Project 6

Television Habits Summary

This project was very interesting. I chose to survey people's television habits because I know that I watch entirely too much television. I wanted to know how television affected other lives. I also wanted to know how much their surroundings and gender played a role in this.

I had 20 people participate in my survey, the majority of which were female. This worked out for me because I, too, am a female. The majority of the people who answered this survey were between the ages of 18 and 25, with a few over the age of 25. Again, I fall into the age range of the majority of the participants. I decided to ask about living arrangements. I live with my parents and we spend time together watching our favorite television shows. Most of my participants live with others and do not have children. I also do not have children.

After asking these personal questions, I began asking about television habits. The majority of my participants said that they only watch television 1-5 hours per week. It was a close call between actually paying attention to the television when it is on and not paying attention to it. I can understand this because a lot of the time, I have it on for background noise and am not even paying attention to what is on. It was also a close call when it came to watching television alone or with others. Like I said earlier, my family and I spend time together and watch our favorite television shows, but I can understand wanting time for yourself. Most people said that they watch television during the evening/night. I am definitely a night owl, and this is also when I do most of my television viewing. I also wanted to know what types of television shows people like to watch. I am a very diverse person, so I will watch just about anything. When given the choices of sitcoms, cartoons, reality television, soap operas, documentaries, and dramas, sitcoms came in first place, with documentaries and dramas not far behind. I also asked my participants what their favorite television show was and the answers were very different, ranging from "General Hospital" to "American Pickers."

I learned that I have a lot in common with the majority of the people who answered my survey. Our personal lives and our television habits are very similar. I started this survey thinking that I watch entirely too much television, and that view has not really changed. However, it makes me feel better that I am not alone.