Given the general and somewhat contradictory nature of previous research examining children's perceptions of the reality in television programming, this paper attempted (1) to separate the different levels of television content, (2) to determine the extent to which personal experience with specific role and situational stereotypes influence judgments of television's presenta-tions, and (3) to examine a wide range of socioeconomic status (SES) char-acteristics within the context of the same study to facilitate direct compari-sons. The results of the study indicate that lower SES Blacks and emotion-ally disturbed children view specific role stereotypes and general situations as significantly more real than do Whites and gifted children. The implica-tions of these findings relevant to the child's maturation process were explored.
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