The Effects of Media Violence on Growing Children
The effects of media violence on young minds has been a heated topic for many years. Many violent crimes committed by children suggest a correlation between the exposure to violence they receive through television or playing video games and the crimes committed. A child's mind is easily misled, especially if there is not proper parental supervision in the home and the child is allowed to watch age-inappropriate, excessively violent movies or television shows.
Other People Are Reading
-
Media Violence Research Roots
-
According to the Surgeon General, American children spend, on average, at least four hours a day with television, computers, Internet, and video games. This varies greatly, based on the children's socioeconomic status, age and leniency of their parents in what the children are allowed to watch. Research on the effects of media violence on children dates back to the 1970s, before computers and computer games were available and most families did not have access to cable. One of the largest studies of the result of media violence on young minds was the National Television Violence Survey, or NTVS, which examined the amount and content of violence on American television shows for three years. This study took into consideration the variables that make it more likely for violence to be accepted, learned or imitated.
The NTVS Statistical Findings
-
The NTVS research into violent programming found that an incredible 61 percent of television shows contained violence of some degree, while only 4 percent of programming depicting the violence had an "anti-violence" theme worked into the story. A high 44 percent of the violent situations on television shows involved perpetrators who had charismatic personalities and attractive qualities worthy of emulation by children. A substantial percentage of the violent scenes involved humor, either by the perpetrator or the victim, that minimized the impact of the violence being depicted and absorbed by the child watching. Almost three-quarters of the scenes depicting violence showed no immediate punishment for the crime, and no one outwardly condemning the violence. Almost half of the shows depicted "bad" characters who are rarely, if ever, punished for the crimes they commit, in essence "glamorizing" the crime and the person committing it. While television, video games and other avenues by which young minds are exposed to violence are intended to be fantasy, children of certain ages may have a hard time differentiating reality from fantasy.
-
The Behavioral Effect
-
Many incidental reports have told of situations where exposure of a child to television or film violence led the child to almost immediate violent behavior. However, detailed scientific research of this relationship creates a more vivid picture. Most of the relevant research on the subject is focused on how watching realistic violence on television and film affects children by creating aggressive thoughts, emotions and behavior. Often the violence is acted out, and someone is injured, simply because the child wanted to reenact something seen on television. Some children cross the line, and actual violent crimes are committed against other children and playmates.
Death and Dying
-
According to the "Encyclopedia of Death and Dying," the overall U.S. rate of homicide has been fairly consistent over the past three decades. Disturbingly, the rates of homicidal behavior in school-age children has risen alarmingly. Instances of gun-related violence and homicides among 15 to 19-year-olds has risen 300 percent since 1980, including many high-profile school murder sprees by perpetrators who had access to Internet violence, violent video games and television shows. These incidents alarmed the public, causing politicians to scramble to create new legislation and casting a pall of fear on places where children and adults should feel safe. The media have glamorized these incidents somewhat by using them as scenarios in television episodes. Violence perpetrated by children may have its roots in violence on television or the Internet, but those are certainly not the only factors. Parents may also have a responsibility for these tragedies for not being more involved in censoring television shows and video games that openly depict and glorify violence. Children are too young to understand an important concept, that death is permanent. Certainly seeing a character killed off on a television show, only to see the same person as another character on a different show, does not drive the point home.
-
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images
