When we protect our children from certain kinds of knowledge, are we protecting their psychological health, or are we protecting ourselves from dealing with uncomfortable subects?

The think a couple of the most common things we try to keep our children from seeing are sex and violence. Sex and violence are part of our world, and the world can be dangerous. Kids on farms see sex all the time. Kids in war zones and areas of poverty see violence all the time.

Most people believe that we should protect our kids from these things. I know I tried to protect mine. But I also wonder if we underestimate our children. Maybe they don’t need to be protected so much.

Are we really protecting their psychological health? Or could we be going too far and keeping them from information they need? Is innocence useful? Is there any data on this subject that would allow us to separate opinion and speculation from a more sophisticated understanding?