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Multiple forms of violence have emerged in the media over recent decades, and their impact on the public has been the focus of extensive global research. This research often links media violence to an increase in aggression, particularly among young people and children. The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical framework and highlight significant conclusions regarding the effects of media violence through various forms of content, including television (cartoons, horror movies, news), video games, music lyrics, and social media platforms. It explores how the public can be affected by less friendly, even violent content and what disadvantages arise, offering some suggestions in this regard. Studies have demonstrated that media violence can shape children's behaviors, emotions, and perceptions of the world, often in troubling ways. Some concerning outcomes associated with exposure to violent content include increased aggression, desensitization to violence, distorted worldviews, health problems, and addictions. Not only the effects at the level of behavior were taken into consideration, but also the role of parental involvement. The study contributes to a better understanding of the nature of the media phenomenon and the impact of its content. Other implications were discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Violent media is the most consumed type of media in Lebanon. Many studies have linked exposure to media violence to increased aggression and psychological distress. As Lebanon is going through socio-political turmoil, we aimed to [1] explore the correlates of aggression (i.e., sociodemographic factors, BMI, loneliness, social competence, and psychological distress) in a sample of Lebanese adults from the general population, and [2] to examine the mediating effect of psychological distress in the association between exposure to media violence and aggression in this sample. Methodology Adults were recruited through online convenience sampling. We employed scales to assess content-based media exposure (C-ME), aggression (BPAQ-SF), psychological distress (DASS-8), loneliness (JGLS), and perceived social competence (PSCS). Results Exposure to media violence was associated with all four aggression subtypes (verbal, physical, hostility, and anger). Psychological distress partially mediated all these associations; higher exposure to media violence was significantly associated with more psychological distress, which was significantly associated with higher levels of all types of aggression. Moreover, higher exposure to media violence was significantly associated with higher levels of all types of aggression. Conclusion In the sociopolitical context of Lebanon, violent media could be considered a public hazard. Psychological distress likely potentiates the association between exposure to violent media and aggression. Future research should focus on determining what components of psychological distress underpin this mediation.

The authors seek to answer why the criminals in media are presented in a way that does not meet the reality, which categories of young people are at the most risk considering the negative impact of these "role models", and how the family and legislation can protect them. Behind the media presentation of the crime world as idyllic are the centres of power, which are in agreement with the owners of the media, with the aim to form insecure personalities, prone to addictions, who looks up to inadequate role models. For the proper development of adolescents, close relationships with parents and peers are necessary. Parents represent a safe haven when peer and other social relations do not go in the desired direction. In contact with peers, adolescents learn new roles, about the world of adults, and find a new type of egalitarian closeness. A close relationship with parents allows the young person to discuss role models from media, positive and negative heroes, values, dilemmas, events in peer relationships, and plans for the future, as well as to convey life experiences from parent to adolescent. On the other hand, legislation is necessary to protect social groups from media exploitation or exposure to media violence.

