Mounting evidence links TV viewing to violence
A new scientific report released today says television can affect
violent behavior - even among adults.
By Mark Sappenfield | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
SAN FRANCISCO - For much of the past half century, the link
between watching violence on television and violent behavior in
everyday life has seemed an open question - embraced by one
study, rejected by another, and largely left unanswered by years of
congressional inquiries.
That, however, is rapidly changing. To a growing number of scientists
and psychiatrists, the correlation between the two is no longer a
point of debate, it is an established fact.
A study released today in the journal
Science adds to a large body of work that
suggests some sort of connection. Already,
six major pediatric, psychiatric, and medical
associations have said that the evidence of a
link is overwhelming, citing more than 1,000
studies in the past 30 years.
As a result, the debate is increasingly
splintering into a fight that echoes the recent
antitobacco or global-warming campaigns,
as a preponderance of scientists square off
against a besieged industry and a
smattering of contrarian colleagues.
Many Americans are not yet convinced. On
average, children still watch three hours of
television a day, and calls to regulate the
industry have resulted only in minor tweaks
like the current ratings system. But with the
scientific community presenting a more
unified front - and casting the issue as one
of public health, not taste - the pressure for
more change is gaining momentum.
"Clearly, with more exposure [to media
violence, children] do become desensitized,
they do copy what they see, and their values
are shaped by it," says Susan Villani, a
Baltimore, Md., psychiatrist who has
reviewed the past 10 years of study on the
subject.
Not even the most ardent critic of TV violence argues that images of
gunplay and kung fu are the sole causes of youth violence. Yet they
can be significant.
One study last year found a 25 percent decrease in violence in a San
Jose, Calif., grade school where kids received classroom lessons in
media awareness and were asked to watch only seven hours of TV a
week for several months. Another in North Carolina showed that
teenage boys who regularly watched professional wrestling were 18
percent more likely to get into a physical confrontation with a date.
TV's effect on adult behavior
Today's study, experts say, is particularly interesting for several
reasons. It is the first survey of its scope to provide evidence that
violent behavior is associated with television viewing beyond
childhood - well into adolescence and adulthood. In addition, it
claims a connection even when other factors such as childhood
neglect and low family income are taken into account.
"What this study serves to do is remove some of these variables,"
says Michael Brody of the American Academy of Child and
Adolescent Psychiatry.
Adolescents who watched more than one hour a day of television -
regardless of content - were roughly four times more likely to commit
aggressive acts toward other people later in their lives than those who
watched less than one hour. Of those who watched more than three
hours, 28.8 percent were later involved in assaults, robberies, fights,
and other aggressive behavior.
The study, led by Jeffrey Johnson of Columbia University in New
York, followed 707 participants in upstate New York for 17 years,
recording their TV viewing habits and tracking their behavior through
periodic interviews and public documents.
What it did not do, say critics, is prove that the television viewing
necessarily caused the violence. The comment goes to the heart of
the debate over the issue: Does TV play a part in making violent
people, or are violent people naturally inclined to watch violence on
TV?
"I don't think there is any link at all," says Jonathan Freedman, a
professor at the University of Toronto who disputes the statistic that
thousands of studies have shown a link between television violence
and violent behavior.
Doubts within TV industry
Members of the broadcasting industry share Mr. Freedman's
skepticism of such media studies. "They spark a lot of interest, but
nothing definite comes out that can establish a direct link," says
Dennis Wharton of the National Association of Broadcasters in
Washington.
The industry also touts their cleaner fare: A recent study by the
Center for Media and Public Affairs in Washington found a 29 percent
drop in TV violence last season compared with 1998-99.
Aspects of the criticism find broader support. It's true that some kids
might be able to watch TV all day and not commit a single violent
act. But some psychiatrists say that merely begs for more research
about who might be influenced by TV and how.
But most also insist that the vast majority of studies support a link.
Granted, no study can definitively say that TV caused a violent act -
it can only infer. But the results of one of the most researched areas
in social science are pretty consistent, says professor Craig
Anderson of Iowa State University in Ames. "It doesn't matter how
you study it, the results are the same," says Mr. Anderson.
Plus, for many, it's simply a matter of common sense. "If television
doesn't influence kids, then why are so many people spending so
many billions of dollars to advertise," says Dr. Brody. "It's not the
sole cause, but even if it represents 10 percent of the reason [for
violence], somebody should look at this."
csmonitor.com |
