TV Violence and Children: Smoking Gun or Red Herring?

• NCJ Number: 150866
• Author(s): E Kandel-Englander
• Date Published: 1994
• Length: 10 pages
• Corporate Author: Bridgewater State College
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Conference Material
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: This paper was presented at the International Conference on Violence in the Media: Prospects for Change, held on October 3-4, 1994, in New York City. The conference was sponsored by St. John's University.

Annotation

The relationship between television violence and children is explored.

Abstract

The author of this paper argues that, although there is no way to prove the existence of a causal connection between television violence and its contribution to violent behavior in children, several facts are indisputable. Studies have concluded that: children watch many hours of television per day; television does tend to contain violent content; the business of television is to attract advertisers -- violence works well in this regard; and programs aimed at children contain more violence than those aimed at adults. Correlational and experimental studies (and the limitations thereof) suggesting a relationship between television violence and its effect on children are briefly discussed. Correlational studies suggest that television violence may be related to violent behavior as an adult and appears to provoke more aggressive behavior in the short term. Some of the research suggests that violent television has its most destructive impact on children already at risk for violence. The learning and imitation, trigger mechanism, and release theories which discuss the way in which television violence might cause an increase in aggressive or violent behavior are examined. The author concludes that politically popular efforts to curb television violence may be an attempt to cure one of the lesser, rather than the major and fundamental, causes of violent crime in America. 7 references