BY Liza Plummer
Life at 9 is an Australian television show that correlates with the Growing Up in Australia longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC). The goal of the study is to look at parenting types to see what works well and what the government could do to help parents. The show focuses on 11 of the 10,000 children from the study. It follows the children through the first 9 years of their lives. It is unlike a family focused reality television show in the States, as this TV program focuses on improving their childhood rather than the drama. Psychologist track the progress of the children and observe how they manage stress, change, and growing up. The children are filmed and studied throughout their major milestones such as their first steps, first day of school, and many other life changes along the way.
Throughout Life at 9 the kids face different life challenge such as growing up in poverty, having teenage parents, and having parents with varying illness such as cancer, depression, and blindness. These difficulties provide the government with insight on how to best support growing families facing certain challenges. This TV program is very eye opening because some children in difficult situations are still able to excel. While on the other hand, some children in happy families are struggling. For instance, Loulou is born to a loving mum and dad who always wanted a baby. Her mum finally conceived through in vitro fertilisation when she was in her 40’s. Although Loulou was planned and wanted, her parents became unhappy and overwhelmed after her birth. When Loulou turns five years ago her parents are both diagnosed with depression and end up getting a divorce. Loulou struggles to be able to manage her own temper. On the other hand, Wyatt is born to teenage parents and lives in poverty. Yet, he is a happy child. Studies of Wyatt’s life show that he is a resilient and well adapted child. He is independent and trusting of many adults. Despite constantly moving houses and switching between caretakers he seems to be thriving at age five.
One of the observational studies is “The Scary Robot Test” in which the children are shown a scary toy and their reactions are observed. The study is done on two of the children, Anastasia and Jara’na. Anastasia’s parents firmly believe that she should always be under their care or another family member. This leaves little remove for Anastasia to learn from her peers. During “The Scary Robot Test” she is scared and unhappy. She is unwilling to look at the toy and cries until it is removed. While Jara’na grows up in a large, financial-unstable Aboriginal family. He has a strong relationship with both of his parents and is given constant attention and love from his older siblings. In “The Scary Robot Test” he is nervous at first, but his dad is there to show him that it is safe, which makes him excited to play with it.
The crew for Life at 9 tries to not interfere with the children they are filming so they only check in and film every other year. The developmental studies are typically done in the “Life Lab”; a large room with mirrors that are secretly windows. The room has been designed to facilitate normal childhood activity without the pressure of being observed interfering. In the lab there hidden cameras which allow the researchers to replay the events and take a closer look at the children’s body language and other social cues that may have originally been overlooked.
After watching the show, I wondered about the effect it has on these children and if the ends, of the study and TV show, justify the means. Perhaps it has been positive as their families form close connections with the 10 other families, and through the valuable information discovered through this research. But it also seems unnatural to grow up in front of cameras and have their childhood displayed publicly on Netflix. Overall, I found Life at 9 to be very captivating, and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in psychology, childhood development or sociology. Click Here for Preview
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