Influence of TV on daydreaming and creative imagination: a review of research.

The research literature is reviewed on the influence of TV on daydreaming and creative imagination. The hypotheses proposed to explain why TV might influence children's and adults' daydreaming and creative imagination positively (stimulation hypothesis) or negatively (reduction hypothesis) are discussed. The hypotheses that propose that existing daydreaming patterns result in changes in viewing behavior are also discussed. The weight of the available evidence favors the hypotheses that TV viewing stimulates daydreaming and reduces creative imagination, although decisive evidence of a causal relationship is lacking. The assumptions that underlie the hypotheses about TV's relationship to daydreaming and creative imagination are analyzed and whether these assumptions have been supported by research is established.