The Power of Social Modeling: The Effects of Television Violence (2024)

Dr. Albert Bandura, Bing Distinguished Lecture Series

By Christine VanDeVelde

Upon meeting Snow White at Disneyland, a preschooler said to her, "You're not Snow White, you know." "Why do you say that?" asked Snow White. "Well," the child replied, "if you were real, you'd be a cartoon." Such is the power of the media in shaping children's images of reality.

That power and its effects were the subject of a presentation by Dr. Albert Bandura, David Starr Jordan Professor of Social Sciences in Psychology, at the annual Bing Nursery School Distinguished Lecture Series, held on May 27 in Jordan Hall. Almost forty years ago, Dr. Bandura became a regular commuter to Washington, D.C., testifying in Congress about the effects of televised violence on children.

In the famous "Bobo Doll" experiments, Bandura had shown that children, when exposed to televised violence, exhibited the aggressive behavior they had observed - hitting, kicking, and using hostile language. Believe it or not, this was considered heretical, particularly by the television industry. Prior to that time, the prevailing theory was that televised violence drained aggressive impulses.

But Bandura demonstrated exposure to TV violence can produce at least four effects. First, it teaches aggressive styles of conduct. Second, it weakens restraints against aggression by glamorizing violence. When good triumphs over evil violently, viewers are even more strongly influenced. Third, it habituates and desensitizes reactions to cruelty. And finally, it shapes our images of reality; for example, only 10% of major crimes in society are violent, but on TV, 77% of major crimes are violent, which has the effect of making people more fearful of becoming crime victims. "Children and adults today have unlimited opportunities to learn the whole gamut of homicidal conduct from TV within the comfort of their homes," notes Bandura.

So, once again, in the wake of the Littleton, Colorado, tragedy, Bandura is commuting to Washington, D.C. to talk about violent role models and their effect on children's behavior. As he noted in his lecture, events such as those that occurred in Littleton, have created a paradox. The fear of violence is rising while, for the last seven years, crime rates have been falling. This, however, is not as irrational as it appears. According to Bandura, there are three properties of violence that instill widespread fear and all three were present in the Colorado incident.

First, there is unpredictability, no forewarning when or where violence might occur. The second property is the gravity of the consequences; individuals are unwilling to risk being killed, raped or having their child abducted, even if the probability is extremely low. Finally, there is the property of uncontrollability, a perceived helplessness to exert control. When these properties are present, a single incident can mar the quality of life in communities.

Bandura explained that historically there have been three explanations for aggression.

The "Instinct" theory asserts that people are by nature aggressive. There is no evidence of this, according to Bandura. In fact, there is further historical evidence that societies change; for example, Sweden, which evolved from an aggressive, fighting society to a pacific one. This theory, however, has popular appeal, because it removes the onus of responsibility from people for their inhumanities to each other.

The "Drive" theory holds that frustration causes aggression. This theory is widely accepted even though research findings dispute it, says Bandura. Frustration produces all kinds of reactions.

Finally, "Social Cognitive" theory posits that aversive experiences produce distress, causing emotional arousal and resulting in aggression. Bandura notes, however, that people don't have to be distressed to aggress. Much human aggression is prompted by the material and social benefits anticipated for that type of behavior. Distress actually prompts all kinds of behavior, depending on how a person has learned to deal with stress, and most people marshall their resources to overcome the source of distress.

The fact is that there is no single cause of aggression. Violent acts are a product of a constellation of factors, such that a change in any one factor can result in the event not occurring. Therefore, if Eric Harris had been accepted into the Marines, the Columbine High School shooting would not have occurred. To assign an average weight to one particular influence, such as violence on television or video games or current gun laws, reminds Bandura of the non-swimming statistician who drowned while crossing a river that averaged two feet in depth.

What one can be sure of, though, is that when a violent event occurs that stirs the public, the TV networks will run their "dog and pony show." Television industry spokespeople divert attention from the contributory influence of television and shift the blame to others "by invoking and flogging a single-cause theory of violence that no one really propounds," says Bandura. In what he terms their "self-exonerating sermonettes," it's not easy access to weapons, but lax enforcement of existing gun laws and it's not TV or interactive media, but detached and deficient parenting." As a result, since no one is at fault, they all get off scot-free. Sound familiar?

