Your Friend Maria Has Come to You for Advice

Essay

Your friend Maria has come to you for advice. She has two children, and she is concerned that playing violent video games and watching too much television are having a negative impact on them. Jose, who is ten, is getting into fights at school and is becoming more disrespectful to his parents every day. Christina, who is eight, now refuses to leave the house without wearing makeup and wakes nightly with nightmares about criminals breaking into their home. What would you say to Maria to help her make sense of her perceptions and the changes she sees in her children's perceptions and behaviors? What advice would you give her to improve her and her children's perceptions?