Films such as Natural Born Killers (Oliver Stone, 1994) and Crash (David Cronenberg, 1996) have become famous for their alleged associations with real violence. Politicians, the media and campaign groups apparently believe that these movies are a drag which produces serious side effects. Look at any discussion of these movies in the press and you will find a raging debate on violence in the mass media and violence in our society. There is a basis to this dominant discourse that can be understood by reference to social theories of risk. It is my thesis that risk theories can help us to understand the dynamic of the current debate on media violence. Risk analysis is concerned with invisible risks that are harmful to individual and global environments. The companies who manufacture products that are perceived to have risks refuse to claim responsibility for their actions and, instead, talk of 'acceptable risk levels'. Campaign groups, such as Greenpeace, argue that anecdotal evidence suggests there are no acceptable levels: they reveal the full extent of the real and potential side effects produced by these large industries. Pro-censorship groups and self-appointed moral watchdogs have utilized this dominant discourse to engineer a political debate that they hope will lead to the regulation of media violence. The entertainment industry is presented as a manufacturer of risks. They produce products, for example violent movies, which are perceived to contain side effects that are harmful to individuals and to social environments. The industry may talk of 'acceptable levels', but anecdotal evidence, such as the James Bulger case, suggests that media violence can lead to real violence in our society. Anti-violence campaign groups undertake their own research which claims to measure the side effects of television violence. The entertainment industry is asked to self-regulate, and legislation is called for. My argument is that the debate on media violence has become polarized. Independent researchers need to change the terms of reference in order to alter the dominant discourse surrounding risk theories and the mass media. What is more, researchers must recognize that the effects of watching films or television cannot be measured in the same way the effects of car pollution are measured. Watching films or television programmes is a complex and dynamic process that does not lend itself to scientific measurements. Thus, new methods of research must be utilized in order to break the circularity of the debate on violence and the mass media. One such method is to understand viewer response to risk, and perceptions of the dangers and rewards associated with risk-taking behaviour. John Adams' (1995), 'risk thermostat hypothesis' indicates that people have a propensity to take risks which varies from one individual to another. Recent qualitative research in audience response to media violence also suggests that that is the case. New research methods can seek to understand individual perceptions of risk-taking, and the cultural construction of risk, in relation to the mass media.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between violent media programming, aggression and prosocial behaviors among Black college students. The study included 108 Black college students from a historically Black college/university on the East Coast. The researcher evaluated the participants’ aggression using Buss & Warren’s (2000) Aggression Questionnaire and evaluated the participants’ prosocial behaviors using Penner’s (1995) prosocial personality battery. The researcher then used an independent samples t-test to analyze the data and test the hypothesis that a relationship between the variables exists. Furthermore, the researcher employed discriminant analysis to determine if group membership could be predicted, based on scores on the aggression questionnaire. The independent samples t-test produced results that indicated a statistically significant difference in mean scores on the aggression questionnaire, between light viewers and heavy viewers of violent media programming. The discriminant analysis produced results which indicated the predictor variable, scores on the aggression questionnaire, predicts group membership in either heavy or light viewers, at a statistically significant level (p= .024). Additionally, visual inspection of the scores on the prosocial personality battery indicated participants who reported engaging in violent media programming scored significantly lower on the prosocial personality battery than those who reported engaging in light viewing of violent media programming. Results contribute to literature, research, practice and theory in the field of counseling.

Thesis (M.A.)--Ohio State University. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 128-135). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center

The effects of violent portrayals in the media have been well established and documented in the field of psychology. The research conducted in this area often report results that correspond with the widespread critical notion that these depictions of violence are harmful in their effect for samples of children, adolescents, and adults, usually due to the repeatedly observed result of increased aggression among these samples when exposed to these violent acts. The methodological protocol for most of these studies is to utilize film clips, instead of films in their entirety, and to create a "synthetic" narrative situation around these violent acts that directs the sample audience to perceive that the act was justified or unjustified. Limitations both in the methodology and in the literature in this area of psychological research become evident in their disregard of the large library of research and theory that exists in film studies, most of which can be grounded in psychological theory that discusses a semiotic structure in relation to thought processes as theorized by Sigmund Freud, Jacques Lacan, and Slavoj Zizek. Film studies have recognized that the cognitive psychological reactions of audiences to any given film are directed by the actual, full-length, narrative structure as intended by the director. Features, such as music, voice-over narration, metaphors, close-ups, etc., are tools used to create a narrative story which ultimately defines a context, mostly subjectively, for a viewer. This study makes notes of these limitations and utilizes a methodology that exposes participants to one of four defined contexts of violence, Unrealistic Context of Violence, Romanticized Context of Violence, Social-Consequential Context of Violence, and Nonviolent all of which projected the film in its entirety. A more integrative approach was taken to response questionnaires, which utilized both subjective and objective response categories. The purpose of this methodology is to support the notion that an intended narrative will guide the audience to a response based on how it defines a context through stylistic components. This type of narrative cannot, and has not in previous studies, be synthetically created by an experimenter to create a context that is to be applied to a film clip. Results of this study will be used to discuss the implications they have on censorship and future psychological research.

