Introduction
Children’s interaction with media is a cause of constant concern as kids could unintentionally engage with material inappropriate for their age. Specifically, the availability of violent content is what makes many adults worry. Violence in media hurts children’s mental health and leads to the risk of dangerous behavior in the future. Therefore, measures should be taken to decrease its influence on kids.
Aspects of Media Where Violence is Portrayed
Children are likely to be exposed to violence in most types of media. Violent content is possibly to be found in newspapers, television, or even radio (“Media violence and its effects on children’s behavior,” 2021). Numerous videos on the internet contain materials depicting dangerous behavior and brutality. Some movies show scenes that are not oriented toward the children’s audience. Another source of concern is video games, where children are not only witnesses of violence but can act on behalf of the character that commits violent acts. All these media can have a negative impact on a child’s development.
Research Evidence of Bad Effects of Media Violence on Children
As for the proof of the negative influence violence in media has on kids, researches show that exposure to such content causes serious changes in children’s behavior. For example, having the virtual gun violence experience in video games increases dangerous behavior around firearms as children tend to imitate in real life what they see in the game (Chang & Bushman, 2019). The impact of violent video games is larger than the influence of any other media because it affects not only a player but also his social network (Greitemeyer, 2022).
Data is confirming that constant engagement with violence in media leads to violent actions in adolescence and adulthood. The influence of the media on the child is as strong as the effect of other factors, such as peer pressure and exposure to domestic violence (Ybarra et al., 2022). Among the less dangerous consequences, a long-term and short-term increase in aggression should be mentioned (Chang & Bushman, 2019). This information shows that the accessibility of violent content for children is a severe problem that parents should solve in the first place.
How Parents Can Counteract the Bad Effects of Media Violence on Children
Regarding possible counteraction to the effect of media violence, the first step is to limit children’s access to that kind of content. Parents should have control over what content their kids are consuming (“What’s the impact of media violence on kids?” 2020). It is important to find the media free of depiction of violence to have a source of entertainment that is appropriate for the child’s age. If a kid was accidentally exposed to violent content, parents should discuss it and make it clear that this type of behavior is not typical and should not be considered a norm. If the child shows signs of distress or aggression caused by violence in media, it is reasonable to consider turning for professional help, including psychotherapy (“Media violence and its effects on children’s behavior,” 2021). However, preventing the consumption of violent content is easier than dealing with its consequences.
Conclusion
To summarize all mentioned above, children’s consumption of violent content in media increases the risks of deviant behavior in the future. Exposure to violence in the media has the same effect as witnessing real-world violence and harms a child’s mental health. One of the especially dangerous aspects of media is video games because their area of influence is larger than that of movies or news. Moreover, they create a model of behavior and provoke its imitation in the future.
References
Chang, J.H., & Bushman, B.J. (2019). Effect of exposure to gun violence in video games on children’s dangerous behaviour with real guns: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA Netw Open, 2(5), 1-11.
Greiteymeyer, T. The dark and bright side of video game consumption: Effects of violent and prosocial video games. Current Opinion in Psychology, 46, 1-5. Web.
Media Violence and its effects to children’s behavior. (2021). MindShift. Web.
What’s the impact of media violence on kids? (2020). Common sense media. Web.
Ybarra, M.L., Mitchell, K.J., & Oppenheim, J.K. (2022). Violent media in childhood and seriously violent behavior in adolescence and young adulthood. Journal of Adolescent Health, 71(3), 285-292. Web.