Media Violence- Does Media Violence Cause Violent Behavior?

Media Violence- Does Media Violence Cause Violent Behavior?

The media is a highly pervasive tool in society, influencing individuals’ decisions, emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. The increasing media consumption has raised a new concern about the probable effects certain content might have on individuals. Media violence has become a key topic of controversy today, given the rise of such content, especially ones targeting young children and teenagers. This paper will focus on the debate of whether or not media violence causes violent behaviour. Even though critics argue that there is little evidence to show the link between violent video games and violent behaviour, recent studies have shown that viewing violent content in the media is likely to model violent behaviours among the viewers, desensitize them towards violent acts and when other environmental factors like poverty and violent family backgrounds are put into consideration, then the effect is worsened. Do you need help with your assignment ? Get in touch with us at eminencepapers.com.

The amount of violent media has risen over the past few years, and technology has made violent media scenes even more graphic and real-like. Feldman (2009) claims that by the time children in the US finish their elementary education, they are exposed to over 800,000 violent acts and 8,000 murders on network television. Various experts, including recent neuroscientists studies, show a close and strong link between violent media content and violent behaviours, particularly among children. Gruel (2010) claims that exposure to violent video games predisposes children to adverse outcomes like physical aggression, reduced proactive control that enables individuals to control impulsivity, damaged higher thinking levels, lessened emotional control, and poor performance in school. However, critics claim that there is little evidence to prove that this link exists and that the majority of the studies have been conducted in a laboratory; hence, they cannot be applied in the real world (Coyne, 2007; Millet, 2010). Coyne (2007) further claims that most studies on the link between violent media and violent behaviours have operationally defined aggressive behaviours in different ways, such as blasts of noise, negative essay evaluation, and delivery shocks. Such methods, therefore, fail to provide conclusive evidence on real-life violence; hence a weak link is drawn between media violence and violent behaviours.

Studies on mimicry and modelling have shown a high tendency to imitate aggressive tendencies after exposure to violent content in the media. According to Feldman (2009), prolonged exposure to media violence increases the viewers’ susceptibility to aggressive acts. Huesmann and Kirwil (2007) support this by claiming severe violent behaviour is usually a result of individual predisposing factors and precipitating situational factors and that exposure to violent content is a primary contributor to violent behaviours in the short run. Randomized experiments show that individuals’ exposure to media violence instantly enhances the probability of aggressive behaviours for adults and children in the short run. The chief process underlying this effect is priming, which occurs through mimicry and heightened arousal (Huesmann, 2007). Various longitudinal studies have also shown that children’s exposure to violent media, particularly violent video games, results in long-term increment in their risk of behaving violently or aggressively (Huesmann, 2007). Such long-term effects result from desensitization processes and observational learning, which neuroscientists consider to take place automatically in the child’s mind. Children tend to observe and mimic behaviours in the media and real life together, with the social cognitions and emotional reactions backing these behaviours. Media violence exposure increases the probability of hostile appraisals (perceptions of hostile intentions or actions by others). It also increases aggressive thoughts, physiological arousal, angry feelings, and aggressive behaviours (Anderson et al., 2017).

Media violence tends to desensitize individuals towards violence, causing them to be less sensitive to the suffering and pain of others. Among the best examples of this desensitization are the cruel acts of murder and assaults committed by young adolescents towards others. A proportion of imprisoned teenagers for aggressive acts claim to have been inspired by certain content in the media. For instance, in Florida, about a quarter of young male offenders are said to have been re-enacting a crime committed in the media (Feldman, 2009). Allan Menzies, in 2004, stabbed his friend, ate a part of his skull and drank his blood, and claims to have re-enacted a scene from Queen of the Damned (Coyne, 2007). Feldman (2007) gives an example of brothers who strangled their mother, cut her head and hands, and when they got caught, they claimed to have re-enacted a scene from “The Sopranos.” Another study on sex offenders and murderers also showed that the media played a significant role in their crimes by attempting to re-enact what they watched (Coyne, 2007). Some studies show a slight increment in the crime rate after the introduction of television, and adolescents were more prone to committing these crimes (Coyne, 2007). It is indeed true that the increment in crime might be linked to other factors like poverty, changes in social structure, violence at home, and access to handguns. However, the evidence of the link between media violence and violent crimes is indisputable.

According to Millett (2010), the sample sizes commonly used in the experiments on the causal link between media violence and actual violence is small. Furthermore, the experiments are commonly conducted in a laboratory (Coyne, 2007). Coyne (2007) further states that when other factors like violent family backgrounds are controlled, the link between media violence and violent behaviours is weak. Whereas these arguments might be strong, these critics seem to support the fact that there is an actual link between media violence and aggressive behaviours. For instance, Coyne (2007), a critic, argues that individuals who are already prone to violence are particularly susceptible to media violence. Thus, this only supports the existence of an actual link between media violence and violent behaviours, even though the strength of this link might be debatable.

In summary, media violence exposure predisposes individuals to violent behaviors. Individuals, particularly adolescents and children, tend to model this behaviour through observational learning and become less sensitized towards violence by viewing violent content. Accordingly, this is evidenced in the number of adolescent offenders who re-enact media content in their acts of aggression. Individuals are likely to experience reduced suffering and pain brought by aggression, resulting in even more aggressive tendencies. Other factors like poverty and violent homes or neighbourhoods might predispose individuals to violence, but media violence tends to instigate and increase these tendencies. The degree to which media influences aggressive behaviors is up for further debate.

References

Anderson, C. A., Bushman, B. J., Bartholow, B. D., Cantor, J., Christakis, D., Coyne, S. M., … & Ybarra, M. (2017). Screen violence and youth behaviour. Pediatrics, 140(Supplement_2), S142-S147.

Coyne, S. M. (2007). Does media violence cause violent crime?. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 13(3), 205-211.

Feldman, R. (2009). Psychology and your Life. McGraw-Hill.

Gruel, S. (2010). From “Brief of Amicus Curiae in Case of Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association,” U.S. Supreme Court.

Huesmann, L. R. (2007). The impact of electronic media violence: Scientific theory and research. Journal of Adolescent Health, 41(6), S6-S13.

Huesmann, L. R., & Kirwil, L. (2007). Why does observing violence increase the risk of violent behaviour by the observer?

Millett, P. A. (2010). From “Brief of Amici Curiae in Case of Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association,” U.S. Supreme Court.

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Research essay based on information found in the textbook Psychology and Your Life by Robert S. Feldman
3 outside sources, six complete paragraphs for or against the debate, cover page, and in-text citations, header with shortened title in ALL Caps

Media Violence- Does Media Violence

Introduction paragraph and thesis statement
Topic background paragraph that presents both sides of the debate
Body consisting of three claim paragraphs and supporting evidence
Conclusion paragraph