No description available.

Television has become the primary 'story teller' in our society today (Gerbner, et.al., 1986, 1994). It is an all pervasive technology that most of us aren't even aware of in our surroundings. From airports, bus terminals, restaurants, bars to our own lounges, television is constantly passing on its message to its audience. Its role might vary from just a background noise to active information source, its presence remains constant. However television itself is not static, it is a dynamic medium with a constantly growing presence in our lives. Therefore, there remains a constant need to understand the role television plays in shaping our 'stories' and the current study is a short step towards understanding the role and impact of news media on the emotional responses of news viewers in Pakistan. During the last decade there has been an exponential growth in Pakistan's private media industry. Over 80 channels have already started with a number in the pipeline. Of these channels the most prominent are the 16 24-hour news channels which, for the first time, provided the Pakistani public multiple options for seeking news and information (previously only Pakistan Television, a state owned channel was available) - the Pakistani public is now spoiled for choice. However this growth in the media industry also resulted in the over-exposure of issues as the channels vied for viewers. Consequently the audience is regularly exposed to sensational news and content - with coverage ranging from the graphic to the mundane - as networks compete for ratings. Observing the media's behavior and keeping media effects research on exposure to violence in mind, the researcher was interested in seeing whether regular exposure to violence news and violent acts leads to desensitization of the audience. The relationship between news and sensationalism is an old one, starting from the early tabloids in the early 1900s which focused on crime/violence to attract readers. The same trend can be seen in news channels in Pakistan and abroad. One main reason can be the low cost of covering and reporting a crime or act of violence. The event itself provides the reporter with images and information (no digging required!), the drama of the crisis, its aftermath and consequences provide news channels easy fodder for their news mill which needs to run 24-hours, 365 days of the year. Therefore the aim of the present research was twofold: one, to evaluate the amount of violence/violent content that is being shown on Pakistani news channels; and two, to try and assess the impact of this content on the emotional responses of news viewers. The study also aimed to extend the desensitization hypothesis by arguing that the continued presence of the stimulus responsible for desensitization will result in audiences' crossing the attention threshold; i.e. viewers will ignore the central issues on the media agenda and remove it from their socio-political discussions. The model further suggested that viewers will focus more on the peripheral issues rather than the primary issues in the media agenda. The results of the content analysis clearly show that in both public and private television news violent content is the 2nd highest type of news being reported (with domestic politics being the highest type of news content across both channels). Two types of news on violence were studied: violence resulting in fatalities and violence without fatalities; with the first one have almost twice the volume of the latter type of news content. The content analysis and the first part of the survey analysis provide the pre-requisite information for the attention threshold assumption. One, they confirm the continuous presence of a particular issue in news in large volume; and secondly, the survey analysis provides support for the presence of desensitization amongst the respondents. The tests run for the attention threshold assumption indicated that despite the presence of the issue of violence on the media agenda, it is no longer on the public agenda, and is not a part of the social discourse of the respondents with either their family or their friends. The current research shows that heavy consumers of violent news content tend to significantly have pro-violence attitudes. They also tend to have lower levels of emotional empathy for victims of violence and higher levels of compassion fatigue. While these results were not statistically significant for the sample tested, the results show a consistently low mean, indicating negative trend for both the variables. The respondents were generally in favor of harsher punishments and greater state/military control of the country. Results of the current study indicate that heavy viewers of news media tend to be more desensitized to the violence in society. Their emotional responses are numbed down. For a country like Pakistan, with a history of military intervention in domestic politics and governance, this is a matter of grave concern. Strong feelings of insecurity and mean world syndrome, fed on a steady diet of violent news programing, can further undermine faith in the political system - leading to greater acceptance (and at times active desire) of military sponsored or led control - a situation that is very troubling for Pakistan. While the current analysis is a starting place, news content in Pakistan needs to be studied in greater depth. Future research needs to also focus on the wider range of news channels in Pakistan. This would help identify the effects of different variables like ownership, political affiliations, language and location on the content of news channels. In terms of the survey itself, a broader, more inclusive research in the rural and semi-urban areas of the country would provide better evidence of the effects of news violence on Pakistanis. And finally, a lot more in-depth and extensive research is needed before on the "attention threshold" model for it to be verified and its results generalized. If verified, the model will help future researchers identify why issues of audience concern are no longer getting the requisite attention from viewers, despite having strong media presence.

