throughout the foster/adoption process. They are currently partnered with LA-based Allies for Every Child on a pilot program that provides extra support and training to remind parents, for instance, that when problems arise, “this is not about me, this is about the needs of the child.” Portraying counseling as normative in fictional media could go a long way in reducing the stigma of seeking professional help, both for parents and children. 

One of the biggest lessons that Hu and Van-Reeth encountered over the years was learning, accepting, and supporting the perspectives of the foster children’s previous lives, and not judging the biological parents (who often grew up in similar situations). They explain, “No matter how horrific we may find their previous life, it was still their home, their reality, their “comfortable” environment. It is the lives they were used to, and anything different, no matter how safe, how loving, how supportive, is still different, unusual, and unfamiliar to their world. And it takes a lot of time and nurturing for them to trust a safe and loving environment.”

Worrying that a foster child you hope to adopt might be reunified with their birth family is another fear that can lead people to pursue private or international adoption instead. Indeed, Hu and Van-Reeth went through this in the most heart-wrenching way; “Losing our 18 month old son-who we had had since day one- to his birth parents who we knew were falling back into drugs, was the hardest moment in our fostering journey. Especially the fact that as foster parents we felt we had no voice, no “seat” at the judicial table. Those scars left indelible memories.” Ultimately, their son did end up returning back to their home, and is now adopted by the Hu and Van-Reeth. Those interested in fostering and adoption and those creating media about foster care should understand that there are different paths to take, depending on the long-term option desired, and the amount of potential heartbreak you are willing to risk. Media content can help by portraying all types of fostering, including: 

1. A foster parent that just fosters with no intention of adopting (roles which are very much needed since reunification with the birth family is the primary goal for children entering into the foster care system.)

2. A foster/adoptive parent who takes in foster children who might become available for adoption (and therefore would adopt the child if it was a good fit), but the child could instead be reunified with their birth family. 

3. An adoptive-only parent who will only take a child into their home if they are already classified as “adoptive,” meaning the birth parents have terminated their parental rights. 

Finally, another reason people are hesitant to become foster parents is because they’re afraid they won’t be good enough, or they will mess up as a parent. But ultimately, as Velenza correctly puts it, “Worrying about being good enough parent is exactly what will make someone a good foster parent. This shows that they are conscious of their role, and it shows they care. And ultimately, that is what it takes.” 

For foster parents, there are countless instances along the way that remind you you’re doing a great job. For Valenza, as his children get older he finds he gets immeasurable pride from seeing them thrive, and even beginning to realize and appreciate the work he does for the foster care community. As Hu and Van-Reeth reflect; “It’s the small things: it’s seeing them come out of their shells, adjusting, being nurtured, opening up, and giving a hug. It’s seeing them bring their defenses down, grow, and become stronger and more comfortable with the world around them. It’s giving them first-time experiences, whether that’s flying on a plane, going to a park, or even, shockingly, giving them breakfast.”  

Actionable Insights  

• Write and cast realistic, everyday people as foster parents who aren’t perfect people, but care and are doing their best. 

  - Media that gets it right: Instant Family - the couple is refreshingly honest in their uncertainty and process to fostering, making them extremely relatable. 

• Show the similar joys and struggles that parents face, regardless of whether their children are biological, adopted internationally/privately, or from the foster care system. 

• Normalize seeking counseling and therapy, show how it is beneficial and healthy for the entire family. 

Colleen Russo Johnson, PhD

Senior Fellow of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers

This blog series is supported in part by the UCLA Pritzker Center for Strengthening Children and Families.

The Fun of Empowering Girls

For over 20 years, I worked in public broadcasting making shows for young people. We made television and digital content and even hosted events in communities across the country. As a public broadcaster, I was keenly aware of what we needed to work hard on, particularly gender stereotypes and gender roles — and, less overt gender bias — in Hollywood movies and TV. We needed to empower children — especially girls. We knew from research that if girls saw positive girl characters and women characters in television and film, it could have an incredible impact. But no matter how hard we worked, we couldn’t control what happened after they saw a program. We knew that the impact would be higher if the ideas in the shows were talked about at home. And even higher if a parent watched with them.

