Media Violence And Violent Behaviors Among Children

It is a matter of great importance how much of media content children are exposed to and what exactly they are viewing on media. The issue of violence is not a new phenomenon among children and keeps increasing with time and change in technology and information technology. The causes of violence in children are seen to be multifactorial and exposure of children to media violence is said to be an important factor when it comes to the etiology of behaviors that are violent among children.

Television is the mainstream of our culture. Violence on television has been a topic of conflict since before 1950. There have been repeated debates on how to protect children from the harmful effects of violence on television. Television is one form of modern media that influences the everyday lives of people. Televised violence has a major effect on how children perceive the world and how they behave. "American television has become the most violent in the world. It is for this reason why researchers have focused their attention toward television violence" (Cantor & Hoffner 424-4-25). Children enjoy watching television and now with the increased technology of cable and movie

(1).The problem is that in the last four decades, the government and the public health amassed an impressive body of evidence identifying the impact of media violence on children. Since 1969, when President [Lyndon] Johnson formed the National Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence, the body of data has effectively grown and grown and it leads to an unambiguous and virtually unanimous conclusion: media violence contributes to

The article “Violence As Fun” by Randall Sullivan brings up this issue, arguing that parents need to be educated on the dangers of allowing their children to watch violent TV programs. The author supports this with evidence from a report conducted by The American Psychological Association, where they concluded that early substance abuse, access to weapons, isolation, and widespread display of violence in media; the latter being greater, contributes to the violent behaviors in adolescents. He also points out that since the 1950s, aggravated assaults have increased seven times. The passage further emphasizes that many TV outlets know the damaging effects that violence in media has on juveniles, yet only a few acknowledge this fact. Sullivan’s

Many people still have several questions they want answered, such as, is media violence actually affecting children or are children already prone to violence drawn to media violence? Some experts have shown short and long-term negative effects occur in children from watching violent media; however another group of experts have shown that media violence is only one of many risk factors leading to aggression developed in children. These two groups need to continue more research and go beyond that to find true solutions. Nevertheless, no sources were found to say that media violence has no influence on the increase in modern culture’s violent actions. The key to discovering the true correlation between violence in children and media violence is to continue research until a solution is

“In terms of exposure, the average U.S. child between the ages of 8 and 18 spends 6½ hours a day using media” (Strasburger, V., & Wilson, B. 2009). Children are the most vulnerable target, not only do they manipulate their parents as consumers, but they are also susceptible to being misled by what they see. Many children lack discernment between actual acts of violence and mock violence exhibited in pop culture. The authors of Children, Adolescents, and the Media assert, “… Youth today are confronted with a media environment that is rapidly changing. Technologies are proliferating, merging, and becoming more interactive. And the content featured in these technologies is increasingly graphic, realistic, and commercial in nature” (Strasburger, V., & Wilson, B. 2009). Television programs often mislead gullible children because of positive attitudes toward violence. Cartoons like Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner follow the laws of animation physics and often display exaggerated cycles of violence. Thus, certain levels of violent acts were accepted and became the norm. The good guy beats the bad guy and over time children may become desensitized. Jacoby (1995) asks the question, “What impact does it have on a generation growing up amid dysfunctional families, broken-down schools, and a culture of values-free secularism?” (p

The media is one of the main elements that influences on aggressive and violent behavior in adolescents. Many researchers have revealed that adolescents spend hours in front of the television. However, violence in movies may convey that the superheroes negative physically and verbally aggressive behaviors are being considered cool, which makes them a role model for adolescents. This kind of violence in television demonstrates to older children and adolescents that is okay to have that behavior, since the characters in a movie are being rewarded for their behavior. According to Rasit Avci and Songül Sonay Gucray (2013): “The claim that watching violence behavior supports the emerge of

Some may go on to argue that children have grown up watching TV violence for many years now, so that there must be some other explanation for the recent surge in youth violence. However, this argument is flawed. Not until the past few decades have conclusive studies on the effects of television violence been performed. As more of these studies are done, the evidence is becoming increasingly clear that there are adverse effects of television violence on children.