A number of studies have indicated that violent video gameplay is associated with higher levels of aggression, and desensitization to violent content contributes to this association. Utilizing a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) task, the current study used event-related potentials (ERPs) to investigate selective attention (N1 activation), cognitive control (N2 activation), and desensitization (P3 activation) as neurocognitive mechanisms potentially underlying the association between gameplay and subtypes of aggression. Results showed video game players and non-players differed significantly in brain activation when engaged with violent imagery. N1 and P3 amplitude moderated the association between gameplay and pleasure-oriented aggression. Follow-up analyses further revealed that individuals who play games for many hours and show large N1 activation (high selective attention) in the face of violence have small P3 activation (heightened desensitization). Thus, our results suggest that selective attention to violent content and subsequent desensitization effects moderate the association between video gameplay and aggression.

In einer Längsschnittstudie wurde untersucht, inwieweit sich die regelmäßige Beschäftigung mit dem Medium der gewalthaltigen Bildschirmspiele auf aggressionsbegünstigende Kognitionen und die Aufrechterhaltung einer aggressiven Persönlichkeitsdisposition auswirkt. Es wurden insgesamt N = 349 Mädchen und Jungen im Alter von 12 bis 16 Jahren im Abstand von sechs Monaten zweimal zu ihrem Konsum von und der Präferenz für gewalthaltige Bildschirmspiele sowie zu normativen Überzeugung bzgl. der Angemessenheit aggressiven Verhaltens in Konfliktsituationen und zur feindseligen Attribution in uneindeutigen Situationen befragt. Geschlecht und Aggressivität wurden als antezedente Variablen des Gewaltspielkonsums berücksichtigt. Die Ergebnisse zeigten, dass zwar sowohl Jungen als auch Mädchen regelmäßig Bildschirmspiele nutzten, sich aber insbesondere die hochaggressiven Jungen zu den Gewaltgenres hingezogen fühlten. Die Analyse der querschnittlichen Zusammenhänge zu T1 erbrachte, dass der Gewaltspielkonsum erwartungskonform die Akzeptanz physisch-aggressiver Handlungen vorhersagte: Je mehr sie sich mit Kampfspielen beschäftigten, desto mehr stimmten Jugendliche physisch-aggressiven Verhaltensweisen als angemessener Reaktion auf einen Konflikt zu. Dieser Zusammenhang wurde dabei durch einen Moderatoreffekt der Aggressivität qualifiziert: Danach stimmten insbesondere diejenigen Jugendlichen, die sich selbst als aggressiv beschrieben und zusätzlich viel Gewaltspiele nutzten, den aggressiven Normen zu. Der Einfluss des Medienkonsums auf die Attribution in uneindeutigen sozialen Interaktionen zeigte sich hingegen nur indirekt, fast vollständig durch die normativen Überzeugungen vermittelt. Die Analyse der längsschnittlichen Daten über den Zeitraum eines halben Jahres ergab für Mädchen und Jungen eine stärkere Beeinflussung der Aggressivität durch den Gewaltspielkonsum als umgekehrt der Beschäftigung mit dem Medium durch die Persönlichkeit. Auch die aufgrund sozialkognitiver Erklärungsmodelle zur langfristigen Wirkung von Mediengewalt getroffene Annahme, dass eine allmähliche Verfestigung aggressiver Tendenzen in der Persönlichkeitsstruktur durch verschiedene Prozesse, wie z.B. die normativen Überzeugungen vermittelt werden, konnte empirisch mittels Mediationsanalysen gestützt werden. / The relationship between exposure to and preference for violent video games and aggressive cognitions was examined in a longitudinal study. At the beginning (T1) and the end (T2) of a school-year, 349 twelve to sixteen year old adolescents in Germany reported their use of and attraction to violent electronic games and completed measures of hostile attributional style and endorsement of aggressive norms. Gender and trait aggression were considered as antecedents of violent video game usage and liking. Both girls and boys reported regular game play, but highly aggressive boys showed a particular attraction to violent games. In accordance with previous research, cross-sectional results at T1 showed a positive relationship between exposure to violent video games and aggression-enhancing cognitions. Significant relationships were found between attraction to violent games and the acceptance of norms condoning physical aggression. This finding was qualified by a moderator effect of trait aggression: highly aggressive adolescents who reported a high amount of exposure to violent games were most likely to accept aggressive strategies in dealing with interpersonal conflicts. Furthermore, violent electronic games were linked indirectly to hostile attributional style through aggressive norms. They influence information processing in ambiguous situations in terms of the attribution of hostile intent, which can be seen as an important antecedent of aggressive behavior). Using hierarchical regression analysis to relate T1 and T2 data, different models of causality concerning the link of media violence and aggression were tested. Findings suggest a stronger link between video game exposure at T1 and physical aggression at T2 than between aggression at T1 and exposure to games at T2 for both genders, supporting the hypothesis that violence in video games affects young players’ readiness to aggress. Mediation analyses further revealed that exposure to violent games at T1 influenced behavioral tendencies at T2 via an increase of aggressive norms, which is consistent with social cognitive explanations of long term effects of media violence on aggression.