As a parent, I want great role models too. Like most parents,  I feel a lot of pressure to try to make all the right choices. We’re fighting gender stereotypes in the media and gender bias in the culture. It can be a lot. So, I think it’s time to make a switch and take the pressure off.

I say let’s have fun empowering the girls (and boys!) in our lives. Instead of trying to find all the right everything to introduce them to, let’s make it an adventure together.

With your own kids, try to think outside of the box to find amazing female characters in your own movie and TV watching — and women and girls in your own neighbourhood or town, too! Make it a quest. A Mission. Make a chart. Or just do it for fun. Find what works with your family dynamic but make the goal finding awesome women near where you live. Here are some suggestions:

1. Make it a challenge to see who can find the coolest girl character in a TV show. And then watch it together. Why is she cool? How does she conform to gender roles?

2. Go to the library and see if any women authors are speaking. Or reading from their picture or chapter books.

3. Check out cool women running for office where you live and go and hear them speak. Even if your kids are too young to understand the issues, all the clapping and sign waiving will make it fun. A great way to combat gender bias is to see women being supported by other women and men.

4. In your play- whether it’s with stuffed animals, dolls or action characters- make the role-playing about inventing or leading (hey let’s find a way to invent a colour changing t-shirt or create a cardboard starship to fly us to the stars!). Remember that young kids’ imaginations are way better than ours as adults, so let them run with it.

5. Celebrate the women in your extended family who have interesting jobs- in science, architecture, a small startup- and have them tell your kids about it

6. Go old school. Kids still love to play board games. Print off pictures of powerful women- from politicians to pilots- that you can glue to cardboard and use as pieces in any of your favourite family games instead of the regular pieces.

And remember moms, research shows that this isn’t just about our kids. A study in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology found that working women who viewed images of powerful women succeeded in stressful leadership tasks. So have fun with it!

Kim Wilson

Media Advisor & Consultant of The Center for Scholars & Storytellers

Disclosure: This blog post was written independently and reflects the author’s own views. It was written in support of the Dream Gap project and was paid for by Barbie.

Dreams of a Six Year Old Girl

Have you ever spoken to a six year old girl? Seemingly the epitome of confidence,the world is her oyster, and she believes she can be anything:

• An astronaut;

• A ballet dancer;

• The President;

• All at the SAME TIME.

Moreover, young girls frequently do better than boys in elementary school, where their abilities to sit still and follow rules often makes their teachers give them plenty of gold stars.

The traditional thinking is that young girls’ confidence doesn’t drop until they hit puberty. But something else is happening during the ages of five to seven, as children develop cognitively, becoming aware that others are evaluating their behavior.

As a well designed experiment found, at five years of age, girls say that both genders are smart, but by six years old, they classify boys as belonging to the “really really smart” category at a higher rate. Thus, what children see and hear during this developmental stage shapes thinking in ways that adults may not always see or recognize.

In fact, even at younger ages, children quickly absorb the stereotypes we communicate about activities and skills associated with each gender. Children learn in the context of their social and cultural milieu and the messages they are given (from parents, media, teachers and other socialization agents) promote gender identities, sometimes with stereotypes attached to them.

The good news is that in the US, things may be starting to change.  One study found that when asked to draw a scientist, kids in the United States increasingly draw women. Back in the sixties and seventies, when asked the same question, less than one percent of children drew a female scientist. Today the average is twenty eight percent. But still, as kids get older, they begin to draw more men in this role. At five or six girls draw the same number of men and women, but by seven and eight they begin to draw more men.

So there is still plenty of work to do. Luckily research has helped us become more aware of these biases. Moreover, companies who create media and product for kids are helping change entrenched patterns. Many companies are focusing on creating strong female characters, and their audience is responding – even boys!  

What can you do to help encourage your child to dream big and help your girl recognize that boys and girls are equally “really really smart?  One answer: Play! Play helps girls understand the possibilities because this is when children practice the gendered behaviors they see from role models. And young kids like to play with the objects that will teach them the most.

Here are a few ways caregivers can support their children so they start to internalize gender equality:

1. Choose media that highlight strong female role models.

Why? Because research shows that representation shapes the way we think.