In addition, sensationalistic coverage of violent crimes tends to encourage imitative acts. In a television drama, titled "The Doomsday Flight," an extortionist threatened airline officials with an altitude-sensitive bomb that would explode if the airplane descended below 5,000 feet. Of course, the pilot outwitted the extortionists by landing at an airport above 5,000 feet. Following the broadcast, there was an eight-fold increase in extortion attempts using threats of altitude-sensitive bombs. As the program was re-run in the United States and abroad, the same pattern occurred; as a result, Qantas Airlines paid $560,000 to one extortionist and Western Airlines $25,000 to another. Adults, obviously, are equally influenced by modeling. "These criminal acts would not have occurred if it were not for the televised influence," notes Bandura. Of course, in the wake of the Columbine High School shootings, we have experienced threats and actual bombings by students who felt they had been marginalized and disparaged, as a way of settling interpersonal grievances. Such copy cat incidences continue, according to Bandura, "until the modeled style of conduct fades from public consciousness." This, of course, cannot occur until the "dog and pony show" ends.

One of the questions frequently asked in the wake of the Littleton tragedy is how two seemingly "normal" boys could have committed such an act. As a result of his work on violent role models, Bandura began looking at that question. "Most violent acts and large-scale inhumanities are perpetrated by people who, in other areas of their life and in other circumstances, are quite considerate in their behavior," notes Bandura. "They inflict inhumanities on others by selectively disengaging moral self-sanctions from their injurious conduct." According to Bandura, a "mechanism of moral disengagement" occurs. He identified tactics such as euphemistic labeling (the TV industry calling violence "action and adventure,") which lead to the minimizing of consequences (violence is a catharsis for kids), and result in a displacement of responsibility (we're not personally responsible, society is sick.)

"Moral control," notes Bandura, "functions most strongly when people acknowledge that they are contributors to harmful outcomes." His interest in this idea caused him to re-direct his research to look at "efficacy beliefs." As human beings we must believe that our actions can produce desired effects, or there is little incentive to act or persevere in the face of difficulties. This core belief that one has that power plays a pivotal role in many areas of life. For example, children's beliefs in academic efficacy determine their interests, motivation and accomplishments, and efficacy beliefs have equally important roles in such areas as workplace productivity and individuals' health habits.

Bandura is currently researching efficacy in tandem with "pro-social" modeling. "Pro-social" modeling, for example, tempers aggressiveness; restrained news coverage of violent events does not result in copycat violence. Positive modeling can also foster cooperativeness, empathy, sharing, a panoply of positive behavior. In fact, in another study, Bandura demonstrated the therapeutic power of modeling in overcoming phobias. Working with young children at Bing who were phobic about dogs, he found that the combination of modeling coping strategies and carefully guided mastery experiences was an unusually powerful treatment. This therapy is now the treatment of choice for anxiety and phobic reactions.

Events such as those in Littleton cannot be prevented, says Bandura, but we can work toward reducing their likelihood. What he would like to see is each cultural subsystem take some responsibility for their part in violent events - TV, interactive media, the gun industry, parents. In the case of television, he believes strongly that the goal should be to create better programming, not to restrict material on television. But we need a much greater public commitment to this for it to happen. "Electronic media can be used to bring out the best in us or to bring out the worst in us," says Bandura. "The tragedy is not only in violence, but in forfeiting the use of this powerful medium for human betterment and enlightenment."

The Power of Social Modeling: The Effects of Television Violence (2024)

FAQs

What is the power of social modeling the effects of television violence summary? ›

First, it teaches aggressive styles of conduct. Second, it weakens restraints against aggression by glamorizing violence. When good triumphs over evil violently, viewers are even more strongly influenced. Third, it habituates and desensitizes reactions to cruelty.

What are the effects of television violence on society? ›

Studies show extensive viewing of television violence may cause children to become more aggressive and anxious. Children who watch many hours a week of violent TV may become inured to violence and begin to see the world as a scary and unsafe place. Pay attention to what your children are watching.

What are the four effects of television violence? ›

The author briefly defines four harmful effects produced by television violence: an aggressor effect, a victim effect, a bystander effect, and a self- socialization effect.

