The Benefits of Co-Viewing on Child & Caregiver Well-Being

• In Event: The Positive Influence of Caregiver Well-being on Child Well-being: What’s Play Got to Do With it?

Proposal

Big Bad Boo Studios (BBB) is an award-winning Canadian children’s media company that develops educational content wrapped in entertainment. The company’s international development division designs and implements educational and social-emotional programming for children in vulnerable and fragile contexts with core educational objectives including civic and peace education, gender equality, diversity, inclusion, human rights, and social-emotional skills. Programs have been delivered in schools and refugee/IDP safe spaces in over 15 countries, in partnership with Ministries of Education, institutional donors and national partners. Commercially, BBB’s programs have aired in over 100 countries reaching millions of children and their families.

Research shows that co-viewing (when parents/caregivers watch TV and movies with children) has a range of positive effects, including improved emotional vocabulary, emotional regulation, early literacy skills and empathy (Foulds, 2022, Early Childhood Education Journal & Garey, 2023, Child Mind Institute). When parents and children watch shows together, they share ideas and feelings, which presents an opportunity for learning and bonding. Quality media can be a valuable tool to strengthen communication within families, facilitate difficult conversations, and enhance imagination and play between parents/caregivers and children.

Between 2019 and 2022, BBB implemented their award winning 1001 Nights Life Skills and Civic Education program in Lebanon with refugee and host community children to improve social cohesion, social-emotional skills and children’s appreciation for civic values. The program consisted of three parts: 1) Watching animated episodes in classrooms or safe spaces, 2) Participating in class discussions and activities to reinforce key ideas and values, 3) Co-viewing episodes with parents/caregivers and at-home activities to encourage continued learning at home and engagement with families.

Results from the final evaluation showed that both children and parents showed a positive change in attitudes, values and perceptions. Overall, children experienced a 39% improvement in appreciation for civic values. This was measured through changes in the following core areas; intolerance of outgroups, intolerance of different opinions/ideas, acceptance of gender inequality, willingness to break the law and preference of violence to resolve disputes. As secondary beneficiaries, parents similarly experienced an improvement in appreciation for civic values and social cohesion, for example, a 36% reduction in feelings of disunity.

Furthermore, communication between children and parents improved over the course of the program. In key informant interviews, children reported feeling more comfortable talking to their parents about daily life, as well as more difficult topics, for example, their fears of failing to meet family expectations or making mistakes. Parents also experienced more open and honest dialogue with their children. These results demonstrate that co-viewing can be a tool for both children and caregiver well-being and can provide a common language with which to communicate about a variety of topics.

Author

• Nicole Whaites, Big Bad Boo