2. Highlight real life female role models, including yourself if you are a woman.

Why? Because connecting to the real world helps make children understand what’s truly possible. And young girls focus on what their female caregiver is doing.

3. Encourage boys to diversify their play patterns. Support their play with dolls, and help them recognize that women are equally brilliant to men.

Why? Because until we recognize that boys can enjoy more “feminine” pursuits, masculine stereotypes of strength and brilliance will persist and undermine progress for women.

Yalda T. Uhls, Ph.D.

Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers

Disclosure: This blog post was written independently and reflects the author’s own views. It was written in support of the Dream Gap project and was paid for by Barbie.

Gen Z Slang: From Coast to Coast

Despite being connected online, no matter what state you’re from, each city still retains its own language, slang, and vernacular. At my public high school in Los Angeles, we had our own secret language. A party was a “yart,” and if it got busted by the cops it was “rolled.” A beer was a “brewsky,” an uber was an “ubis,” and school was “skizz.” The way some of the boys from my high school talked was a little bit ridiculous [or maybe a lot ridiculous]. If I tried to use these words in front of anyone that didn’t live in Los Angeles, they would have no idea what was going on. 

When I came to college and used these words around my roommate from the East Coast, she would look at me with a blank stare. It’s interesting to note that people around the world all have different terms for everyday things. Teenagers are often blamed for dismantling standard linguistic patterns, but I have often found it’s a way we connect with the people we live around. When I found other friends from the same place I was, it felt comforting that they knew the way I talked.

Although I’m not a linguistics major, I find it fascinating how we all make up words and phrases that become a part of our day to day speech.

Last year, I stumbled upon a British show called Love Island, which is a reality show that mixes people from different parts of the United Kingdom in a villa for about eight weeks. As a bystander, the way they talked felt so elegant and fun, but to them, it was just normal. 

From the West Coast to the East Coast to the United Kingdom, here are a few English words or phrases that have different meanings to Gen Z depending on the place:

When Someone is Good Looking

A typical American thing to say when you find someone attractive is to call them hot, but in California oftentimes people will say “he or she is ‘fire.’” However, on Love Island, people will call a person “fit” if they find them attractive. Typically, when I think of the word fit, I would think they were in good shape, but in the United Kingdom it might mean you find them super attractive. 

When You Agree With Something

In California, when someone agrees with what you are saying, a typical response is to say “I feel” or “I feel you” or “I feel that.” When I started college, I noticed all the East Coast kids would say “word” every time they agreed with what I said. I thought “word” was something people said in 2006, but I guess I was wrong. 

Not Sure Why We Call Water This… 

Something that both East and West Coasters say is “wince” for water or adding “ince” to the endings of things. I have no idea why people do this, other than the fact that they think it sounds cool when in reality, it doesn’t.

When You Want to Go to a Party

Another difference between the East Coast and the West Coast is the words we use for parties. On the West Coast, a party during the day is a “dayge” but on the east coast it’s called a “darty.” If you’ve ever seen the Real Bros of Simi Valley, a show about four young men who live in a California town in the Valley, they call their small get-togethers a “kickback.” While I thought this was widely known, my friends on the East Coast had no idea what I was talking about when I used the term. Instead they call it a “hang out.”

This One’s Pretty Shocking!

This one may be universal for English, but whenever I would feel shocked about something I would say “I’m shook” or “I’m shooketh.” The most surprising word I learned, though, was from my roommate who said “wig” if you were ever surprised by anything. Essentially it means that you are so shocked that your wig fell off. 

When You’re Not Feeling Too Good

This one is kind of disturbing, but in Los Angeles, if you had to throw up people would either call it “yak” or “boot.” In other places, they would most likely just call it “vomit,” but it was more fun this way. If you were able to “rally” then you’d call it the old “boot and rally,” which is more of a universal English phrase, but teenagers love to make it their own. 

This One is Trouble

Whenever someone got in trouble, a typical thing you would say is that person is grounded, right? At my high school, if someone or a party got in trouble, we would call that being “rolled.” On the East Coast people called that “busted.”

