Effect of Violent Television on Young People and Children

Violent Television Affect Children and Adolescent’s Behaviors

INTRODUCTION

According to Sujala S.Nair and P.E Thomas (2012)”Violent can be defined as something which is intended to hurt or kill or it can be just physical or emotional force and energy.”Television program has a big influence in our life. The violent act in the television program can be a powerful influence in the children and adolescent’s behavior. This is because children unable to distinguish violent act in television program is harmful for them. This may seriously cause the development of their childhood. Unfortunately, nowadays much of television program is include violent act.

According to many studies report, violent cartoon television program will make children who under the age of 7 may imitate cartoon violence because they may not be able to tell the difference between fantasy and reality. As of 1990, the average of American child aged 2 to 5 years was watching television over 27 hours per week. This may cause the children watching the violent television program will influence them. This might not be bad if the children understood what they are watching. However, mostly children are unable to distinguish fact from fantasy in all the television program. In the minds of children thinks that television is a source of entirely factual information regarding how the world works. When they get older, they may know better. But the earliest and deepest impressions were put down when the child were saw the television as a factual sources of information about a world outside their homes where violence is a daily commonplace and the commission of violence is generally powerful, exciting, charismatic, and efficacious. Serious violent is mostly erupt at the moments of severe stress and it is precisely at such moment that adolescents and adults are most likely to their earliest, most visceral sense of what violent is and what its role is in society. Most of this sense will have come from television.

Another background for children with aggressive behavior are beginning in the mid-1960s, psychologist Leonard Eron and colleagues followed a group of children they are eight years old then observing their behavior. The study, one of the most extensive ever done, would span three decades and uncover some of the strongest evidence that too much TV can harm children. Not only was there is a relationship between watching violent television program were more likely to be the ones identified by teachers and friends as a aggressive kids in school. When revisited at ages 18, researchers again found that the aggressive behavior is related to the early television viewing habits of the children. Finally, the 30 years old adults are related between aggressive behavior and TV viewing habits again observed. Actually, researchers reported proof that tied television viewing habits developed early in life to arrests for violent crimes. Be just like violence act have been seen on TV contributes to aggression. Equivalent, non violent television program are containing messages of tolerance and cooperation can inspire pro-social. In addition, another one is about the person who studied the influence of television program by observing by 100 children. The children were separate into three groups. One was shown Batman and Superman cartoons then the second group is shown Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Then the last group are shown neutral program with neither violent or pro-social messages. Once again show that the relationship between violent act in TV program and aggressive behavior was apparent.The result show that the children exposed to the Batman and Superman cartoons were more likely to get into fights, play roughly, and break toys. On the other hand, children who watching Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood tended toward positive behaviors and dislike classmates who watched the superhero cartoons. Furthermore, they were more likely to show sensitivity, offer help to teachers. play cooperatively and express concern about other children’s feelings.

The problem is because of the acceleration rate of cases in violent TV influence children and adolescent’s behaviors such as violent crime. Television violence has the greatest potential for both short-term and long-term effect upon children. In light of all the situations where children are affected negatively by viewing violence, there is a need for a study of the effects of television violence on children.

The effect of violent television program on children and adolescent’s behaviors is poorly understood. The objective of this research is to collect data for analysis and interpret the result that can know more in detail about the effect of violent act in television program on children and adolescent’s behaviors.

Research Question

1. Do you think that violence act on television show will make children act violently after watching it?

Yes ( ) No ( )

2. Do you think children can be protected against violence on TV?

Yes ( ) No ( )

3. Do you think that school violence is influenced by the television program?

Yes ( ) No ( )

4. Do you think restrict children watching TV can reduce children influence by violent

television program?

Yes ( ) No ( )

5. Do you think violent on television is a problem?

Yes ( ) No ( )

Literature Review

Nowadays, television has become as a indispensable device in our daily life. Almost everyone has at least one set of television at home. Television has a big influence in our life especially for children. Violent act in the television program can be a powerful influence in the children and adolescent’s behavior. This is because children unable to distinguish violent act in television program is harmful for them. This may seriously cause the development of their childhood.

Bandura (1965) claimed that children can learn new behavior in one or two ways. They would learn it by direct experiences through trial and error or by observing and imitating others social environment. Children who are emotional, behavioral, learning or impulse control problems may be more easily influence by violence television. Children watching violent television program can make them more aggressive. Furthermore, children also may leave fearful or make them less sensitive to real violence and its consequences after watching violent television program. The three potential harmful effects of expose to television violence are the learning of attitudes and behavior, desensitization are because of all the exposure to television violent. Therefore, children become desensitized to violence and perhaps a tendency develops on violence in their own lives to solve problems

According to many studies report, violent cartoon television program will make children who under the age of 7 may imitate cartoon violence because they may not be able to tell the difference between fantasy and reality. Cartoon violence meant for a youthful audience as opposed to animated films for adults such as Heavy Metal are tend to involve minor acts of violence. Although many violent cartoon meant for youthful consumption contain comedic elements but some of the cartoons just portray the violence. Presence or absence of comedy during violence is important consideration when evaluating the effects if viewing cartoons on children or youth. Watching violent cartoon or any violent television program are affects children’s attitudes towards violence. If children watching too much of violent television program may affect the ways a person thinks and behaves later in life, even as an adolescent and adult. The effects may be long-lasting.

Children who watching violence movies or any violence TV program at young age are more easily to become aggressiveness and criminal behavior at later years. According to a longitudinal study (Huesmann, 1986) have the a same sample of chidren were tested over a 22 year period. The researchers measured the television viewing habits and aggressive behavior at three different stage of age in time which is when the participants were 8, 19 and 30 years of age. The research are show the relationship between exposure to TV violence at age 8 and self-reported aggression at age 30. Therefore, children watching violent television program on the early childhood were significant predictor of the seriousness of criminal acts performed at about age 30. In conclusion, early childhood television habits are correlated positively with adult criminally independent of other likely causal factors.

Methodology

The focus of this preliminary of this research was primarily on analysis about the violence television program affect on children, adolescent and even adult. A detailed questionnaire was developed aimed at determining the effect of violence act in television program on children. Five question are used to determine predictor or impact variables. These are show in page ( ) . The first three questions asked about the children after watching violence television program can make them change to violence behavior even at older age and children can be protected against violent on TV or not. Moreover, the fourth question are asked about the restrict children watching violent TV program are the best choice to reduce cases of children, adolescent’s violence behavior. The fifth questions are asked about the thinking question as the violent on television program are the problem to children. The questionnaire are used the methods is internet surveys. While these methods is clearly the most cost effective and fastest methods of distributing a survey.

References:

Steven J.Kirsh( 2005). Cartoon violence and aggression in youth. Retrieved from:

http://www.geneseo.edu/~kirsh/vita/AVB360.pdf

Sujala S.Nair and P.E Thomas( 2012). A Thematic study on the cause and effects of Television Violence on Children. Retrieved from:

http://www.ipedr.com/vol31/035-ICSSH%202012-S10050.pdf

Slotsve, del Carmen, Sarver,and Watkins (2008) .Television Violence and Aggression. Retrieved from:

http://swacj.org/swjcj/archives/5.1/4%20Slotsve.pdf