The Influence of the Media on Antisocial Behavior

The Influence of the Media on Antisocial Behavior

There are many studies and examples to indicate that the amount of

violence children witness on television or see through other forms of

media are reflected in their own levels of aggression and violence.

Studies into this include Bandura’s Bobo Doll study, Parke’s and

Leynes’ studies into teenage aggression, Black and Bevan’s study into

violence and the cinema and the St. Helena study. These studies had

varying results but on the whole they support the theory that

prolonged viewing of violence in the media equates to increased

violence and aggression in real life.

Bandura conducted a laboratory experiment to see whether aggressive

acts by adults towards a Bobo doll would be copied by the children

watching and whether the way in which the adult was treated after,

either rewarded, punished or no feedback, would affect the results.

Bandura found that children who had witnessed the model-rewarded or no

consequences condition were more likely to imitate observed behaviour

than the children who had witnessed the model-punished condition.

However, in a second part of the study when children were offered

rewards to recall the behaviour witnessed it was found that all three

groups scored equally well suggesting that whilst punishment, or the

threat of punishment, may stop the copying of acts it does not stop

one from learning them. Bandura’s study is good because, as a

laboratory experiment, it was conducted in a controlled environment

and one can easily establish cause and effect. Also there is tight

control over extraneous variables. However, the fact that it was a

laboratory experimen...

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... with correlational studies is that one cannot determine

cause and effect. Also longitudinal studies may suffer from high

drop-out rates due to the length of the study.

Whilst most of these studies show some relationship between the amount

of media violence witnessed and the amount of aggressive behaviour

displayed the cause and effect can often not be determined therefore

it may be a person’s aggressive nature that dictates how much media

violence is witnessed instead of the amount of violence viewed causing

the aggressive behaviour. Each type of study has its drawbacks and

whilst results are suggestive of media affecting aggressive behaviour

these studies are by no means conclusive. Also, there are other

factors such as society and upbringing that can affect the development

of aggressive behaviour, or lack thereof.