Concerns have been raised that prolonged exposure to heavy metal music with aggressive themes can increase the risk of aggression, anger, antisocial behaviour, substance use, suicidal ideation, anxiety and depression in community and psychiatric populations. Although research often relies on correlational evidence for which causal inferences are not possible, it is often claimed that music with aggressive themes can cause psychological and behavioural problems. This narrative review of theory and evidence suggests the issues are more complicated, and that fans typically derive a range of emotional and social benefits from listening to heavy metal music, including improved mood, identity formation, and peer affiliation. In contrast, non-fans of heavy metal music — who are often used as participants in experimental research on this topic — invariably report negative psychological experiences. Our review considers a comprehensive set of empirical findings that inform clinical strategies designed to identify fans for whom heavy metal music may confer psychological and behavioural risks, and those for whom this music may confer psychosocial benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the role of gender and media violence in adolescents' peer relationship problems and aggressive behaviour. High school students (n = 144) from South-Eastern Nigeria participated in the study. Seventy-two completed an experiment in which they were exposed to media violence, while the other 72 served as attention controls. Following the interventions, the students completed measures of peer relationship problems and aggressive behaviour. Results from Hayes PROCESS Macro for moderated–mediation analyses indicated that peer relationship qualities predicted aggressive behaviour. Media violence exposure mediated the peer influence–aggressive behaviour relationship, such that the relationship was stronger for male participants with greater peer relationship problems. The relationship was weaker for female participants with lesser or no peer relationship problems. These findings are consistent with social learning theory, which proposes that children learn to engage in aggressive behaviour by observing the aggression of others, which could intensify over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Violent media is the most consumed type of media in Lebanon. Many studies have linked exposure to media violence to increased aggression and psychological distress. As Lebanon is going through socio-political turmoil, we aimed to [1] explore the correlates of aggression (i.e., sociodemographic factors, BMI, loneliness, social competence, and psychological distress) in a sample of Lebanese adults from the general population, and [2] to examine the mediating effect of psychological distress in the association between exposure to media violence and aggression in this sample. Methodology: Adults were recruited through online convenience sampling. We employed scales to assess content-based media exposure (C-ME), aggression (BPAQ-SF), psychological distress (DASS-8), loneliness (JGLS), and perceived social competence (PSCS). Results: Exposure to media violence was associated with all four aggression subtypes (verbal, physical, hostility, and anger). Psychological distress partially mediated all these associations; higher exposure to media violence was significantly associated with more psychological distress, which was significantly associated with higher levels of all types of aggression. Moreover, higher exposure to media violence was significantly associated with higher levels of all types of aggression. Conclusion: In the sociopolitical context of Lebanon, violent media could be considered a public hazard. Psychological distress likely potentiates the association between exposure to violent media and aggression. Future research should focus on determining what components of psychological distress underpin this mediation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Homeless communities have garnered recent public attention in Canada due to their high rates of violence, victimization, and being reported as missing. There have been several high-profile cases, investigations, and inquiries involving missing homeless persons, yet very little is known about what cases are reported to the police, under what circumstances they go missing, and the outcomes of those cases. As a result, the purpose of this study is to provide some insights into some of these unresolved issues by offering an exploratory, descriptive analysis of 291 closed missing person cases from the records of a municipal police service. What this analysis reveal is a somewhat more mundane picture. Specifically, results indicate that the majority of missing person reports are of those who are female and White, have a drug/alcohol addiction, are residing at homeless shelters/missions, and have a history of being reported as missing. As well, it was revealed that most people are reported as missing due to shelter/mission reporting issues with curfews and that all are located alive. This study extends the minimal existing scholarship on the missing homeless population by providing some preliminary insights on the vulnerabilities and factors that can impact these cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This theoretical review explores the possibility that the consumption of internet pornography (IP) represents a credible risk factor in the perpetration of aggression and violence against women. Sexual violence, abuse, and degradation of women is commonly depicted in mainstream heterosexual IP. Despite the violent tenor, the effect this material may have on beliefs, attitudes and behaviors is understudied, as are the reasons why violent and degrading IP is so widely viewed, enjoyed, and accepted. Both theory and empirical findings support the contention that depictions of violence in IP may contribute to real world aggression and violence against women, with two relevant spheres of inquiry proposed in this theoretical review. The first considers IP as a ‘zone of cultural exception’, in which the perpetration of violent and degrading acts against women are eroticized and celebrated, despite such behaviors being considered antisocial in wider society. It is suggested that this excepted status is enabled by the operation of the third person effect to negate the detrimental effects of IP. The second explores the objectification and dehumanization of women in IP and the use of moral disengagement by viewers to enable their disavowal of any harm in the depicted violence.

