The amount of violence present in media entertainment and its effect on consumers has long since been a major social concern. Even before considering available evidence, exposing individuals of a species that learns primarily by observation to large volumes of visual violence is unlikely to be free of negative consequences. Though evidence and theories exist on both sides of the argument, the belief that witnessing excessive violence in popular media can affect interpersonal aggression is highly supported.
Countless studies have been conducted in order to further understand the issues at hand and identify the extent of the risks involved. An overwhelming number of these support the claim that media violence can affect individual aggression levels. In my research, I found a handful of arguments thoroughly denouncing the link between media violence and aggressive behaviour. Most of these focused their arguments primarily on the fact of lack of fact – that there is not enough empirical, indisputable evidence proving the existence of a link beyond reasonable doubt.
This is true – it is near impossible to prove the cause of such a complex social phenomenon beyond question. Dr. Guy Cumberbatch identified the major difficulty of media violence research: “You cannot simulate in a laboratory the complex social problems that people are concerned about”. However, many studies have proven to varying extents that a link between violence in media and aggressive behaviour does exist. Considering how much of our time and money goes towards such entertainment, these findings are significant despite lack of empirical evidence and should not be taken lightly.
Psychological Effects of Media Violence
Psychologist Albert Bandura’s theory of learning and related research shows that children learn a great deal by imitation, and as such their behaviour is influenced in part by what they observe. It follows that children are more vulnerable to the negative effects of violent media consumption, as they:
- are more impressionable
- have more trouble distinguishing between fantasy and reality
- cannot easily discern motives for violence, and
- learn by observation and imitation (Bushman, 2001).
It is a dangerous fact that those individuals who require the most protection in society are exposed to the greatest risks in terms of psychological development. It is often said that children represent the future; taking the above factors into account, the future of society has an excellent chance of being characterized by increasing levels of violent crimes. An individual exposed to violent entertainment consistently from a young age poses a risk to himself, to others, and to society as a whole. The molding of youth into aggressive individuals is a dangerous endeavor for all parties involved.
Numerous studies centering on exposure to violent media have found significant negative effects that arise. Individuals show a decreased concern for the suffering of victims, lowering their ability to make judgments based on identifying with an intended or observed victim. Also noted is the individual’s desensitization to violent acts, which is dangerous as it places such acts on a neutral level in the mind. As a result, violence may become less and less out of the ordinary to affected individuals.
Unsurprisingly, exposure to violent media has been found to increase the likelihood of viewers copying the acts they witness in entertainment mediums (Bandura, 1965). Hostile attribution bias is another consequence, characterized by the individual’s tendency to perceive the world in aggressive terms, meaning the subject is much more likely to respond aggressively to apparent provocations. Though provocation may be completely unintentional, the individual has been conditioned to assume that they are under attack. It can be summarized that extensive exposure to violent entertainment effectively decreases humanity, molding individuals to adopt more animalistic and dangerous personalities than would otherwise have developed.
The Surgeon Generals Scientific Advisory Committee on Television and Social Behaviour (formed in 1969) identifies that exposure to media violence may also cause viewers to become more fearful of the world around them. This effect is known as “mean world syndrome” and is characterized by the belief that the individual’s environment is as violent and dangerous as those fictional worlds encountered in the media. This may be linked to the development of a hostile attribution bias, as fear would naturally cause an individual to become more guarded and paranoid towards his surroundings.
Though less common and certainly small in light of other findings, catharsis is one positive effect of violent media. In this case, exposure to violent in the media may reduce aggression in some viewers. This is often found in cases where individuals have a difficult time creating their own fantasies, and as such violent media serves as an outlet for aggressive behaviour. Also, in certain cases such exposure may create aggression anxiety, which inhibits aggressive impulses.
Violence in Television and Film
TV and movies are notorious for showcasing vast amounts of violence. Television became available in the USA and Canada in the 1950s; violent crime rates rose dramatically in these countries between 1960 and 1990 (Feedman, 2002). According to Brandon Centerwall, psychiatrist and epidemiologist: “if, hypothetically, television technology had never been developed, there would today be 10, 000 fewer homicides each year in the US, 70, 000 fewer rapes, and 700, 000 fewer injurious assaults” (Centerwall, 1992). Such statistics offer simple initial insights into the extent of the effects media consumption has on human behaviour.
