Introduction
Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit media and educational organization behind Sesame Street, the pioneering television show that has been reaching and teaching children since 1969. Today, Sesame Workshop is an innovative force for change, with a mission to help kids everywhere grow smarter, stronger, and kinder. We’re present in more than 150 countries, serving vulnerable children through a wide range of media, formal education, and philanthropically funded social impact programs, each grounded in rigorous research and tailored to the needs and cultures of the communities we serve. For more information, please visit www.sesameworkshop.org.
The study
Parasocial relationships - relationships between viewers and on-screen characters - are impactful drivers of engagement and comprehension (Lauricella et al., 2011). Recent evidence (Fisch et al., 2024; Foulds et al., 2024) suggests that when educational media is grounded in playful learning and that media models guided play, children’s parasocial relationships with their favorite characters may transform their viewing experience into a guided play experience that becomes meaningful and socially interactive.
Given this suggestive evidence, this study will explore the relationship between parasocial relationships and children’s prosocial behavior outcomes. This small-scale impact study of Sesame Workshop’s Tales from 123, a 5-minute animated format, to understand the strength of the relationship between Tales from 123 characters and children viewing the content, and how this relationship supports children's prosocial behavior in response to social problems they may experience.
The study design will be guided by these research questions:
- What is the strength of children's parasocial relationships with Tales from 123 characters at baseline?
- Following at home engagement with Tales from 123, do parents report increases in their child's perspective taking, cooperative play, and pro-social behavior modeling?
- Does the strength of children's parasocial relationships with Tales from 123 characters at baseline predict the degree of change in caregiver-reported pro-social behavior outcomes from baseline to endline?
The study design
To conduct this study, we expect our research partner to employ a mixed methods study approach focused on children 4-6 years old and their parent/primary caregiver. The final research design will be refined in coordination with Sesame Workshop’s New York and Mexico City teams. Research may occur in-person or via hybrid implementation.
Based on this, impact outcomes we will measure include:
· Increased number of parents/caregivers who report their child practices improved perspective taking and cooperative play
· Increased number of parents/caregivers who report their child models improved pro-social behavior
For this study, at baseline, children will complete a direct character recognition assessment. Parents/primary caregivers will separately complete a caregiver-report scale rating their child's perspective taking, cooperative play, and pro-social behavior.
Then, for 2-3 weeks, families will receive 8 5-minute episodes of Tales from 123 and will be encouraged to view as often as they would like. Videos should be hosted on a platform that allows the research partner to collect backend viewing data, to be included in the analysis.
At endline, children will repeat the character recognition assessment and parents/caregivers will repeat the caregiver-report scale, along with a brief measure of content appeal and relevance, device usage, at-home viewing dosage, and observed viewing behaviors.
Sample
We request that the children who participate in this study be 4-6-year-olds. Participating adults should be the child’s primary caregiver. Mindful of the depth of diversity across Mexico and how this likely intersects with media engagement, we expect proposals to include a stratified sampling plan that acknowledges this diversity.
Timing
Final deliverables are expected by June 2027. Proposals should include a plan for data collection starting in February 2027.
Proposal Components
Proposals should be no longer than 10 pages and should include a provision for delivery of the following elements:
1. Research Design: Proposals shall outline the design of this research activity:
· Description of proposed measurement tools
· Sampling plan, including approach to sampling diversity and recruitment strategies
· Data collection plan, including a description of quality control
o measures for data collection; a description of how researchers are trained and ways in which researchers will ensure that they adhere to the ethical standards of research set forth by the Society for Research on Child Development (http://www.srcd.org/about-us/ethical-standards-research).
· IRB approval is required for this work. The research team can use SW’s external IRB, Salus IRB, or their own IRB provider.
· Data analysis plan that outlines how data will be analyzed to draw conclusions about the project’s impact
· Timeline
2. Budget: A detailed budget for the project shall be submitted with the research
proposal.
3. Key personnel: CVs or biographic summaries of key personnel.
4. Past evaluations and references:
· A 1-2-page description of similar or comparable studies in which the agency has
· engaged in the past, or similar work sample
· Contact information for at least 2 previous clients for references
Any pages exceeding the 10-page limit will not be considered as part of the evaluation assessment.
Deliverables
Researchers will deliver the following for the evaluation:
1. Draft report: Researchers will submit a report of findings, via Word Doc and in English
2. Final report: The researcher will submit a final version of the report of the findings to Sesame Workshop, incorporating edits from review of draft report (in English). The report must include an Executive Summary.
3. Presentation of findings: The research team will present a summary of findings remotely to a group of internal and external stakeholders.
4. Data, original instruments, videos, IRB approval document, consent forms, data, and other material: Researchers will be required to submit an electronic version of data (in SPSS or SPSS-compatible format), as well as original instruments, and any videos made of children during the research sessions. Instruments will be in the local language (if applicable) and English. Quantitative data will be submitted in English and qualitative data should be submitted in the original language and an English translation. These items will become the property of Sesame Workshop.
Budget:
The research proposal should not exceed a budget of USD100,000.
Evaluation Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria. Mexico-based research teams and research firms will be given priority:
· Experience in conducting and analyzing qualitative and quantitative research and knowledge of media research methodologies
· Experience conducting educational research with young children and families
· Experience conducting research on media effects
· Experience conducting research across Mexico
· A demonstrated capacity to work in a range of settings and to deliver products in a timely fashion under tight and strict monitoring, management, and deadlines
· The ability to produce high-quality reports
· Feasibility of study within budget and time parameters
· Appropriateness of research design
· Capacity to execute proposed study
How to submit proposals
Submit proposals on or before October 23, 2026, by 5pm (GMT-4) via email to Kim Foulds: kim.foulds@sesame.org.
Please note the following in the email subject heading: Proposal for Tales from 123 evaluation
Deliverable timeline:
Deliverable
Due date
Final research design
15 January 2027
Draft report
24 May 2027
Final report
18 June 2027
References:
Fisch, S., Fletcher, K., Abdurokhmonova, G., David, L., Fisch, N., Fisch, S., Jurist, M., Kestin, R., Pesch, A., Segui, I., Shulman, J., Silton, N., Tomforde, J., Volpe, C., Wright, C., & Hirsh-Pasek, K. (2024). “I wonder, what if, let’s try”: Sesame Street’s playful learning curriculum impacts children’s problem solving. Journal of Children and Media, 18(3), 334-350. https://doi.org/10.1080/17482798.2024.2356958
Foulds, K., Burd, L., Bustamante, A., Hirsh-Pasek, K., Kye, H., Madden, L., Lowdermilk Roberts, R., Mannan, F., & Potgieter, C. (2024). Bridging the cultures of research and practice: The global evolution of Sesame Street’s playful problem-solving curriculum. Journal of Children and Media, 18(3), 367-377. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/17482798.2024.2356960
Lauricella, A., Gola, A., & Calvert, S. (2011). Toddlers’ Learning From Socially Meaningful Video Characters. Media Psychology, 14(2), 216–232.