There is a great concern about the incidence of violent behavior in childhood and adolescence. Exposure to violence in the media is a risk factor for violent behavior in children. The American Psychological Association (APA) (2020) reported children who repeatedly play violent video games tend to demonstrate increased aggressiveness and decreased concern for others, and video gaming impacted academic performance. The purpose of this article is to raise awareness among parents, nurses, and other providers about the impact of playing violent video games excessively through theories explaining the possible impact of violent games on children's behavior, proposed measures to evaluate children's exposure to video games, and strategies to control or reduce this problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research suggests that the representation of violence against women in the media has resulted in an increased acceptance of attitudes favoring domestic violence. While prior work has investigated the relationship between violent media exposure and violent crime, there has been little effort to empirically examine the relationship between specific forms of violent media exposure and the perpetration of intimate partner violence. Using data collected from a sample of 148 inmates, the current study seeks to help fill these gaps in the literature by examining the relationship between exposure to various forms of pleasurable violent media and the perpetration of intimate partner violence (i.e., conviction and self-reported). At the bivariate level, results indicate a significant positive relationship between exposure to pleasurable television violence and self-reported intimate partner abuse. However, this relationship is reduced to insignificant levels in multivariable modeling. Endorsement of domestic violence beliefs and victimization experience were found to be the strongest predictors of intimate partner violence perpetration. Potential policy implications based on findings are discussed within. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This theoretical review explores the possibility that the consumption of internet pornography (IP) represents a credible risk factor in the perpetration of aggression and violence against women. Sexual violence, abuse, and degradation of women is commonly depicted in mainstream heterosexual IP. Despite the violent tenor, the effect this material may have on beliefs, attitudes and behaviors is understudied, as are the reasons why violent and degrading IP is so widely viewed, enjoyed, and accepted. Both theory and empirical findings support the contention that depictions of violence in IP may contribute to real world aggression and violence against women, with two relevant spheres of inquiry proposed in this theoretical review. The first considers IP as a 'zone of cultural exception', in which the perpetration of violent and degrading acts against women are eroticized and celebrated, despite such behaviors being considered antisocial in wider society. It is suggested that this excepted status is enabled by the operation of the third person effect to negate the detrimental effects of IP. The second explores the objectification and dehumanization of women in IP and the use of moral disengagement by viewers to enable their disavowal of any harm in the depicted violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the practical operation of Australia's National Classification System (NCS) for films and games, to evaluate its alignment with the findings of psychological research.1 Twenty-nine decisions of the Classification Review Board are examined to determine the factors applied in assessing the impact of violent content and drawing the line between the different classification categories. The language used in referring to violent content is analysed to determine the concepts that influence the Board's view about the correct classification. These concepts are then tested against the research evidence on the depictions of violence that create the greatest risk of adverse outcomes for viewers and players. Not all of the concepts used in classification have a basis in the research evidence, and some are directly at odds with that evidence. The article concludes by recommending changes to the rules that could lead to better alignment between classification decisions and the research evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research shows that young people are likely to encounter considerable amounts of violence in the media they use. Some of those depictions trivialize the severity of violence. Past studies show that media literacy education can spur critical thinking regarding violent portrayals in media texts. But rarely do prior studies employ qualitative methods to understand how young media audience members reason through the key question of whether media violence is either surprising or concerning. In the current study, an in-school media literacy program is offered to 48 6th graders who provide data in the form of written responses to a number of critical thinking prompts applied to media texts containing violence. The findings suggest that although most members of the sample readily noticed violent depictions in media texts and could critique the manner in which violence is depicted, relatively few expressed either surprise or concern about those depictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research suggests that empathy could serve as a mediator in the relation between media violence exposure and social behavior (i.e., aggressive and prosocial behavior). However, conceptualizations of empathy are diverse and empirical findings are mixed. Theory as well as previous research suggests that sympathy, more than empathy, may explain how media violence can affect youths’ aggressive or prosocial behavior. The present study formally tests this assumption using a three-wave longitudinal design with 878 early adolescents. Although neither sympathy nor empathy provided a significant indirect pathway between media violence and social behavior, the findings do show that sympathy is more strongly related to media violence and social behavior than empathy Methodological challenges and suggestions for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An ability to accurately recognize negative emotions in others can initiate pro-social behavior and prevent anti-social actions. Thus, it remains of an interest of scholars studying effects of violent video games. While exposure to such games was linked to slower emotion recognition, the evidence regarding accuracy of emotion recognition among players of violent games is weak and inconsistent. The present research investigated the relationship between violent video game exposure (VVGE) and accuracy of negative emotion recognition. We assessed the level of self-reported VVGE in hours per day and the accuracy of the recognition using the Facial Expressions Matching Test. The results, with adolescents (Study 1; N = 67) and with adults (Study 2; N = 151), showed that VVGE was negatively related to accurate recognition of negative emotion expressions, even if controlled for age, gender, and trait empathy, but no causal direction could be assessed. In line with the violent media desensitization model, our findings suggest that higher self-reported VVGE relates to lower recognition of negative emotional expressions of other people. On the one hand, such lower recognition of negative emotions may underlie inaccurate reactions in real-life social situations. On the other hand, lower sensitivity to social cues may help players to better focus on their performance in a violent game.

