are playgrounds getting too safe?

[Azazello1313]

interesting article

 

Even if children do suffer fewer physical injuries — and the evidence for that is debatable — the critics say that these playgrounds may stunt emotional development, leaving children with anxieties and fears that are ultimately worse than a broken bone.

 

“Children need to encounter risks and overcome fears on the playground,” said Ellen Sandseter, a professor of psychology at Queen Maud University in Norway. “I think monkey bars and tall slides are great. As playgrounds become more and more boring, these are some of the few features that still can give children thrilling experiences with heights and high speed.”

....

By gradually exposing themselves to more and more dangers on the playground, children are using the same habituation techniques developed by therapists to help adults conquer phobias, according to Dr. Sandseter and a fellow psychologist, Leif Kennair, of the Norwegian University for Science and Technology.

 

“Risky play mirrors effective cognitive behavioral therapy of anxiety,” they write in the journal Evolutionary Psychology, concluding that this “anti-phobic effect” helps explain the evolution of children’s fondness for thrill-seeking. While a youthful zest for exploring heights might not seem adaptive — why would natural selection favor children who risk death before they have a chance to reproduce? — the dangers seemed to be outweighed by the benefits of conquering fear and developing a sense of mastery.

 

“Paradoxically,” the psychologists write, “we posit that our fear of children being harmed by mostly harmless injuries may result in more fearful children and increased levels of psychopathology.”

 

The old tall jungle gyms and slides disappeared from most American playgrounds across the country in recent decades because of parental concerns, federal guidelines, new safety standards set by manufacturers and — the most frequently cited factor — fear of lawsuits.

[TimC]

I'd like to see the attorney for the client being sued after little Jimmy took a header off the monkey bars arguing this fact.

[Square]

Are there a bunch of playgrounds without slides or monkey bars somewhere? I guess I've never seen these "nerf" playgrounds around here.

[Cameltosis]

When I was in elementary school a kid with a cast on his leg was on the swings. We were playing some type of tag game and another kid ran by too close to the swings and caught his cast in the temple. Killed him.

 

Cant blame the swings or the playground and I can see the point of the article...as long as there is proper supervision to go with the "dangers".

 

RIP Denny.

[BeeR]

Are there a bunch of playgrounds without slides or monkey bars somewhere? I guess I've never seen these "nerf" playgrounds around here.

 

Me either, but I do see a ton of plastic. Also slides are smaller, angles not as steep etc. It's like anything else, a question of degree.

 

The overall point is a good one which can be more broadly applied though. A growing # of parents want to "shield" their kids, ie coddle and over-protect, which is no better than "under-protecting" them. There should be a common sense middle ground.

[Pope Flick]

 

This thing was tits. If I recall, that center slide wrapped around the USA pole was f'ing steep on the initial drop (and looks so in this pic). These things were all around the midwest in the 70's. It was my favorite.