ASSOCIATION BETWEEN DISNEY CARTOON PROGRAM WATCHING AND PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOR CHANGE OF CHILDREN AGED 7 TO 11 YEARS IN NAIROBI COUNTY, KENYA

Abstract

Children's lives today are more than ever before greatly impacted by social media and this effect has resulted in certain traditional family lifestyles being replaced with modern lifestyles. Consequently, media has the ability to fundamentally influence societal views and alter behavior in subtle yet powerful ways. This study sought to determine the association between Disney cartoon program watching and prosocial behavior change of children aged 7 to 11 years in Nairobi County. The social cognitive theory of Albert Bandura (1986) served as a guide for the investigation. The study used a correlational research strategy that targeted 7500 pupils in selected primary schools in Nairobi County. A sample size of 308 pupils participated in this study. The study utilized purposive sampling to select the Kasarani primary school and pupils aged 7 to 11 years who particularly watch a range of Disney cartoons. The pilot of the study was carried out among 29 pupils at Kahawa garrison primary school. To gather information from pupils, a structured questionnaire was used. Validity of the study was ensured by structuring the questions according to the objectives, while a Cronbach alpha score of 0.7 and above was established in all the scales indicating that they were reliable. Data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics in form of frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviation, and inferential statistics in the form of Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (r). The analysis was aided by SPSS version 23. Findings form the study established a positive correlation between time spent watching Disney cartoons and prosocial behavior, r (310) = 0.374, p<0.05. The findings imply that, the more time spent watching Disney cartoon programs with prosocial behavior, the more highly the prosocial behavior children acquire. The study therefore, concluded that students who watch Disney cartoons learn the importance of treating other people right, and the value of hard work, and shaped their language and speaking skills. The study recommends that parents control the amount of time their children spend watching cartoons because they can be addictive and too much of anything is bad. The study further recommends that parents should ensure that their children watch cartoons that portray acceptable behaviors or select the kinds of cartoon programs they would like their children to watch.