media influences on aggression Flashcards
who studied the effect of computer games?
Bartholow and Anderson
what was Bartholow and Anderson’s study?
•students either played violent computer games or non-violent ones for ten minutes
•they then all carried out a task where they played white noise at chosen volumes to punish the opponent
•those who played the violent video game selected significantly higher noise levels compared to non violent
evaluation of Bartholow and Anderson
+ independent groups design, no order effects of figuring out the hypothesis
- not tested on ability before entering the study
who else studied computer games and their effect on aggression?
•studied 277 juvenile offenders with histories of serious aggressive behaviours such as gang fighting
•they gathered information on aggression and violent computer game playing using unstructured interviews
•the offenders aggressive behaviour was significantly correlated with how often they played violent video games and how much they enjoyed them
evaluation of DeLisi
+ in depth, qualitative data acquired
- social desirability bias
- subjective interpretations of aggression
- correlation shows association, not causation
who conducted a study on excessive TV watching?
Robertson
what is Robertson’s study?
•conducted a longitudinal study to investigate the link between excessive TV watching in childhood and aggression in adulthood
•they found a positive correlation, more TV more aggression
•those who watched the most TV were more likely to be diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder
evaluation of Robertson
-participants from New Zealand, issues of generalisation
- correlation does not equal causation
- subjective interpretations of aggression
what was Anderson’s study?
•did a meta-analysis of 136 studies which included 3 types of research method (experimental, correlational, longitudinal)
•findings- exposure to violent computer games was associated with increases in aggressive behaviour, thoughts and feelings
•true for males and females universally
•’the effect of violent video gaming on aggression is more than the effect of second- hand smoke on cancer’ - Anderson
what is the estimated amount that violent tv/ film contributes to aggression
between 1% and 10% of the variance in children’s aggressive behaviour
what are the 4 types of media that has an effect on aggression?
•excessive tv viewing
•violent film content
•tv/ film effect not strong
•computer games
evaluation points for the media influences on aggression
+ explaining research findings
- defining aggression
- unsupported conclusions
- research methods
strength: explaining research findings
•findings can be explained using the social learning theory
•the SLT is a ‘convincing theoretical framework’
•it is widely accepted that exposure to violence at home is harmful for children and that video games can be a form of social learning
•especially likely when they see these behaviours being rewarded (vicarious reinforcement) and even more so when they identify with the characters
•having a unifying explanation to account for findings enhances the validity of the research
limitation: defining aggression
•aggression is defined in various ways
•the dependant variable in some studies is white noise but in others it’s criminal convictions
•violence and aggression are not exactly the same behaviour, not all aggression is violence
•the effects found in studies depend on how aggression is defined
•this variation in definitions means that the findings of studies are hard to compare
(however a meta analysis can be used to compare)
limitation: unsupported conclusions
•this research area is plagued by unsupported conclusions
•many studies have confounding variables and poor sampling methods
•many studies are correlational
•experimental studies lack external validity so findings cannot be generalised to the real world
•therefore some researchers may be guilty of drawing premature conclusions based on findings that lack validity
