Effects of Superheroes on Children

Superheroes are very popular with children, especially boys. To adults, on the surface, superheroes are good; they save the world from evil and look great while doing it. On impressionable young children, however, it's not so clear that superheroes are good role models. With parental supervision and open discussion, superheroes can once again be a real hero in your child's imagination.

  1. Injury

    • Injury to a child probably isn't the first thing that pops into a parent's mind when thinking about superheroes. When your child is playing at being a superhero, however, and figures he can fly just like Superman, injury may very well occur. Children often believe what they see, and they believe that they are really what they are pretending to be. In their minds, it makes sense that they would be able to jump off the play structure in the backyard and fly to safety. Teach your child that, even though Superman can fly, he cannot.

    Aggression

    • While the superhero is supposed to be good, he still gets in fights with the bad guys. And those bad guys? Your child is watching them, too. He may act out aggressively, or it may just look that way to adults. You child, in actuality, may just be saving the world (or a stuffed animal.) Depending on the child's age, he may not even know exactly what he is doing; he is simply imitating his favorite superhero.

    Find New Superheroes

    • If you are concerned about your child imitating fictional superheroes, introduce him to new ones. These can and should include real people, either historical or alive today. Presidents, veterans and great grandparents are among people that could be new heroes. Find someone your child can relate to or who accomplished something in a field your child shows interest in; if your daughter likes to help sick people, tell her about Clara Barton, who founded the Red Cross. The Wright brothers are amazing superheroes for kids with an engineering bent.

    Keep the Discussion Open

    • Talk openly about what makes someone a superhero. Talk about the good things and the bad things they may do; make sure your child knows what he can copy and what he can't. Encourage your child to make up his own superhero; it doesn't have to be modeled after a real one he sees on television. Maybe it's Recycle Man or Laundry Girl; help your child use her imagination to come up with the heroic feats of daring that she can accomplish throughout the day.

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