media influences on aggression

Question 1

what ways can media influence aggression

Answer 1

1) violent films and TV

2) violent computer games

Question 2

outline how lab and field experiments have been used to explore the effect of violent TV and Films on aggression

Answer 2

1) Bjorkqvist exposed 5-6 year old Finnish children to either violent of non-violent films
2) he compared the children who had viewed non-violent films to those who watched violent .
3) found individuals who watched violent films were rated much higher on measures of physical aggression ie hitting other children

there have been consistent findings in both lab and field experiments that those who watch violent films and TV subsequently show more aggressive behaviour and thoughts

Question 3

outline how longitudinal studies support the role of media on aggression

Answer 3

1) Huesmann et al conducted a longitudinal study of 557 children between 6-20 years in Chicago 1977 and then 329 of these children 15 years later
2) they found habitual exposure to violent TV was predictive of adult behaviour in later life applying to both boys and girls
3) this relationship persisted even when confounding variables such as socioeconomic status, intelligence and parenting styles were controlled

Question 4

outline how meta-analyses show the role of media on aggression

Answer 4

1) Bushman and Huesman conducted an meta analysis of 431 different cases involving both children and adults
2) most these cases looked at violent TV but also the role of video games and comic books
3) overall found modest but significant effect sizes for exposure to media violence on aggressive behaviours and feelings
4) found short term effects of violent media greatest in adults and long-term effects greater in children

Question 5

outline how experimental studies show the impact of violent video games on aggression

Answer 5

1) gentile and stone found short term increases in levels of physiological arousal, hostile feelings and aggressive behaviour following playing violent video games compared to non-violent

aggressive behaviour cant be measured directly due to ethics so other behaviours must be used instead

2) Anderson and dill found pps blasted white noise for longer and rated themselves higher on the state hostility scale after playing violent video games

Question 6

outline how longitudinal studies can be used to measure impact of violent video games on aggression

Answer 6

1) Anderson et al surveyed 430 children between 7 and 9 at two points in the school year. Children who had high exposure to violent video games became more verbally and physically aggressive and less prosocial

Question 7

evaluate media influences on aggression

Answer 7

1) critical= research overstating the cause= critics point out that whilst studies claim statistical significance in relationships it is often an overstatement of the case, studies that have found an effect attributable to exposure to violent media have typically be reported only small or medium effect sizes, however, few of these actually measured aggression against another person= research found when acting towards another individuals relationship is close to 0
2) fails to consider other causal variables= fail to account for other variables that explain why some individuals display aggressive behaviour- research claimed much research failed to control other variables known to influence aggressive behaviour and their meta analysis show effect disappears when other influences are thought about ie game difficulty rather than violence= aggression from frustration
3) nature vs nurture

4) confounding variables in longitudinal studies
5) didn’t actually measure aggression due to ethics