How violent television is responsible for violence in youth? ›

Media violence can encourage children to learn aggressive behavior and attitudes. Media violence can cultivate fearful or pessimistic attitudes in children about the non-television world. Media violence can desensitize children to real-world and fantasy violence.

What does Bandura's theory tell us about the influence of television? ›

Bandura on Television Violence

It would lead to aggressive behavior. It glamorizes violence, weakens restraint against aggression, and desensitizes children from cruelty. It can shape a child's image of reality. This means that violence on television can lead to children perceiving the world as more violent than it is.

How does social media contribute to violence? ›

Cyberbullying is itself a form of violence that involves using social media to harass, threaten, intimidate, or humiliate a victim. The presence of a large audience provides a stage for cyberbullies to accomplish this. For many teens, cyberbullying is far more cruel and damaging than in-person bullying.

Does television affect social interaction? ›

Individuals who spend an excessive amount of time watching TV tend to become socially isolated, and that likely limits the development of their social networks and social skills [10].

Is television the leading cause of violence in today's society? ›

Television is the leading cause of violence in today's society — the sentence is absolutely true. We see many children who are watching TV programmes. When we look at these children, they imitate the adults who are watching programmes or the news bulletin or movies.

How is the television the leading cause of violence? ›

Repetitive violence in television causes an impact on the psyche of children when they are upset and try to canalize his/her dudgeon and violent reactions through television's ideas. This includes the use of foul language and antisocial behavior. If a person lacks maturity or good values, TV can easily influence them.

What are the negative effects of media violence? ›

Extensive research evidence indicates that media violence can contribute to aggressive behavior, desensitization to violence, nightmares, and fear of being harmed. Pediatricians should assess their patients' level of media exposure and intervene on media-related health risks.

How does media influence violent behavior? ›

Research shows that fictional television and film violence contribute to both a short-term and a long-term increase in aggression and violence in young viewers. Television news violence also contributes to increased violence, principally in the form of imitative suicides and acts of aggression.

How does television affect people's behavior? ›

Characters on TV and in video games often show risky behaviors — like drinking alcohol, using drugs, and smoking cigarettes — as cool, fun, and exciting. When these things seem acceptable, kids and teens might be tempted to try them. That might lead to substance abuse problems.

Does TV contribute to violence? ›

New evidence links TV viewing to violent behavior. Teens and young adults who watch more than 3 hours of TV a day are more than twice as likely to commit an act of violence later in life, compared to those who watch less than 1 hour, according to a new study.

What is television violence? ›

Defining TV Violence. "Television violence" usually refers to all the violence appearing on TV screens. It includes material broadcast over the air, distributed by cable and satellite systems, and available on videocassettes and disks.

Does TV influence children's behavior? ›

Too much TV watching can also take away time from reading, studying, learning activities, play, and exercise. Television can also show alcohol and drug use, smoking, and sexual behavior before a child is emotionally ready to understand these issues and practice good decision-making.

What are the 3 concepts of Bandura's social learning theory? ›

SLT foundational concepts

People learn through observation. Reinforcement and punishment have an indirect effect on behavior and learning. Cognitive factors contribute to whether a behavior is acquired.

What are the 4 potential consequences of consuming violent media according to Bandura? ›

The four main effects are aggression, desensitization, fear and negative messages (Murray 2000). Consider these troubling realities: The average American child spends three to five hours of each day watching television. That's 1,500 hours per year in front of the TV compared to only about 900 hours in school.

What is the main idea of Bandura's social learning theory? ›

Albert Bandura's social learning theory suggests that observation and modeling play a primary role in how and why people learn. Bandura's theory goes beyond the perception of learning being the result of direct experience with the environment.

How does the media glamorize violence? ›

Media leads people to believe that there is much more violence on the screen than in real life. The portrayal of violence is highly unrealistic: violence is sanitized and glamorized, the heroes and evildoers are stereotyped, consequences for perpetrators and post-traumatic experiences of victims are not shown.

How does social media play a role in youth violence? ›

Meta-analyses of the unhealthy effects of media-violence have shown that youth who view media-violence on a regular basis are more likely to exhibit antisocial behavior, ranging from imitative violent behavior with toys to criminal violence, acceptance of violent behavior, increased feelings of hostility, and ...

