Parents score over Sachin, SRK in student poll

Teens never do the expected, but still, a poll showing most teens prefer their mum and dad to Sachin Tendulkar and Shah Rukh Khan would surprise most people.

Teens never do the expected, but still, a poll showing most teens prefer their mum and dad to Sachin Tendulkar and Shah Rukh Khan would surprise most people.

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A survey of 500 teens between 13 and 18 years about their role models showed that children preferred hectoring parents, idealistic freedom fighters and lab-bound scientists to heroes of the sporting and political field that hog primetime television.

The poll of Class IX to Class XI students from 30 public schools in south Delhi and the NCR was announced by a team of mental health experts led by Dr Samir Parikh, consultant psychiatrist with Max Healthcare.

“This is a healthy trend. Most kids would naturally get inclined towards their parents. I am not surprised about 30 per cent, it could well have been 50 per cent or more,” said Dr Amit Sen, Delhi-based child and adolescent psychiatrist.
“The choice of role models reflects their psychological and behavioral attitudes. Younger children may choose Shah Rukh Khan or Sachin, but older children look beyond the glamour surrounding stars to consider the values they appreciate,” said Dr Parikh.

What surprised most was that sportspersons polled a mere 6 per cent votes, even lower than media personalities. The only expected result was the reviled politicians making it to the bottom of the list, with 10 out of 500 votes.