Showing papers by "L. Rowell Huesmann published in 1986"
TL;DR: In this paper, a developmental theory is presented to account for the relation between increased exposure to media violence and increased aggressive behavior, and it is argued that the effect of media violence on individual differences in aggression is primarily the result of a cumulative learning process during childhood.
Abstract: A developmental theory is presented to account for the relation between increased exposure to media violence and increased aggressive behavior It is argued that the effect of media violence on individual differences in aggression is primarily the result of a cumulative learning process during childhood Aggressive scripts for behavior are acquired from observation of media violence and aggressive behavior itself stimulates the observation of media violence In both childhood and adulthood, certain cues in the media may trigger the activation of aggressive scripts acquired in any manner and thus stimulate aggressive behavior A number of intervening variables may either mitigate or exacerbate these reciprocal effects If undampened, this cumulative learning process can build enduring schemas for aggressive behavior that persist into adulthood Thus, early childhood television habits are correlated with adult criminality independently of other likely causal factors It is concluded that interventions directed at mitigating the effects of media violence on delinquency and criminality should focus on the preadolescent years
486 citations
TL;DR: Do media portrayals of interpersonal violence engender aggression among the observers? This question has been the focus of social scientific inquiry for over a quarter of a century as discussed by the authors, and the initial research efforts of numerous investigators led to the surgeon general's research program on television and social behavior in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Abstract: Do media portrayals of interpersonal violence engender aggression among the observers? This question has been the focus of social scientific inquiry for over a quarter of a century. The initial research efforts of numerous investigators led to the surgeon general's research program on television and social behavior in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The surgeon general's conclusion that “television violence, indeed, does have an adverse effect on certain members of our society” (Steinfeld, 1972) stimulated a torrent of research, congressional hearings, and expressions of public concern. The late 1970s and early 1980s also saw the emergence of cable television and the video cassette as major media forces. Accordingly, many teenagers and even preadolescents became frequent viewers of scenes that graphically couple sex and violence. Not surprisingly, a new research focus developed on the effects of such media stimuli.
60 citations
01 Jul 1986
3 citations