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Media Violence and Children

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Media Violence and Children
Media Violence and Children Violence in the media has come under a lot of scrutiny lately. Even though this is not a new concern, it has resurfaced as the pinnacle of many debates among politicians, parents and educators. Children are progressively becoming more aggressive. This is in direct correlation to violence becoming more prominent among adults. Parents and educators continue to stress that the damage violent media inflicts on children will continue into adulthood. Multiple studies have demonstrated that violent media makes violent adults. This problem is larger than just turning off the violence. The media distributors need to stop mass producing and distributing violence to children. Until executives at television, music, and video game companies stop this mass production of violence, this horrific trend of violent children will continue. Young children tend to be easily influenced by media for a variety of reasons. Children learn what is acceptable or unacceptable by what the media portrays as opposed to what the child's parents are teaching (Anderson, Dill, 2002). Parents are no longer the strongest influential partner in a child's life; it is the media personalities that children utilize to model acceptable or in some cases unacceptable behavior (Anderson, Dill, 2002). Movies, music and video games demonstrate that it is acceptable to murder or harm others (Steyer, 2002). The mass media also fails to follow through with the fact that a small child can not comprehend the ramifications of being injured during a violent act; it actually hurts and you may not survive (Steyer, 2002). Small children in fact, have difficulty differentiating between reality and fantasy (Steyer, 2002). Many young children who have been brought into emergency facilities for treatment from these media encouraged accidents tend to express with shock that their injuries actually hurt (Steyer, 2002). These children feel invincible. They believe you can get shot,


References: Anderson, C. & Dill, K. (2000). Video games and aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behavior in the laboratory and in life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78(4), 772-790. Gilk, D., Kinsler, J., Todd, W.A., Clarke, L., Fazio, K., Miyashiro, R., et al. (2005). Unintentional injury depictions in popular children 's television programs. Injury Prevention. 11(4), 237-241. Grapes, B. (2000). Violent Children. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc. Huesmann, L., Moise-Titus, J., Podolski, C. & Eron, L. (2003). Longitudinal relations between children 's exposure to TV violence and their aggressive and violent behavior in young adulthood: 1977-1992. Developmental Psychology, 39(2), 201-221. Josephson, W. (1987). Television violence and children 's aggression: Testing the priming, social script, and disinhibition predictions. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53(5), 882-890. Steyer, J. (2002). The other parent: The inside story of the media 's effect on our children. New York: Atria Books.
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