For Phyllis Young: Violence on Children’s TV

Media Violence (1 of 2)

Seven-year-old Jacob enjoys watching cartoons on TV every morning before his parents wake up. Not only is he able to turn on the TV without assistance, he is also able to operate the DVR (digital video recorder) or play a DVD.

In an effort to curtail his unsupervised TV viewing, John’s parents, Jerry and Jane, decide to buy him cartoons and movies. Jacob particularly likes watching superhero cartoons, where the protagonist fights criminals with bare hands in a cape. Jacob has taken to imitating the superheroes he watches by tying a towel around his neck and running around the house with his arms raised. Jerry thinks Jacob’s actions are cute, and he has recorded a video of Jacob “flying” around the house.

One day, while imitating his favorite superhero Jacob grabbed his little brother, Jeff, threw him on the floor, sat on his chest, and began strangling him. When Jeff began to cry loudly, Jane rushed to see what was wrong. She was shocked to see Jacob sitting on Jeff’s chest. She separated the two boys, but Jeff would not stop crying and complained of pain in his chest. She rushed him to the hospital where he was diagnosed with a broken rib. The doctor listened to what happened and suggested to Jane that she and Jerry should talk to Jacob about the dangers of imitating what he watches on TV.

Media Violence (2 of 2)

Early Studies on Child Imitation

In 1961, Albert Bandura performed an experiment using a large, air-filled punching bag, which he nicknamed the ‘Bobo’ doll. Children under five observed an adult hitting, punching, kicking, and throwing Bobo violently around an empty room. The adult was made to perform specific actions on the doll for the benefit of the observing children. The experiment was devised in such a manner because the children were not likely to be familiar with these actions. For example, hammers and catch-phrases, such as “Pow ... boom ... boom,” were used deliberately.

After observing the adult’s interaction with Bobo, the children were asked to play with the doll in the same room for about 20 minutes. Another group of children, the control group, played with Bobo without having observed any adult interaction. Both groups of children playing with the doll were observed by psychologists. The results indicated that the children who had witnessed adult aggression performed similar acts, whereas the children belonging to the control group did not.

The results of Bandura’s series of experiments revealed to parents that their children are impressionable and they tend to imitate the behavior they observe. The more the observation is reinforced, the more likely is the child to imitate the observation.

As noted in the scenario and confirmed by Bandura’s Bobo study, children can easily be influenced by actions they observe. In a study of the effects of violence on TV, children were questioned about the TV shows that they watched the most, whether they identified with the aggressive characters, and whether they thought the violent situations were realistic. The results indicated that the viewing of violence in TV shows, identifying with aggressive same-sex characters on TV, and perceiving that violence on TV is realistic are all linked to a display of increased aggression in both male and female children (Huesmann, Moise-Titus, Podolski, & Eron, 2003).

Prevalence of Media Violence (1 of 2)

After learning how violence on TV is a proven dangerous influence, Jane and Jerry resolve to systematically reduce their sons’ opportunities to watch or observe gratuitous violence.

Jane took the first step by monitoring the boys’ collection of videos to determine the extent of violence they observe each day. Although all the videos had been purchased in the children’s section, Jane was surprised at the extent of violence she had accidentally exposed her sons to. The worst culprit was a cartoon called Superhero. Despite being an animation series, it showed maximum violence and aggression. Jane decided to carefully reorganize her sons’ video library.

Prevalence of Media Violence (2 of 2)

After consolidating the video library, Jane became concerned about other types of violence that might influence the boys. She decided to research the subject on the Internet and was shocked to discover the following information about the different types of media violence:

Types of Media Violence

· TV:

· Statistics reveal that 99% percent of all American households own at least 1 TV, and nearly 79% have 3 or more sets, 71% of all children have TVs in their rooms, and by the age of 18, an American child will have viewed over 16, 000 simulated murders and observed over 200, 000 acts of violence (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010).

· Over 1, 000 studies on the effects of TV and film violence have been performed over the last 30 years to determine if a relationship between media violence and aggression exists. A majority of the studies reach similar conclusion: violence observed on TV and in movies leads to real-world violence (Beresin, 2010).

· Music Lyrics:

· Current music lyrics have become increasingly explicit and center on sex, drugs, and violence against women. An average 8-18 year old listens to approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes of music per day (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010).

· Studies have indicated that a preference for music such as rap and heavy metal can result in more negative feelings toward women, a distrustful attitude, and greater hostility (Anderson, et al., 2003)

· Video Games:

· Sixty percent of children between the ages of 8 and 18 play videogames daily, for an average of 1 hour and 13 minutes per day. More than half had played violent games such as Grand Theft Auto (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010).

· Experts suggest a high pernicious effect, concluding that violent actions performed in video games contribute to children's aggression (Senate Committee on the Judiciary, 1999).

· Internet:

· Eighty-four percent of children ages 8 to 18 have internet access at home, with 33% reporting internet access in their bedrooms.

· The more a child perceives a videogame to be violent, the more involved or “present” a child feels, and in turn the more likely a videogame will be associated with aggression (Nowak, Kremar, & Farrar, 2008).