Research conducted by psychologists L. Rowell Huesmann, Leonard Eron, and others found that children who watched a lot of violence on television in elementary school tended to show increased aggression as teens. As adults, these same individuals were more likely to be arrested for criminal acts. It appears that the programs we are exposed to on television – an increasingly popular pastime – are raising national crime rates, albeit indirectly.
Violence in Video Games
Douglas A. Gentile (2005) and others found that as many as 89% of video games include some sort of violent content; about half include violence against others causing serious injury or death. Video games have been identified as effective in teaching as they use accepted psychological principles of learning, cognition, and instruction. From this it logically follows that they are exemplary at teaching aggression, as well as positive traits. Psychologists Craig A. Anderson and others showed through research that playing violent video games can increase aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behaviour. Games may be more harmful due to their interactive nature and the individual’s need to identify strongly with the protagonists. It is the nature of games that the player becomes engrossed in the fictional world and its events.
A study conducted by psychologist Craig Anderson and others in 2008 tested both high- (USA) and low- (Japan) violence cultures for effects of violent games on aggression. Findings showed that those who played a lot of violent video games became more physically aggressive, to a similar extent in both USA and Japan samples. The largest correlation occurred in the sample with younger participants and a longer duration between aggression measurements, suggesting that:
- younger individuals are more strongly affected
- the effects occur most notably over the long term rather than in the short term
These findings contradict the idea that only highly aggressive children will be negatively affected by exposure to violent video games, as both cultures showed similar increases in aggression. Another study conducted by psychologist Douglas A. Gentile and others also found that more regular play of violent games distributed over a longer period of time led to a more significant increase in aggressive thoughts and behaviours in those groups that played more violent games.
In a study conducted by psychologists Dr. Craig Anderson and Dr. Karen Dill, 210 college students played either a violent (Wolfenstein 3D) or non-violent (Myst) video game. Shortly after, aggression in the students was measured by recording the length of time each participant punished an opponent by blasting them with a loud noise. The students who played the violent game exhibited more aggression.
Read also Media Violence and Its Effects on Aggression.
References:
American Psychological Association. (2003). "Preventing violence by teaching non-violent problem solving" (retrieved January 2009).
American Psychological Association. (2004). " Violence in the media - Psychologists help protect children from harmful effects " (retrieved January 2009).
Anderson, A. C., & Sakamoto, A. & others. (2008). "Longitudinal effects of violent games on aggression in Japan and the United States." Pediatrics, 122;e1067-e1072. doi: 10.1542/peds.2008-1425.
Bandura, A. (1965). "Influence of models' reinforcement contingencies on the acquisition of imitative responses." Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 1, pp. 589-595.
Bushman, B.J.m & Huesmann, L.R. (2001). "Effects of televised violence on aggression." In D.G. Singer and J.L. Singer (Eds.) Handbook of children and the media (Ch. 11, pp. 223-254).
Centerwall, B.S. (1992). "Television violence: The scale of the problem and where to go from here." Journal of the American Medical Association, 267, 3059 – 3063.
Freedman, L. (2002). Media Violence and Its Effect on Aggression. Toronto: University of Toronto Press Inc.
Gentile, A. D., & Gentile, J. R. (2005). "Violent video games as exemplary teachers." MediaFamily.org (Retrieved February 2009).
Gentile, A. D., & Walsh, A. D. & others. (2004). "Media violence as a risk factor for children: A longitudinal study." MediaFamily.org (Retrieved February 2009).
Media Awareness Network (2009). "The business of media violence" (retrieved February 2009).
Media Know All. "Violence and the media" (retrieved January 2009).
Post, V. J. (2009). " Open questions on the correlation between television and violence " (retrieved February 2009).
BBC News/ Unspecified (2000, April 23). "Video games increase aggression," April 23, 2000 (retrieved February 2009).
