Media Violence In Pediatrics

According to Gerard Jones’s “ Violent Media Is Good For Kids,” violent media indeed has a remarkable influence upon the minds and general growth patterns of children. Jones argues that violent media can actually have positive effects on young people.

It is a matter of great importance how much of media content children are exposed to and what exactly they are viewing on media. The issue of violence is not a new phenomenon among children and keeps increasing with time and change in technology and information technology. The causes of violence in children are seen to be multifactorial and exposure of children to media violence is said to be an important factor when it comes to the etiology of behaviors that are violent among children.

When it comes to the topic of violent media, some of us would readily agree it’s a controversial subject as to whether kids should or shouldn’t be exposed to it. This is because many children who view violent media react negatively rather than not being affected at all. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of what effects does it have on children. Whereas some are convinced that it is a healthy alternative for kids to express themselves, others maintain that it causes kids to become more aggressive and contributes to juvenile crimes.

Gerard Jones is the author of the essay “Violent Media Is Good for Kids”. This essay is a very interesting piece about how violent media can actually help young kids get through stressful points in their life. I truly enjoyed reading this piece and it was very entertaining, but it didn't really convince me that violent media is good for young kids. I have two reasons why the author didn't convince me. The first is statistics, he didn't use any data or studies on the subject , and the second reason was the types media.

In the media there is a great deal of violence and nobody can really deny that. However, the effects media has on children and young adults have been debated for years. In this paper I will be discussing the effects of media violence, the other factors, and the possible solutions to alleviate this global issue.

In regards to the subject of violent video games, I believe the author of the article, "Violent Video Games Are Harmless Fun" supports their article much more strongly than the author of "Violent Video Games Harm Our Kids". Here is some supporting evidence stating why.

Another issue with a lot of studies is the unreliability of some statistics. Studies finding a link between violence and video game playing have been known to be flawed or biased. Findings can also be misinterpreted or bent. This is precisely why the Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association did not really consider the studies. The psychological evidence provided was unpersuasive: “though psychological research is often used in the courtroom in issues relating to child safety, the lack of consistent findings connecting video games to violent behaviour in children helped sway the court against regulation” (Vitelli). The majority opinion stated that studies supporting violence in video games causing aggression have been rejected because they

In the world one is currently living in, there has been an increase in the acts of violence occurring. Violent media has become a greatly discussed topic where there is always two sides to this argument, one side says they are just games and the other can agree that they have a greater impact. Parents usually chose a side and stick to it but the reality is that they don't look carefully what both sides have to say. Gerald Jones states that violent media is good for kids because it helps them develop their personality but the truth is that children should not be exposed to violent media since it affect their emotional stability, creates a hostile attitude, and affects their health.

Television and video games are favorite ways teenagers spend their leisure hours. Parents and teens themselves have wondered about their effects because of numerous concerns raised with regards to the negative influences that these form of entertainment bring. Many of today’s children grow up with a television at home or even in their own rooms and there have been studies dedicated to the analysis of their impact of a young child growing up to adolescence. Young children are heavily influenced by television and video games, many of which are educational. While there are fun educational shows and games that benefit educational

During the past decade, America has witnessed an alarming increase in the incidence of violence in the lives of children. On a daily basis, children in America are victims of violence, as witnesses to violent acts in their homes or communities, or as victims of abuse, neglect, or personal assault. The causes of violent behavior in society are complex and interrelated. Among the significant contributors are poverty, racism, unemployment, illegal drugs, inadequate or abusive parenting practices, and real-life adult models of violent problem-solving behavior.

Proponents of censorship assert that violence in the media causes violent behavior in children and young adults. As evidence, they point to things like the Littleton shooters’ history of playing violent video games and movies and the similarity of the shootings to certain games. A study conducted by two psychologists at the University of Michigan is often cited as having “shown that children exposed to violent programming at a young age have a higher tendency for violent and aggressive behavior later in life than children not so exposed” (31). More in depth studies have contradicted these findings. Another group did a study which followed 875 children from age eight through eighteen in upstate New York. The group concluded that “the correlation-0.31-would mean television accounted for 10 percent of the influence that lead to this behavior” (31). It should also be known that this “only turned up in one of three measures of aggression; the

One argument we hear time and time again is that videogames and videogame violence alike make the “user” (usually quoted as child) violent. Even a “broad consensus (90% of pediatricians and 67% of parents) that video games causes violent behavior in children.” to the point whereas even a causal connection for some children between media violence and aggressive behavior, this stated by american medical/psychological association stated “ "Well over 1,000 studies - including reports from the Surgeon General's office, the National Institute of Mental Health, and numerous studies conducted by leading figures within our medical and public health organizations - our own members - point overwhelmingly to a causal connection between media violence and aggressive behavior in some children." this assures to some of you that most would be said and done with that argument and live their life repeating the

Nowadays, there are new and upgraded forms of media we can find everywhere. These media are watched by mostly children in their everyday lives. Media, such as violent movies, video games and even cartoons, it contains horrifying graphic pictures that can contribute to children growing up experiences. One more thing, a lot of news existed in the television that is significantly related to violence. Even some children exposed to those media has been already seen a murderer or people who fight and being killed which they might follow in the future. With that, although media is one of the most enjoyable and relaxing forms of entertainment available today, it is still a substantial contributor for children to become aggressive, desensitize in to violence and could produce anxiety which can affect their growing experience.

            In recent times, the news media has cried out against violent media, painting it as the leading cause for youth violence. Following events such as the Columbine massacre, news sources have vilified violent media, claiming that it is a primary cause of violent behavior in youths. This analysis provides firm research on the subject from the opposing and supporting sources, giving a thorough definition to the term “violent media” and  brings forth evidence that other psychological effects and environmental factors are more significant causes of increased youth aggression than violent media.

Another study was carried out by Eron et al in 1987 who studied over 800 eight and nine year old boys and girls. They observed each child for signs of aggression and asked other people whether each child was aggressive. They then went on to study the children’s viewing habits and found a positive correlation between the amount of media violence watched and the violence in children’s everyday behaviour. This study like the bobo doll study ignores the fact that other factors might have been at work, such as peer pressure influences. Also in the Eron study, there is no distinguishing between the types of violence, whether it’s fictional or real life violence and also the criteria for children to be seen as violent is not distinguished.