The media is a part of everyday life in American kids. Children are surrounded by technology, entertainment, and other media that is full of violence. Newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and the internet all contain violence. Today's media has a negative influence on children. The media does have an influence on them, but does it really influence them to act out even though they know it's wrong? Mass media, and its components, are very powerful and can influence one's mind, as well as their behavior. Children that imitate characters who use violence in the media and display aggressive behavior, tend to give them reason to believe that violence can happen without consequence. For children who grow up with poor adult examples or an

The following paper will examine the negative effects of television and video game violence on children who watch and play these games. Speculation as to the causes of the recent mass shootings in American schools and other public places motivated me to pay more attention to violence on television and in video games and write this paper. Most of these horrible attacks on innocent people occurred by a teenager or young adult. Flipping through television channels, I started paying attention to what type of media content is available for school-age children, and questioning whether the use of aggression or violence in media influences children. An alarming concern came over me as I flipped through the channels designated specifically for children, and viewed some of the shows and movies aired. The first show I came across was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and although the four green turtles are considered crime fighters, these weapon bearing turtles showed aggression and violence to others. The turtles battled monsters and gangsters with ninja weapons like nunchaku, staffs and swords. The cartoon characters were stabbed, beaten, mutilated and clearly shown to suffer, all to prove the four turtles were macho. After making a quick review of children’s television shows and video games, I choose to write this paper to demonstrate that children who watch violence on television or play violent video games are more likely to develop aggressive behavior with

Violence among our youth has spread widely throughout the nation. This can be linked to several problems in our society, but mainly one. The constant barrage of television and media violence causes deviant behavior in children. When children are young they are very impressionable by the things around them. Often kids are influenced by what they see. If kids are watching shows or being introduced to violent acts they too will tend to act out this violence (Huesmann and Eron, 1986). The results of studies on the effects of televised violence are consistent. By watching aggression, children learn how to be aggressive in new ways and they also draw conclusions about whether being aggressive to others will bring them rewards (Huesmann and

Today’s society is heavily influenced by television. The violence disrupts a child’s learning process and can alter the moral beliefs that an older person has. Children view more violence on Saturday mornings than any other time. The cartoons aimed at little children influence youngsters to mimic violent acts because their parents do not fully explain the effects of the stunts. It is pathetic that in such a technology based society, such a simple thing as television can have a negative effect on people.

Children view violence in different ways when they watch it on television, whether it is cartoons or a type of drama and action programming. After children have watched these television shows, they may have interpreted the meaning into a negative behavior. It could influence them by becoming aggressive, afraid of the world that surrounds them, or it may lead to confusion. When it is said that children may become confused because their parents teach that violence is wrong. When they view someone in a “superhero” position participating in violence, they may see that as it is all right for the simple fact the good person does the action. According to the American Academy of Children and Adolescent Psychiatry, “the impact of TV violence may be immediately evident in the child's behavior or may surface years later (AACAP, 2011).”

As evidence has shown, children view many violent scenes while watching television, movies, or playing video games, but the question still remains: What psychological effect does violence in the media have on children? Research over the past 10 years has consistently shown that there is a cause-and-effect relationship between media violence and real-life aggression (Strasburger 129). Violence in the media can lead to aggressive behavior by children and teenagers who watch the various programs. Of course, not all children who watch television, or movies, or play video games develop aggressive behavior. However, there is a strong correlation between media violence and aggressive behavior. A study, published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry, examined how children's television viewing practices are related to aggressive behaviors. The results revealed that children who reported watching greater amounts of television per day had higher levels of violent behavior than children who reported lesser amounts of television viewing (Singer 1041). Witnessing violence is an important determining factor in violent behavior. The media serves as a means for children to witness violence. According to Bandura's Social Learning Theory, children imitate behavior that they see on television, especially if the person performing the behavior is attractive or if the

In the book Critique of Violence ,author Walter describes Violence as "The intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person, or against a group or community, which either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, male development, or deprivation .The violence that is portrayed in the media has been debated for decades ,and it has rose a question about how does it influence the youth?. From movies to video games society has been accustom to seeing violence in their everyday entertainment. Since children are easy to be influence by their environment, it is safe to say that violence in the media can and will contribute to violent behavior.