How does TV impact social development? ›

Impacts social development

Less or no interaction with peers can affect their social development. TV eats away the time they get to interact with other children in their social circle, which may affect their knowledge and understanding of social interactions and behavior.

Do the media influence social behavior? ›

Media has the power to influence individual beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. Thus, social norms that influence and encourage gender violence have been targeted by policy interventions using mass media communication.

What are the social impacts of television and social media? ›

Social anxiety is one among other negative psychological and physical health issues that social media and television can cause. Not only because of the content that is provided but also the habits that we form and the time and energy we put into such media outlets. Jacobsen, W. C., & Forste, R.

What are the main causes of violence happening in our society today? ›

Risk-taking behaviour. Use of alcohol and drugs.
...
Other factors which can be causes of violence include:
  • The influence of one's peers.
  • Having a lack of attention or respect.
  • Having low self-worth.
  • Experiencing abuse or neglect.
  • Witnessing violence in the home, community, or medias.
  • Access to weapons.
Mar 4, 2023

How television is damaging our lives? ›

The perspectives are: negative effect on brain development of children, destroying of differences and culture, negatively influencing our thinking, increasing use of violence after watching violent TV, increase of fat due to less exercise and more eating, decrease of sexual interest, increased depression due to " ...

Why should television violence be banned? ›

The first reason in favour of banning violence on TV is that watching a lot of it may make children think that behaving this way is acceptable. As a result of such shows on TV, they may copy this behaviour when they play with other children.

What role did violence and television play in the civil rights movement? ›

It is often suggested that national television news coverage of the civil rights movement helped transform the United States by showing Americans the violence of segregation and the dignity of the African American quest for equal rights.

Does television cause an increase in violence in children? ›

they found that television had a vast impact on children, and when children watched violent shows, they displayed aggressive attitudes. Explains that while there is a positive correlation between television and aggression, it is important to state the negative effects.

What is the most harmful effect of social media? ›

The more time spent on social media can lead to cyberbullying, social anxiety, depression, and exposure to content that is not age appropriate. Social Media is addicting. When you're playing a game or accomplishing a task, you seek to do it as well as you can.

What are some examples of social media violence? ›

Examples of cyber-bullying include sending insulting or threatening messages, spreading rumors, disclosing personal information, displaying embarrassing pictures, or excluding others during online communications (Perren et al., 2012).

What is the biggest negative effect of social media? ›

Social media harms

However, social media use can also negatively affect teens, distracting them, disrupting their sleep, and exposing them to bullying, rumor spreading, unrealistic views of other people's lives and peer pressure. The risks might be related to how much social media teens use.

What is media violence and examples? ›

Media Violence in the United States

Examples include streaming video, messaging and social networking platforms, video games, television, music, music videos, and social media. The expansion of media to include more and more forms of digital media has made it easier to access and be exposed to portrayals of violence.

What are the effects of media violence on emotions? ›

As a result of repeated exposure to media violence, people may eventually perceive it as an effective means of solving personal or social problems, and to accept violence as a way of life. Second, exposure to media violence is assumed to affect aggression through emotional arousal.

How does the media influence our fear of crime? ›

The empirical studies by Gerbner and Gross (1976) demonstrated that frequent television viewers (those who watch television for more than four hours a day) are more likely to feel that they live in a violent society due to the fact that television exaggerates so much severity as the risk of criminal victimization, ...

Can TV cause behavior problems? ›

In multiple studies, excessive screen time has been linked to school problems, anger, aggression, frustration, depression and other emotional problems. Over-stimulation causes kids to have poor focus and depletes their mental energy, which often leads to explosive behavior.

Do television do more harm than good? ›

Key findings of various high valued platforms and agencies have made me conclude that it is a complete myth that television only harms. When valued critically, you will find it causing good than not so good. One of the prominent statements comes from the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO).

What are the effects of watching violent movies? ›

Several studies, in fact, have linked viewing violence with an increased risk for aggression, anger, and failing to understand the suffering of others. Viewers are less likely to help others, feel sympathetic toward victims, and express empathy.