An ability to accurately recognize negative emotions in others can initiate pro-social behavior and prevent anti-social actions. Thus, it remains of an interest of scholars studying effects of violent video games. While exposure to such games was linked to slower emotion recognition, the evidence regarding accuracy of emotion recognition among players of violent games is weak and inconsistent. The present research investigated the relationship between violent video game exposure (VVGE) and accuracy of negative emotion recognition. We assessed the level of self-reported VVGE in hours per day and the accuracy of the recognition using the Facial Expressions Matching Test. The results, with adolescents (Study 1; N = 67) and with adults (Study 2; N = 151), showed that VVGE was negatively related to accurate recognition of negative emotion expressions, even if controlled for age, gender, and trait empathy, but no causal direction could be assessed. In line with the violent media desensitization model, our findings suggest that higher self-reported VVGE relates to lower recognition of negative emotional expressions of other people. On the one hand, such lower recognition of negative emotions may underlie inaccurate reactions in real-life social situations. On the other hand, lower sensitivity to social cues may help players to better focus on their performance in a violent game. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the relationship between media and communication as increasingly conflictive under conditions of de-democratization in India, this essay proposes a focus on violence-induced conditionalities of political communication among the affected. I introduce the term 'media/violence' as I look at two spaces in North Indian cities that have been turned into 'Muslim ghettos' over the past two decades: Jamia Nagar in New Delhi and Juhapura in Ahmedabad (Gujarat). Based on intermittent fieldwork between 2015 and 2020 (partly online), I argue that differences both in the quality of the violence as well as in the interaction between mediated and physical violence executed on the two spaces conditioned long-term options of collective communication (and their absence). The analysis helps us understand how massive political and legal protests could eventually erupt in Jamia Nagar (Shaheen Bagh) in late 2019, while the very reason for protest appears to have eluded residents of Juhapura. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interactive media such as video games and virtual reality (VR) provide users with lived experiences that may be dangerous or even impossible in daily life. By providing interactive experiences in highly authentic, detail-rich contexts, these technologies have demonstrated measurable success in impacting how people think, feel, and behave in the physical world. At the same time, violent interactive media content has been historically connected with a range of antisocial effects in both popular press and academic research. Extant literature has established a small-but-statistically significant effect of interactive media violence on aggressive thoughts and behaviors, which could serve as a risk factor for interpersonal violence. However, left unexplored is the seemingly paradoxical claim that under some conditions, interactive media experiences might protect against interpersonal violence. Drawing on advances in media theory and research and the evolution of interactive media content and production practices, the current manuscript suggests ways in which interactive media violence may be leveraged to lower the likelihood of real-world violence experiences. For example, research on both violent and non-violent games has found that players can (a) express guilt after committing violent acts, (b) report reflective and introspective emotional reactions during gameplay, and (c) debate the morality of their actions with others. Regarding VR, studies have demonstrated that (a) witnessing physical violence in immersive spaces led participants to take the perspective of victims and better understand their emotional state and (b) controlled exposure to traumatic or violent events can be used for treatment. Broadly, studies into video games and VR demonstrate that the impact of actions in virtual worlds transfer into the physical worlds to influence (later) attitudes and behaviors. Thus, how these experiences may be potentially harnessed for social change is a compelling and open consideration, as are side-effects of such interventions on vulnerable groups. The current manuscript summarizes emerging research perspectives (as well as their limitations) to offer insight into the potential for interactive media violence to protect against real-world violence victimization and perpetration.

