chapter 13 - media violence

You observe Kris punch Laura in the nose and immediately you explain this as due to Kris having a very aggressive personality. You have just committed the

a.   self-serving error

b.   fundamental attribution error

c.   consistency- consensus error

d.   self-fulfilling prophecy

e.   inconsistent information error

b.   fundamental attribution error

What are some social influences?

Norms, conformity, and creates conflict

social influence: norms

Conventions, customs & laws that apply to a group’s behaviour

social influence: conformity

A change in attitude, behaviour or belief brought about by the real or imagined pressure from others

• conflict

social influence flow chart - conformity

social influence flow chart - non-conformity

subtle influence: models

Our behaviour may be shaped by models, even in absence of direct intentional influence

subtle influence: response disinhibition

Model performs desired, but prohibited act

disinhibition refers to

a loss of control over one's behaviors, thoughts, or emotions, leading to actions or expressions that are inappropriate or socially unacceptable. 

subtle influence: examples

• crossing on red

• media violence

• Increase in suicides following 35 highly publicized suicides in 1950-1969 (Phillips, 1989)

• 200 after M. Monroe in 1962

Response Facilitation

• Model performs “legal” behaviour... then we copy

  • e.g.  - Yawning & head nodding

• Candid Conformity

• Trivial?

  • Wells & Petty (1980)

Conforming to group pressure

Informational  Vs. Normative

Conforming to group pressure: Informational

• Group gives information that individual can use for rational decision

• Private Acceptance

Conforming to group pressure: Normative

• Pressure to maintain group consensus... “don’t rock the boat”

• Compliance

Asch's Conformity Studies

Solomon Asch conducted experiments in the 1950s to explore conformity in group settings. Participants were asked to match line lengths, but actors in the group purposely chose incorrect answers. Results showed that individuals often conformed to the group's wrong decision, highlighting the powerful influence of social pressure on behavior.

Compliance with Serious Requests

Milgram’s Studies

• Subjects recruited by ads

• “Teacher - Learner” Paradigm

Milgram’s Studies

• Subject gives feedback with shock generator

• Experimenter “prods” subject  to continue

• Psychiatrists predict 2% will complete the

  shock series

Milgram’s Study of Obedience

What are factors are influencing obedience?

status, proximity, generality

factors influencing obedience: status

“Low” status setting  50% complete

factors influencing obedience: proximity

• Authority figure

• Proximity of Learner

  • Remote

  • Hear

  • See and hear

  • touch → 30% complete

factors influencing obedience: generality

• certain subject? no

• Lab only? no

• Hofling et. al. (1966)

  Rank & Jacobson (1977)

what are ways to counteracting obedience?

Personal Responsibility, disobedient models,

counteracting obedience: personal responsibility

Obedience drops dramatically

counteracting obedience: Disobedient Models

• 2 confederates refuse

• Obedience drops to 10%

Television: by the age of

By the age of:

 5   2 - 3 Hours per day

10    4 - 6 Hours per day

16    Witnessed more than   40,000 murders

18    More time watching   TV than in school

Television

• 99% of households have at least one TV set

  • more than households with bathtub or telephone

• On average, set is on 7 hours per day

• Who watches more?

  • women, preschoolers, retired people

TV CONTENT: Barker & Ball (1969), Waters & Malamud (1975)

1.   8 out of 10 shows contain   violence

2.   Act of violence occurs   every 16 minutes

3.   Murder every 31 minutes

4.   93.5% of cartoons

5.   "Good-Guys" as violent as   "Bad-Guys"

6.   Pain and suffering rarely   shown

7.   About 50% of killers do not   suffer

8.   Most people believe that   there is to much violence

TV Images:

1.   Violence more likely from   minorities

2.   Strangers should not be   trusted

3.   Whites do not get killed as often as nonwhites

4.   Police are frequently violent

5.   Violence and killing are   painless

6.   Violence often goes   unpunished

7.   Both good and bad people   use violence

8.   Violence is a successful   means to an end

CBS (1980)

• Prime Time:   Average of 1.6 violent acts

• 6.4 acts per day

• 2,336 acts per year

Signorielli et al. (1982)

80% of all TV shows contain some violence

71% of prime time shows

94% of “children’s” weekend shows

Average of 5.2 violent acts per hour

Gerber (1993)

   67% of Prime Time contains some kind of violence

National TV Violence Study (1997)

   10,000 programs

   60% contain violence

Parent’s Television Council  (2009)

   monitored prime time programming during “sweeps”  (Feb. and May)

• A total of 3929 acts of violence, average of 23.39 per hour

• Parent’s Television Council  (2013)

  • gun or bladed weapon every 3 min.

  • 2017 → 61% of sweeps 

• Criminal Minds:

  • average of 52.8 acts of violence per episode ( 1 every 68 seconds )

• Does TV violence cause aggression?

• Does TV violence influence aggression?

Research Evidence

1. modelling studies

2. laboratory studies

3. long-term field studies

Modelling Studies: Bandura (1971)

Children can acquire new aggressive responses not previously at their disposal.

However, acquisition not equal to performance.

Lab Studies

• Libert & Baron (1972)

• Kids (5-6, 8-9) watched either The  Untouchables OR a track film

• Then had opportunity to either help or hurt another child.

Time pressing Red "Hurt" button (y-axis)

red: violent

white: non-violent

Field Studies

Black & Bevan (1992)

Aggression scale to movie-goers before or after violent or nonviolent movie

Long-Term Field Studies

Leyens et al. (1975) School boys exposed to steady diet of either aggressive or nonaggressive films.

Eron (1982)  Three - year study with 748 children.

why do we get these media effects?

1. Social learning or   modelling

2. Disinhibition

3.  Desensitization to pain &   aggression

Changes in the Brain

Wang et al. (2011)

fMRI before and after playing violent video game

Less activation in frontal lobe while completing emotional task… even 1 week after

Does TV violence cause aggression?

Does TV violence influence aggression?

1. maybe

2. definitely