When You’re Upset

If you’re angry, a way you would express that is by saying “I’m heated” or “I’m fuming.” In Love Island, if someone was upset, they would say “I’m pied off” (similar to “I’m pissed off”).

Getting Along With Someone

Typically, Americans would say “we hit it off” when we get along with someone we are interested in, but in Love Island they like to say they had “banter.” They also say we “crack on” or “get on,” meaning they got along well with the person and can make jokes with them. 

In Conclusion…

Why do different regions across the world have different lingo that they use? How does this even start? Our lingo and the way we speak constantly changes over the years and is dependent on who we are around. The way my parents used to talk isn’t the same way that teenagers in high school talk now. Our virtual world has caused Gen Z to start trends across the country with what phrases and words we say. After living in my hometown in Los Angeles and going to college with people from all over America, I have learned that each region still has its own English lingo. Midwesterns say “pop” but I say “soda,” East Coasters say “seltzer” but I say “sparkling water,” Southerners say “y’all” but I say “you guys.” Whether the way we talk is regional or from online, our communication is what keeps us connected to other people.

Chloe Uhls

Former CSS Intern

Article adapted from “English Slang at It’s Finest,” as it appeared on Flique Editorial.

The Importance of Authentic Asian American Representation in Hollywood

The Importance of Authentic Asian American Representation in Hollywood

Ages 5-10 were my Full-House-obsessed years. I considered myself an honorary Tanner. Then it was what my parents referred to as “The Inappropriate Show,” also known as Saturday Night Live. They thought it was too mature for my little sister and me, but we loved it. The Office got me through stressful high school times and now I quote it without thinking. However, amidst the joy these shows brought me, as a Korean-American I have been continually let down by the lack of representation of Asians in Hollywood. It makes me angry -- shattering the meek, silent-in- the-midst-of-unfairness, and the rarely impassioned portrait that the media has painted of people like me. Despite attempts at diversity in Hollywood movies and TV, Asian characters have often been portrayed as weak, nerdy, exotic, incompetent, powerless, and are seldom in the spotlight as leads, just like black television and film characters.

Notable progress has been made, however, in the past few years with the successes of Crazy Rich Asians, ABC sitcom Fresh Off the Boat, and Netflix’s Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj. Asians in Hollywood are portraying the Asian American community in a more authentic light than before; but while progress is exciting, there is still more to do when it comes to true representation of Asian TV characters and Asian movie characters on-screen and behind the scenes. What we view on-screen reaches far beyond entertainment; diversity in film and TV also impacts mental health, identity, and race relations as they pertain to Asian Americans. Content creators and industry decision-makers must change how Asians are portrayed in the media, as they have an opportunity and a duty to yield this powerfully influential medium in a more responsible manner. Avoiding racism, gender stereotypes of girl and boy characters, and other negative images are key.

Effect on Children

Personal identity is heavily influenced by the media, starting from a young age. Film and television have become avenues for imprinting stories in history. When it comes to authentic Asian movie and TV characters, the absence is noteworthy. The pride I felt watching Crazy Rich Asians’ all-Asian cast surprised me as if the sudden surge in representation alerted me to its prior absence in Hollywood. Asian children will subconsciously internalize an omission of Asian faces in the content they watch as an indication of their perceived invisibility or the box they are subjected to in the workplace and the world. Research shows that people exhibit feelings like shame and anxiety when viewing stereotypical representations of their racial group, even those framed as exaggeration or parody, and Asian stereotypes in movies and TV have been far too visible for far too long. While Hollywood has since moved away from the glaring racism of characters such as Long Duk Dong, the foreign exchange student in 16 Candles, Asian actors continue to be typecast and are still underrepresented in major film roles.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Personal identity is heavily influenced by the media, starting from a young age

TWEET THIS

• Content creators and industry decision-makers must change how Asians are portrayed in the media