What is media violence in simple words? ›

Most researchers define media violence as visual portrayals of acts of physical aggression by one human or human-like character against another.

What is television viewing and aggressive behavior? ›

Television viewing and aggressive behavior were assessed over a 17-year interval in a community sample of 707 individuals. There was a significant association between the amount of time spent watching television during adolescence and early adulthood and the likelihood of subsequent aggressive acts against others.

How does television violence affect children's behavior? ›

Extensive viewing of television violence by children causes greater aggressiveness. Sometimes, watching a single violent program can increase aggressiveness. Children who view shows in which violence is very realistic, frequently repeated or unpunished, are more likely to imitate what they see.

How does television violence affect children's behavior essay? ›

Psychological research has shown three major effects of seeing violence on television: Children may become less sensitive to the pain and suffering of others, more fearful of the world around them, and may be more likely to behave in aggressive or harmful ways toward others (A.P.A., par. 2).

How does violent media affect youth? ›

The vast majority of laboratory-based experimental studies have revealed that violent media exposure causes increased aggressive thoughts, angry feelings, physiologic arousal, hostile appraisals, aggressive behavior, and desensitization to violence and decreases prosocial behavior (eg, helping others) and empathy.

Does Media Violence predict societal violence it depends on what you look at when? ›

A 2014 study in Journal of Communication, “Does Media Violence Predict Societal Violence? It Depends on What You Look at and When,” builds on prior research to look closer at media portrayals of violence and rates of violent behavior. The research, by Christopher J.

What impact does television have on the socialization of children? ›

Also, Davey (2005) found that some television programmes help young children to learn, but also posited it negative effects to include violent acts, sexual abuse and emotional outburst. Thus, television unequivocally has positive and negative influences on children's socialization.

What harm does television watching do to the mental powers of the children what is the activity referred to later in the poem that sharpens the brain? ›

(iv) iv) Watching too much television destroys the children's ability to create or understand Worlds of fantasy ,their mind gets clogged and cluttered, they became dull and their thinking power rusts and freezes. The ability to think of new ideas diminishes when a child passively engage in watching television.

What is the negative impact of social media on society? ›

Social media harms

However, social media use can also negatively affect teens, distracting them, disrupting their sleep, and exposing them to bullying, rumor spreading, unrealistic views of other people's lives and peer pressure. The risks might be related to how much social media teens use.

What are the social impacts of media? ›

The truth is that social media can also be beneficial for society. It can help individuals connect and deepen their relationships. Social media also encourages students to learn and grow. And it can empower businesses to build their audiences and boost their bottom line.

Does violence in the media promote violence in society? ›

Television news violence also contributes to increased violence, principally in the form of imitative suicides and acts of aggression.

Are television programs one of the major causes of violence in society? ›

Extensive viewing of television violence by children causes greater aggressiveness. Sometimes, watching a single violent program can increase aggressiveness. Children who view shows in which violence is very realistic, frequently repeated or unpunished, are more likely to imitate what they see.

What are four negative ways television influences children? ›

Too much TV watching can also take away time from reading, studying, learning activities, play, and exercise. Television can also show alcohol and drug use, smoking, and sexual behavior before a child is emotionally ready to understand these issues and practice good decision-making.

Does television affect socialization? ›

Even for those children who do not spend countless hours in front of it, it can still be argued that it plays a significant part in their socialization process, merely from the indirect effects - primarily how it influences their peers, and thus themselves.

What are the undesirable consequences of watching the television? ›

Heavy TV viewing (more than 4 hours a day) definitely reduces school performance. This much TV interferes with study, reading, and thinking time. If children do not get enough sleep because they are watching TV, they will not be alert enough to learn well on the following day. TV discourages exercise.

What harm does the television watching do? ›

People who watch too much television run the risk that their brains will get used to overstimulation from the rapid pace of the shows they watch. Some fear that the brain will change in ways that lead to a shorter attention span that can affect learning.

How does television control the activities of children? ›

Too much screen time can also take away from reading, studying, learning activities, play, and exercise. Digital media can also show alcohol and drug use, smoking, and sexual behavior. Your child may see these things before they are emotionally ready to understand these issues. And before they can make good decisions.

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