Media Influences on Aggression

• Björkqvist’s laboratory study investigating aggression

  • involved children watching either a violent or a non-violent film.
  • measured changes in levels of displayed aggression, such as shouting and hitting.
  • found that children who watched violent films then behaved more aggressively than those who watched a non-violent film.
• A limitation of Björkqvist’s study is that it might lack ecological validity
• Anderson and Dill’s experiment investigated the role of media in aggression. This was a lab experiment investigating the effects pf violent video games on levels of aggression, it involved participants rating their own level of aggression. They found that the participants who played violent video games reported higher levels of aggression afterward.
• The two limitations of Andersons and Dills experiment are that...

  1. the researchers didn’t measure actual aggression and so their test may lack validity as a measure of aggression.
  2. the researchers didn’t study the long-term effects of violent media on aggression.
• What are the 2 longitudinal studies which suggest that violent media can increase aggression?

  Anderson (2007) and Huesmann et al (2000)

  Through self report studies
• Two limitations of self-report are that the answers might lack objectivity and participants might be influenced by social desirability bias.
• Bjorkqvist conducted a laboratory experiment looking at whether watching violent films caused aggression in children. His participants were children aged 5 or 6. The experimental group watched a violent film while the control group watched a non-violent film. Then the researchers watched the children interacting with each other and counted any violent behaviour they saw. Bjorkqvist found that the children in the experimental group displayed more aggression than those in the control group.
• What are the 3 types of mechanisms of media influence?

  1. Desensitisation
  2. Disinhibition
  3. Cognitive priming
• What is Desensitisation?

  When a person’s emotional response to a stimulus gets smaller with repeated exposure to the stimulus.
• Violence in the media can lead to aggression through desensitisation, because with repeated exposure to violence in the media, people become less shocked by the violence. This makes them feel more comfortable being violent themselves.
• What is disinhibition?

  When people become less concerned about social norms that tell them not to behave aggressively.
• Disinhibition can contribute to aggression because when people are exposed to violent media, they begin to feel like violence is more socially acceptable.
• What is cognitive priming?


  Exposure to a stimulus makes thoughts and ideas related to that stimulus more accessible in our mind.
• Cognitive priming can cause aggression because being exposed to lots of images of violence makes ideas and thoughts about violence more accessible in our mind.
• Support for the Role of Desensitisation


  Carnagey et al - conducted a laboratory experiment in which they made participants play either a violent or non-violent game. Then all participants had their heart rate monitored while they watched a violent film. He found that participants who had previously played a violent game had a lower heart rate while watching the violent film, suggesting they had been desensitized to the violence.
• Support for the Role of Disinhibition


  Heath et al 1989 - found that children whose parents emphasised social norms against aggression were unlikely to behave aggressively, even if they were exposed to violent media. Whereas children whose parents used physical punishment were more likely to behave aggressively if they were exposed to violent media.
• Support for the Role of Cognitive Priming 


  Bushman et al 1998 - His study was a laboratory experiment, in which he first made participants watch a violent or a non-violent film. He found that the experimental group responded faster to aggressive words than non-aggressive words.