Exposure to Media Violence

 Badura has found through his research that film violence is just as effective as live violence is at producing more violent behaviors in those that see it (Powell et al., 2017). This is thought to be enhanced considering how much mass media is expanding. Many studies have found that there are sex differences between how violent video games affect them. For males, they are more likely to show effects, have a more hostile view of the world, and are more aggressive from the video games. Females are more likely to restrain their aggression for longer and are also more aggressive if aggressive model is a female too. This shows that since most of the violence in video games and media is done by males, this may explain that women have become more accepting of males being violent.  

One part of this part of the textbook that really stood out to me was how violence in the media is not only making males more aggressive but may also be making females more vulnerable to being victims of aggression. This is because being exposed to violence from such a youthful age is desensitizing violence to females and making them feel that it is normal and acceptable to be treated in a violent manner. I also found it interesting to learn why witnessing violence is increasing aggression and desensitizing it has not been clearly reported in media. Media outlets share balance sides to this topic but fail to share that the vast majority believe that media violence is dangerous. Below is a TedTalk that I found to be highly informative about how we are becoming desensitized to violence.  

 

References 

Powell, R. A., Honey, P. L., & Symbaluk, D. G. (2017). Introduction to Learning and Behavior (5th ed.). Cengage Learning.