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I've heard some plausible theories. For a young kid, the world is a strange and unpredictable place. Which means "scary" in some sense. Watching a video (tha

I've heard some plausible theories. For a young kid, the world is a strange and unpredictable place. Which means "scary" in some sense. Watching a video (that the kid has seen many times before) is actually comforting. The kid can predict what's going to happen next, and is happy when expectations match reality. There's possibly something similar going on with people on the autistic end of the spectrum, which may explain why they tend to get upset when taken out of their routine.

derefr 9y ago
I find rewatching things I still remember the plots of intolerable... when I'm fully awake. When I'm trying to fall asleep, I will almost always put on an episode of a podcast I've heard 500 times. It's more soothing than one of those ambient-noise apps.
- timthorn 9y ago
  Try the Shipping Forecast. Different every night, but just the same each time.
colanderman 9y ago
Speaking as an adult, the videos that will captivate me to the point of repeatedly rewatching them are specifically the videos that are unfamiliar and weird. Like say Kitty City [1]. My brain can't comprehend the unfamiliar world logic behind the video in just one go; it crave rewatches to better understand what the heck is happening in that scary world. So my pet theory is that actually the opposite of the above theory is true. Kids rewatch movies that push the boundaries of their reality, in order to gain a better understanding of them. When the novelty wears off they'll move on. Probably the truth is some combination of both. I wouldn't be surprised if certain times of day, developmental needs kick in and kids want to rewatch movies they don't understand; while other times of day, comfort needs kick in and they just want to see Elsa sing for the 100th time. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jX3iLfcMDCw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jX3iLfcMDCw
- FrozenVoid 9y ago
  Looks like some pro-Zerg propoganda.
- musage 9y ago
  Oh yeah. Cyriak, and Blu. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr_lcVVoDIY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr_lcVVoDIY I remember re-reading / looking at things more often than I would do today. That is, a few books I liked a lot. Other than that, new and wild was always appreciated, just not so wild to be scary. But still, protection from overstimulation (and danger) is a really important job of parents, especially for infants, predictability to a degree is important. Vital, even. Too much lack of it puts the baby into survival mode so to speak. This is cobbled together from armchair psychology but I'll just say it anyway, I think a roaring sea of non-sequitur events is just about the worst that could happen to a developing brain, it will have to develop shells instead of being able blossom and keep the ability to be sensitive (while developing the ability to, when needed, protect one's own attention oneself). So I agree, it's probably a combination of both. New input, come to terms with it, integrate it, get comfortable, get hungry, get new input :)

derefr 9y ago

I find rewatching things I still remember the plots of intolerable... when I'm fully awake. When I'm trying to fall asleep, I will almost always put on an episode of a podcast I've heard 500 times. It's more soothing than one of those ambient-noise apps.

timthorn 9y ago
Try the Shipping Forecast. Different every night, but just the same each time.

colanderman 9y ago

Speaking as an adult, the videos that will captivate me to the point of repeatedly rewatching them are specifically the videos that are unfamiliar and weird. Like say Kitty City [1]. My brain can't comprehend the unfamiliar world logic behind the video in just one go; it crave rewatches to better understand what the heck is happening in that scary world. So my pet theory is that actually the opposite of the above theory is true. Kids rewatch movies that push the boundaries of their reality, in order to gain a better understanding of them. When the novelty wears off they'll move on. Probably the truth is some combination of both. I wouldn't be surprised if certain times of day, developmental needs kick in and kids want to rewatch movies they don't understand; while other times of day, comfort needs kick in and they just want to see Elsa sing for the 100th time. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jX3iLfcMDCw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jX3iLfcMDCw

FrozenVoid 9y ago
Looks like some pro-Zerg propoganda.
musage 9y ago
Oh yeah. Cyriak, and Blu. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr_lcVVoDIY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr_lcVVoDIY I remember re-reading / looking at things more often than I would do today. That is, a few books I liked a lot. Other than that, new and wild was always appreciated, just not so wild to be scary. But still, protection from overstimulation (and danger) is a really important job of parents, especially for infants, predictability to a degree is important. Vital, even. Too much lack of it puts the baby into survival mode so to speak. This is cobbled together from armchair psychology but I'll just say it anyway, I think a roaring sea of non-sequitur events is just about the worst that could happen to a developing brain, it will have to develop shells instead of being able blossom and keep the ability to be sensitive (while developing the ability to, when needed, protect one's own attention oneself). So I agree, it's probably a combination of both. New input, come to terms with it, integrate it, get comfortable, get hungry, get new input :)