Psychological Effects of Media Violence (1 of 2)

Emily was asked to attend a parent-teacher meeting with her daughter Francesca’s 5th grade teacher, Ms. Schneider. During the meeting, Emily learned that Ms. Schneider had noted changes in Francesca’s behavior in school over the last couple of months. These included receiving two detentions, hitting a classmate during recess, and breaking the rules while in the playground. On one occasion, when confronted about her behavior, Francesca started to argue with her classmates to such an extent that a teacher was required to intervene. This change in behavior occurred concurrently with academic problems. Ms. Schneider reported that Francesca, a former honor roll student, had begun failing to complete her homework. The situation had exacerbated to the extent that currently, she is not passing any of her classes.

Emily was shocked when Ms. Schneider asked if anything had changed for Francesca at home. She recalled that Francesca had received a new handheld videogame system for her birthday four months ago. She further realized that the kind of games Francesca had been playing included those with violent content, such as karate kick boxing, war simulation, and so on. Emily asked the teacher if she thought the two could be related. When Ms. Schneider agreed, Emily realized that taking away the game system was the first thing she should do.

Psychological Effects of Media Violence (2 of 2)

A 15-year study by Huesmann, Moise-Titus, Podolski, & Eron (2003) revealed that childhood exposure to media violence can be a predictor to aggressive behavior among young adults. When viewing violent TV shows, children may identify with aggressive same-sex TV characters. In addition, if children perceive TV violence as realistic, they can link it to aggression when they are young adults. Of particular interest was the fact that the effects did not vary substantially between the two genders.

However, male children who watch violence on TV for long hours are more likely to grow into adults who will more likely:

· push, grab, or shove their spouses

· respond to insults by shoving the person who insulted them

· be convicted of a crime—in this case, the rate of conviction is three times the conviction rate of men who did not watch violence on TV

Female children who watch violence on TV are more likely to grow into adults who will more likely:

· throw something at their spouses

· respond to someone who angers them by shoving, punching, beating, or choking the person

· commit some form of criminal act

Moreover, these women were reported to punch, beat, or choke another adult at over four times the rate of women who did not watch violence on TV.

Psychoeducational and Intervention Strategies (3 of 4)

On her eleventh birthday, Tina received a portable MP3 player, which she uses to download music from the Internet. She has learned to locate free music on the Internet from an offshore peer-to-peer file sharing site that her friends informed her about. Within a week, Tina downloaded over 20 gigabytes of music (approximately 5,000 songs). Initially, she began with her favorite pop music, but soon moved on to songs recommended by her friends. Tina listens to music on her MP3 player morning, noon, and night and is practically inseparable from it. The only time she turns the player off is during school hours and during meals she has with her family. As a result, Tina is spending less and less time with her friends.

The holidays soon follow and Tina receives a TV as a gift. After dinner, Tina returns to her room to watch her favorite music video channel until her parents insist that she turn the TV off to go to sleep. Now, Tina’s taste in clothing has changed to Goth, and her music tastes have become very dark. Her grades in school have been dropping. Tina’s mother recognizes a problem, but is not sure how to intervene. She approaches their family doctor for insights. The family doctor has provided a brochure with information on how a parent might intervene with a child.

Let's explore guidelines for parental intervention for media violence.

Psychoeducational and Intervention Strategies (4 of 4)

The AMA has created certain guidelines for parental intervention for media violence. It lists the following steps:

1. Limit the use of a music player to one or two quality hours per day.

2. Set situation limits. For example, no music before school or before homework has been completed.

3. Remove the TV from children’s bedrooms and don’t allow a music player in the bedroom after bedtime.

4. Turn the TV on only when a show worth watching is on, and watch the show together as a family.

5. Know the music your children are listening to and be sure to limit music with inappropriate lyrics or themes.

6. Set a good example and follow the same guidelines yourself. Be sure to limit your own TV and music habits to the same schedule as your children’s.

Though Tina was initially resistant to the new rules of the house, after she observed her mother following the same rules, she was more willing to comply. Tina’s grades in school began to improve and she began to increase interacting socially

Developmental Resilience and Protective Processes (1 of 2)

After attending the psychoeducational program with his mother, Kareem gained a better understanding of the dangers imitating violence on TV and how he allowed it to adversely affect him. He learned that what he observed on the cartoon shows on TV were fantasies and that behavior should not be imitated. With a better understanding of violence in media and with his mother’s assistance, Kareem has been able to change his behavior to be more respectful of others. Rather than watch TV in his spare time, Kareem has decided to read or do his homework.

He and his mother enjoyed the psychoeducational program so much that they decided to jointly volunteer as mentors to assist other students and their parents to better understand the effects of media violence.

The scenario points to Kareem’s new-found knowledge, his change of behavior, and his desire to share the knowledge with others. He has gained a sense of purpose by deciding to reach out to assist others. He has also developed a sense of empathy for others, having been in a similar situation himself. By volunteering as a mentor and by showing his willingness to share his experiences with those in need, he shows strong interest in others as well as his personal hardiness