The impact of Sinhala dubbed cartoons on Sri Lankan kids

Abstract

Dubbing cartoons have become a growing trend in Sri Lanka. Cartoons of different languages and different cultures have been dubbed into the Sinhala language and Sri Lankan kids have addicted to watching Sinhala dubbed cartoons. The cartoons such as“Sutin Martin, Super Shiva, Sonic, Ben 10, Kadiyai Thadiyai and Soora Pappa" have become famous among the kids. Hence, this study is done with reference to the above Sinhala dubbed cartoons in Sirasa, Hiru TV, and Derana. The objective of this case study is to identify the impact of Sinhala dubbed cartoons on Sri Lankan kids who are in the age limit of 6 to 10 years old. Furthermore, this study discusses the perspective of the parents on the behaviour of their children and the effectiveness of Sinhala dubbed cartoons. 20 randomly selected kids including 10 boys and 10 girls from Colombo district schools were interviewed together with their parents. After interviewing the kids and their parents, a percentage analysis is given by analysing separately the data collected from the kids and their parents. According to the results, the behavior of the kids and their parent`s opinions depicted that both boys and girls have adopted to use Sinhala colloquial phrases used in the cartoons. Violence has been mostly increased among boys. Both girls and boys have equally tended to use clothes in which the cartoon characters have been fabricated. In addition, appetite for the food shown in cartoons has been increased among kids. Moreover, results gained by interviewing the parents showed that they did not want their children to watch Sinhala dubbed cartoons. In conclusion, in this study, the researcher identifies the negative impacts and effectiveness of Sinhala dubbed cartoons on Sri Lankan kids with reference to their behavior and their parent`s opinion.