Idenna studie har vi undersökt hur massmedier presenterat våldshandlingar övertid. Det som vi undersökt är om det finns urskiljbara faser i massmedialapresentationer av våldshandlingar. Vi har utgått från fallet Breivik och Norgeattentatet2011, som vi menar är ett mediebelyst fall som kan kasta ljus över andravåldshandlingar. Vi har använt oss av Grundad Teori som kvalitativ metod och analyseratsammanlagt 80 stycken tidningsartiklar hämtade från Aftonbladet, Expressen,Dagens Nyheter och Svenska Dagbladet. Resultatet visar att det finns urskiljbarafaser och dessa faser har vi benämnt som:Det ofattbara, Kollektiv bearbetningfrån det ofattbara, Det ofattbarapolitiseras och Det ofattbara blir enreferens. Medan tidigare forskning har belyst effekter av medievåld,massmediala skildringar av kvinnor och män, massmediala framställningar övertid och att massmediers framställningar av nyheter, har man i mindreutsträckning studerat den processuella utvecklingen hos våldshandlingar. Vi haranvänt symbolisk interaktionistisk teori för att få en fördjupad förståelse förvårt resultat. Det som vår uppsats tillfört den befintliga forskningen är att viurskilt olika faser gällande hur våld presenteras i massmedia. / In this study, we investigated howthe mass media presented theacts of violence over time. What we examined iswhether there are different phasesin the mass media presentationsof violence or not. We used the case Breivik andNorway attacks in 2011, which we think is a mass media highlighted case. And wich may shed light on other acts of violence.Using Grounded Theory we analyzed a total of 80newspaper articles taken from Aftonbladet, Expressen, Dagens Nyheter and Svenska Dagbladet. The result showsthat there are separate phases and we have referredto these as: The unbelievable, Collective processing from the unbelievable,The unbelievable politicized and The unbelievable becomes a reference. While previous research has highlighted the effects of mass mediaviolence, mass media portrayals of men and women, mass media representationsover time and that media bias, the procedural development of violence has beenless studied. We have used the symbolic interactionist theory to gain a deeperunderstanding of our results. The value of this study for the existing researchis that we distinguished different phases regarding how the violence presentedin the mass media.

This thesis explains the connection between comics and public reactions in two separate eras of conservatism. Comic books were targeted by critics in the 1950s because their content challenged conservative norms. In 1954, a U.S. Senate subcommittee hearing on Juvenile Delinquency tried to determine if comic books were having a harmful impact on children. The senators were concerned that comic books objectified women, taught children to engage in violence, promoted bigotry, and perhaps even encouraged homosexuality. The concerns caused outrage that was encouraged by the press. As a result, comic books adopted a form of self-censorship through the Comic Code Authority. The censorship combined with challenges from other media collapsed the comic book market until the next decade. Between 1978 through 1993, the United States entered a second period of conservatism. During this period, comic books reflected far more sensational content than that which had caused the public to react so strongly in 1954. And yet this time, there was almost no public outrage directed at comics. The purpose of this study is to find out why sensational content did not result in the same degree of public outrage that had occurred in 1954. This thesis starts with an overview of the controversies about comics in the 1950s era. Then, in the remainder of the thesis, comic books produced between 1978 and 1993 by the most popular mainstream comic book company, Marvel Comics, focusing on Daredevil, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, Ghost Rider, and the X-Men. The thesis also draws extensively on fan mail from the Stan Lee Archives in Laramie, Wyoming, and in the comic books themselves. Comparing comic books and the period’s changing media landscape, I show that comic books were deemed subversive and a source of scandalously sensational material out of step with much popular culture in the 1950s, but blended so well into the media landscape of the 1970s and 80s that they were safe from public outrage. Therefore, even though comic books became more violent and engaged in escalating levels of sexual objectification of female characters, fans approved of the new tone.