TWEET THIS

Model Minority Myth

In today’s society, Asian characters in movies and TV are often stereotyped as over-achievers who obtain financial and educational stability: the 4.0 students, doctors, and Tiger-parents. Asian-Americans have been framed as the “model minority” within American culture -- the minority group that worked its way to success. This myth implies that other minority groups are lesser-than or do not work as hard, and also negates the ever-present discrimination that Asians and other minority groups experience. Such Asian stereotypes in film and TV shows also suggest that Asians belong to one homogenous group that shares the same attributes, when in fact, there are many subsections of the Asian community - composed of individuals each with their own stories and struggles. The effects of this perpetuated stereotype in the media, depicted by Asian actors but often driven by white writers and directors, jump from the screen into reality. Racial bias, even nonverbal, can be imprinted on people through the screen. It is perplexing how Asians are viewed as diligent and hardworking, yet rarely with strong leadership qualities or charisma. The scarcity of positions of power among Asian film and TV characters is reflected in many aspects of life. In fact, according to Harvard Business Review, Asians are the least likely group to be promoted to management in the United States. While this can also be attributed to different cultural values and other factors, a lack of diverse representation in media is influential in reinforcing these attitudes and perceptions.

Tokenism Behind the Scenes

What we see on-screen should not be the only aspect of representation examined. The majority of successful endeavors featuring Asian actors and stories were backed by Asians in Hollywood behind the scenes. More Asian studio heads, casting directors, producers, writers, showrunners, and filmmakers means more advocacy and support for Asian stories and Asian TV and film characters. Great strides have been made and writers’ room representation has significantly improved; however, discrimination still exists here. To promote more diverse representation in media, large networks host diversity training programs in which writers of color have the opportunity to be staffed on television shows. The networks and studios subsidize writers’ salaries, incentivizing shows to employ these essentially free “diversity hires.” It is common for showrunners to let these writers go after their wages are no longer paid for, communicating that Asian writers are only hirable when free. Diversity in numbers is insufficient as long as Asians in Hollywood are not receiving the same opportunities to succeed in this industry. 

On YouTube, people produce their own content with virtually zero gatekeeping. It is no coincidence that Asian content creators have become some of the most popular and prevalent faces on the platform, with millions of subscribers and views. From beauty guru Michelle Phan to comedy YouTuber NigaHiga, there is tangible proof that when given a fair opportunity, the Asian community thrives and reaches incredibly far. 

Financial Benefits

If the moral facet of equal Asian representation in Hollywood is not enough to motivate content creators and gatekeepers, there is data that supports financial incentives for more Asian TV characters and Asian movie characters. Asians are the fastest-growing racial group in the country with a buying power of $1 trillion in 2018. They lead the nation in internet connectivity, enabling them to consume Asian stories on TV (and Asian movies via home video) via broadband and subscription video on demand faster than any other group nationwide. An average Asian household will watch about 23 hours of television per week, and the percentage with subscriptions to services such as Netflix and Hulu surpasses that of the remaining population. It is clear that Asians possess considerable buying power in the US and make up a large, expanding segment of media audiences.

Hearing Bowen Yang, SNL’s first Asian cast member after 45 seasons, refer to himself as the “Lizzo of China” while playing a government official on Weekend Update, filled me with pride. It was not until I saw myself on-screen that I realized I had been missing this feeling my whole life, and I needed to see, hear and read about more Asians in Hollywood. There is more work to do, more stories to tell, always. There’s great power in representation. My Asian-Americanness is of value, and I expect the country in which I live to reflect the same. 

Actionable Insights

1. Write Asian movie and TV characters that defy stereotypes, even if stereotypes are seemingly “positive.”

2. Portray more Asian diversity — all groups that are part of the Asian community are unique with distinct stories, cultures, and struggles. This includes groups like the Bhutanese and Burmese that suffer from a poverty rate that is twice as high as the national average, yet experience the repercussions of the model minority myth. 

3. Feature more Asian TV and movie characters in positions of power and leadership on-screen. 

4. Hire more Asians in behind-the-scenes positions: writers, directors, studio executives, casting directors, producers, showrunners, filmmakers. Rich and authentic stories come from those who can speak from experience and incorporate essential nuances to the characters and their interactions with the world around them. 

5. Avoid framing content created by and featuring Asians solely as “Asian films.” While still taking their cultures into account, remember that Asians are normal people who have more to offer than just the fact that they are Asian. 

Nicole Park

CSS Intern