Along with ways to explain how the media has power, we need to look at research that has been completed around the area of media influence. Firstly we have 5 types of research:
Laboratory Study - A study undertaken in a controlled environment. The test is supervised by the same person who is conducting the study.
Longitudinal Study - A study that takes place over a long period of time. This could be anything from days to years.
Quantitative Research - Information gathered from the participants with questionnaires, polls or surveys. Answers tend to be based on true or false or on a scale of 1-5.
Qualitative Research - Subjects are interviewed about specific aspects of the study. Detailed answers are encouraged.
Meta Analysis - Researcher looks at a variety of studies that have been undertaken in the past and write their own report or thesis.
Laboratory Study - A study undertaken in a controlled environment. The test is supervised by the same person who is conducting the study.
Longitudinal Study - A study that takes place over a long period of time. This could be anything from days to years.
Quantitative Research - Information gathered from the participants with questionnaires, polls or surveys. Answers tend to be based on true or false or on a scale of 1-5.
Qualitative Research - Subjects are interviewed about specific aspects of the study. Detailed answers are encouraged.
Meta Analysis - Researcher looks at a variety of studies that have been undertaken in the past and write their own report or thesis.
Below are 5 bodies of research we will be focusing on. We have an acronym to help you remember.
B, B, A = support the idea of the media having power F, F = support the ideas that the media has no power
B B A F F
Bandura Belson Anderson Feshbach/Singer Ferguson
BANDURA (1961)
Albert Bandura in 1961 undertook the Bobo Doll experiment to try to see if children where more aggressive after being exposed to aggressive behaviour. Four groups of children left in room with Bobo Doll and a variety of toys. This study was conducted at the University. Below are the groups and what they were shown.
Findings:
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BELSON (1978)
William Belson (British Psychologist) completed his study in 1978. The study involved 1565 teenage boys aged 12-17 year old. This study went over a 6 year period. The information was gathered through an interview technique, to recall their viewing habits over the previous years.
He determined that;
He determined that;
- boys with heavy television exposure are more likely to commit violent acts than other boys.
- the effect of each violent act on television was collective, and over time, Belson discovered that the boys engaged in many aggressive acts, including painting graffiti, breaking windows, aggressive play, swearing, and threatening other boys with violence.
- every time a child saw someone being shot or killed on television they became less caring towards other people.
- seeing violence on television causes viewers to become less sensitive to the pain of others (this is known as desensitization).
- non-realistic violence was found to be less effective on behaviour (this includes things like games or cartoons).
ANDERSON (2003)
Craig Anderson completed a review of various studies that looked at the effects of media violence in 2003. The title of the work is: “The influence of media violence on youth”. Anderson found that:
- research undeniably reveals that media violence increases the likelihood of aggressive and violent behaviour in both immediate and long-term contexts (including violent television and films, video games, and music)
- short-term exposure increases the likelihood of physically and verbally aggressive behaviour, thoughts and emotions.
- evidence links frequent exposure to violent media in childhood with aggression later in life, including physical assaults and spouse abuse.
FESHBACH AND SINGER (1971)
Feshbach and Singer believed that television actually decreases the amount of aggression in children. They completed this study in 1971, over a six-week period looking at juvenile boys who regularly watched television violence compared to juvenile boys who were exposed to non-violent shows. After the six-week period, Feshbach and Singer found the following:
- the juvenile boys that viewed the non-violent shows were more likely to exhibit aggressive behavior than the juvenile boys that witnessed the violent shows.
- the study show that the violence on television allows the viewer to relate with the characters involved in the violent act.
- in doing so, the viewer is able to release all aggressive thoughts and feelings through relation, causing them to be less aggressive than they would have been without watching the violent television. This theory that viewing violence on television leads to a decrease in aggression is called the Catharsis Effect.
FERGUSON (2008)
Christopher Ferguson completed a review of various studies that looked at the effects of media violence in 2008. The title of the work is: “The Public Health Risks of Media Violence: A Meta-Analytic Review”. Ferguson found that; “Overall results from the study contradicted popular beliefs that violent video game exposure is associated with aggressive and violent acts.”
The study was based on a meta-analytic review of 24 published studies of violent video game effects that examined either aggressive consequences or improvements in visuospatial cognition.
Ferguson found that:
The study was based on a meta-analytic review of 24 published studies of violent video game effects that examined either aggressive consequences or improvements in visuospatial cognition.
Ferguson found that:
- there is no solid evidence that consuming media violence leads to aggressive behaviour.
- a lot of the studies observed were biased, therefore media violence and aggressive behaviour is not proven.
- past studies may have exaggerated the link between video games and aggressive behaviour.
- there is little evidence to suggest that playing violent video games makes the audience more aggressive.
ADDITIONAL RESEARCH
media_violence_evidence.pdf | |
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video_game_arguments.pdf | |
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video_game_evidence.pdf | |
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