Board of Advisors Spotlight: Ellen Wartella, PhD

When asked about what major changes she’s witnessed to digital media (in the context of children’s well-being), one broad trend Dr. Wartella highlighted is the “melding” of technology—for both devices used and content consumed. “Children are immersed in a technological environment that I don’t think existed before, and I think evidence of that is the degree to which the pediatric community – as well as the psychological community and sociological community – are all looking at the role of media in children’s lives,” said Dr. Wartella. “They recognize that technology can be a powerful shaping force. The more that we can shine a light on what we understand about how kids use these technologies, what we understand are problematic uses, and what kind of children, under what kind of circumstances are most likely to respond in ways that are not the healthiest, [the more] we can address that.”

Dr. Wartella notes that “the effects of media depends on the child, content and context”–and with these changes, both the content and context of children’s media consumption have become multifaceted, and overall, today’s children are immersed in technology in an unprecedented way.

“There’s something about this new era that’s much more complex,” said Dr. Wartella.

Dr. Wartella joined Children and Screens’ Board of Advisors in 2014, just a year after the Institute’s inception. “[Children and Screens] stands uniquely positioned as a place that brings the social science literature together with health and medical literature, and with people who are actually working with children and adolescents who need help,” said Dr. Wartella. She noted that her experience on the Board was the first time she was able to serve as a social scientist on a board with pediatricians—which exposed her to a “whole different way” of thinking about children’s health and development. She described these interactions as being learning experiences, enthusiastically gaining insights from other board members working with children and adolescents needing help.

She highlighted the interdisciplinary collaboration as a strong point of Children and Screen’s Board of Advisors and noted the broader importance of bringing together different academic communities and experts across disciplines to examine the questions impacting children’s health in a digital world, as these different perspectives lead experts to ask different questions and see different solutions.

This work goes beyond the board, as Dr. Wartella highlighted Children and Screens’ conferences, publications, and other initiatives bringing together a variety of perspectives to examine digital media’s impact on children–and how such collaborative efforts serve as an example of bridging “boundaries that shouldn’t be boundaries to help children grow up in a developmentally appropriate and healthy way.”

Dr. Wartella noted several areas for research that could broaden our understanding about how children use digital media, and how that media impacts their lives.

She highlighted the importance of continuing efforts to bring together academic communities and industry to better understand how media, products, and content are being used by and impacting children. She sees such collaboration as a means for influencing producers to create products that are more appropriate and healthy for children. 

Dr. Wartella noted that this has been done before, providing two examples from her own work.  She served on the board of the Sesame Workshop and currently serves on the board of the Joan Ganz Cooney Center which, she notes, “brings an understanding of what we know about the impact of media on children’s lives to the production of media.” Dr. Wartella also again highlighted Children and Screens’ own efforts in this respect, given the Institute’s work to inform the public through interdisciplinary research and collaboration.

Additionally, Dr. Wartella noted two particular areas of study that need much more research: podcasts for children, as well as how media is used in schools, and what we ask children to do with that media.

Dr. Wartella reflected that the study of children and media is an ever-evolving field, and , and there will always be something new to study.

Her own career is a testament to this—for over four decades she’s researched and published a variety of key topics related to media’s impact on child development. Dr. Wartella recognizes that many changes to the digital environment have arisen over the course of her career. In this regard, Dr. Wartella notes that she’s been “very fortunate”’ for picking this focus for her academic career.

She believes now, in particular, is an “exciting time to be studying kids and media.” She emphasizes the importance of elevating research on how children use technology, what kinds of media use are problematic, and which youth may be more vulnerable, as a critical part of working toward a healthier digital world for children.