Background. The high importance of the media as an institution of socializing the new generation in the modern information society is highlighted. Along with positive opportunities created by the media and the Internet for training and education, it is necessary to point to the growing risks associated with the ambiguity of the impact of the media on the mental and psychological health and also child and adolescent development. The Objective of the paper is to consider the risks of socialization associated with the openness and accessibility of the information space. There are psychological features of child and adolescent perception of information products containing aggression and violence, information products of sexual content, products that cause fear and anxiety, and also methods used in the media to justify morally antisocial, deviant, aggressive behaviour and violence. The Results of the analysis allowed to identify the conditions that determine the degree of vulnerability of the child to violence in media and the desire to mimic aggressive behavior and also forms of cognitive restructuring the moral content of aggressive and deviant behaviour. The negative consequences of perceiving violence expressed in behaviour, emotional state and cognitive image of the world of children are determined. The effects of adolescent perception of information of sexual content are revealed. Age features of experiencing fears in children aged 3-18 years are shown. Conclusion. Perceiving violence in the information space by children and adolescents creates risks of mimicking aggressive behaviour, fears and increased anxiety, desensitization to phenomena of violence and aggression and distortion of the worldview, when violence is perceived as a compulsory and natural regulation of relations between people in society. Factors influencing the nature of the perception of violence include age factor, individual psychological and personality features, motives and preferences, genre of information products and the context within which violence is depicted.

A host of studies have examined the impact of playing violent video games on aggressive behavior. However, longitudinal research is rare, and existing studies have allowed little room for individual variability in the trajectories of violent video game play. The current study used a person-centered approach to examine trajectories, predictors, and outcomes of violent video game play over a 10-year period. Three groups of individuals emerged: high initial violence (4 percent), moderate (23 percent), and low increasers (73 percent). High initial violence and moderate groups showed a curvilinear pattern of violent video game play across time, whereas low increasers group increased slightly in violent video game play across time. The high initial violence and moderate groups were more likely to be male, and those in the high initial violence group were more likely to be depressed at the initial wave. There was no difference in prosocial behavior at the final time point across all the three groups, but individuals in the moderate group displayed the highest levels of aggressive behavior at the final wave. Implications of the results are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Although youths' exposure to violent/tragic events (e.g., natural disasters and terrorist attacks) in the media has been positively associated with anxiety and posttraumatic stress, few studies have examined ways in which caregivers might buffer the impact of violent/tragic news. The current study further evaluates the psychometric properties of a measure of caregiver behaviors in relation to youths' exposure and response to violent news. Method: Using data from caregivers (N = 350) recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk, a confirmatory factor analysis of the Caregiver Responses to Youth Media Exposure (CRYME) was performed, and factorial invariance across male and female caregivers was examined. Concurrent and discriminant validity as well as 2-week test–retest reliability were also assessed. Results: The results support a 3-factor structure that is stable across female and male caregivers, with subscales reflecting caregiver behaviors intended to reassure a child of his or her safety, limit access to violent news, and encourage safety behaviors by instilling fear of situations covered in the media. A total of 5 items were dropped to improve model fit. Concurrent validity and discriminant validity of the 3 scales were supported by differential associations with measures of family functioning, family accommodation of child anxiety, and caregiver anxiety. Test–retest reliability was acceptable for 2 of the scales. Conclusions: The revised Caregiver Responses to Youth Media Exposure (CRYME-R) is a valid and reliable measure that can be used to identify caregiver practices for regulating violent news consumption and/or buffering its impact following violent/tragic events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: To examine the moderating effects of individual, family, and social factors on the relationship between adolescent exposure to media violence and attitudes towards school bullying. Design: A cross‐sectional study. Methods: A total of 473 middle and high school students participated in a self‐reported survey between August and October 2016. Self‐reported questionnaires were used to measure perceived aggression, resilience, parental violence experience, parenting styles, satisfaction with school life, teacher attitudes towards school bullying, media violence exposure, and adolescent attitudes towards school bullying. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and hierarchical multiple regression. Results: Resilience (an individual factor; β = −0.48, p =.049) and parenting styles (a family factor; β = −0.77, p =.045) moderated the negative influence of media violence exposure on adolescent attitudes towards school bullying. The findings indicated that higher individual resilience and parents with more positive parenting styles could reduce the harmful effects of media violence exposure on adolescent attitudes towards school bullying. The teachers' attitudes towards school bullying (a school factor) contributed to predicting the adolescents' attitudes towards school bullying. However, no moderating effect of school factors was found. Conclusion: Resilience and parenting styles are important socio‐ecological factors influencing the relationship between adolescent exposure to media violence and attitudes towards school bullying. Impact: Three types of intervention programmes can be suggested based on the results of this study. Reinforcing individual resilience and positive parenting styles should be considered important in developing intervention programmes targeted at eliminating the adverse effects of media violence exposure. Intervention programmes to develop parenting styles to increase the resilience of adolescents can also be considered. Lastly, programmes to screen for adverse outcomes of media violence exposure, low resilience, and poor parenting styles need to be developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the extended parallel process model (EPPM), we argue parents and caregivers will be concerned about media violence when they perceive the outcomes as being severe, and they perceive their families as being susceptible. To test these hypotheses, a survey was distributed in the United States among primary caregivers of children ages 4 through 11 (K – 5th grade). In it, we provided parents with layperson descriptions of five common media effect outcomes: fear, cultivation, desensitization, aggression, and hostility. For each violent media effect, caregivers provided their beliefs about the perceived severity and susceptibility for their oldest child in the K-5th grade range while focusing on one of three media: television, movies, or video games. Results suggest parents view their children as most susceptible to fear and cultivation outcomes, but not aggression and hostility. On the other hand, they perceived aggression and hostility to be the most severe. Consistent with the EPPM, ratings of susceptibility and severity predicted overall anxiety about media violence effects. Implications for media violence intervention strategies are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence about the relationship between exposure to media violence and criminal activity remains mixed. While some scholars argue that exposure to violent media content "triggers" crime and aggression, others contend that media may influence crime, but only as a source of information about techniques and styles, not as a motivation for crime. This debate has critical implications for criminal justice academics as calls for policy are regularly made on the basis of research in this area. This article contributes to this literature by presenting detailed empirical evidence of how media coverage of violent crimes affects homicides perpetrated by drug traffickers in Mexico, and their crime style. With an empirical model that addresses possible bidirectionalities between drug homicides and media coverage, we tracked 32,199 homicides, their stylistic characteristics, and their coverage by the press. Our results show that when media covers drug homicides it influences the probability that other criminals use similar styles of crimes, but it does not change overall rates of homicidal activity. This is evidence against the "trigger" hypothesis, and in favor of "copycat" effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mainstream media and communication discourses in India in the present times engender 'media violence' embedded in the dominant productions of 'Hinduism' together with aspirations for neoliberal development. The media violence engenders indigenous forms of racism and colonialism. This article attempts to examine the nature of these productions through critical theories of postcoloniality and decolonial approaches put into conversation with theories of journalism. Through the examination of the instances of selective silencing of journalistic voices, and erasures embedded within the journalistic practices, this article argues for critical theories of press freedom. The productions of racial superiority and internal colonialism in India only begin to make sense when read together with the interplays of religion, class, caste, and global reach of the privileged sections of Indian society, namely the civil society. Against the backdrop of the historical role of the press in India in freedom struggle against colonial rule, the history of press censorship after independence, the civil society voices that are amplified in the neoliberal restructuring of news media, and the Dalit movements that expose the Brahminical dominance in the imaginary of the 'Indian culture', the meanings of race and coloniality in India unfold. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, I examine the development of aggressive behavior from middle childhood to adolescence as a result of the interaction between the person and the environment and discuss implications for intervention measures. Three main questions are addressed and illustrated by examples from recent research: What are intrapersonal risk factors for the development and persistence of aggressive behavior from middle childhood to adolescence? What factors in the social environment contribute to the development of aggressive behavior? How do individual dispositions and environmental risk factors interact to explain developmental trajectories of aggressive behavior? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the prevalence and adverse effects of violence in hip-hop music and music videos have been studied extensively, hip-hop entertainment journalism, which reports on hip-hop news and events, has been largely unexplored. The purpose of this study was to examine violent trends in hip-hop journalism. We conducted a content analysis on a random sample of 970 news articles, 218 interview articles and the accompanying photographs from three hip-hop themed websites, and 56 radio interviews from hip-hop themed FM radio stations. Content was coded for type of violence, reality status, narrative sequence, and tone. The findings suggest that a significant portion of hip-hop journalism communications contain violence. More than half of all articles (52.3%; n = 663) contained violence. The prevalence of violence was higher for interview articles (73.4%, n = 218) than for news articles (45.9%, n = 445). The most common categories were violent metaphors, weapons, feuding (e.g., verbal aggression), and fighting. Almost 70% of radio interviews (n = 37) contained at least one mention of violence and the most common types of violence were fighting/physical assault and feuding. Furthermore, the majority of violence for all articles and radio content were reported as real and were presented from the performer sequence. News articles depicted more consequences, whereas interview articles and radio interviews depicted more positive portrayals. Potential implications for youth exposure hip-hop journalism are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this digital age the impact of media can be observed in all walks of life. All media users are being influenced by one or another type of media, however the amount of effect and time may vary. One cannot deny the fact that the images that are being shown in the mainstream media are full of violence and conflict. With the latest multifaceted media platforms and their content, there is no escape from the violence, it is very much relevant in today's world to understand that how does such violent content affect the individuals, particularly the youth. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationships between exposure to violent media and psychological effects i.e. desensitization, aggressive behavior, sleep disturbance, and anxiety among youth. Survey was conducted at a national level from colleges and universities. The results demonstrated that exposure to violence has significant relationships with desensitization, aggressive behavior, sleep disturbance, and anxiety however, there was no significant influence of age and gender of the respondents in the relationships between exposure to violent media content and aggression, sleep disorder, anxiety and desensitization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study attempted to develop a web-based state aggression measurement program (WTCRTT) and examine its applicability in terms of validity and reliability by conducting laboratory experiments. A repeated experimental design was employed, where subjects were exposed to both violent and non-violent media content. A physiological measure was also included to test the internal validity of media stimulation. The results showed the WTCRTT is a valid measure of behavioral aggression as the hypotheses on construct validity and internal validity were supported. For instance, the WTRCTT after exposure to violent media was positively correlated to anger, physical aggression, and total trait aggression scores. The WCRTT that was developed and tested in this study can be used not only by the scholars interested in aggression research with no cost and but also by the parents who want to monitor their children's state (i.e., behavioral) aggression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We conducted a meta-analysis of 33 studies that examined the effects of media exposure on relationally aggressive behaviors and cognitions (a total of 66 effect sizes, N = (20,990). Across all types of aggressive content, there was a small positive effect (r = 0.15) on relational aggression. However, a comparison of effects sizes demonstrate that exposure to relational aggression had the strongest effect (r = 0.21), whereas exposure to non-specific media content had the weakest effect (r = 0.08). Exposure to physical aggression fell in the middle of the two content types (r = 0.15). Potential explanations for these effects as well as moderators that could influence the results are considered, and the practical implications of these findings are discussed. • Exposure to relational aggression has the strongest effect on subsequent relational aggression • Exposure to non-specific media content has the weakest effect on relational aggression • Exposure to physical aggression fell in the middle of the two content types; supports cross-over effect • Future research should study these issues among heterogeneous populations so moderating variables can be further examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Television drama series are nowadays one of the most common television formats in the entertainment program genre. On the one hand, heroes and heroines of these series mirror social and cultural realities and changes, whereas on the other, they offer imitation models and shape ideas about, among other things, what being male and female means. While in the first three decades of their existence television series predominantly showed stereotypical male-female relationships through active heroes and passive housewives, in the last two decades we have witnessed changes which question the stereotypical depiction of gender roles. Television started presenting new main heroines that are equally courageous, independent, intelligent and violent as their male partners although they continue to perpetuate the stereotypical depiction in terms of physical attractiveness and sex appeal. This primarily refers to the protagonists of North American series such as Buffy, Nikita, Xena, Alias, Revenge, Rogue, etc. This paper discusses the characteristics of these new heroines in the leading roles and their potential to redefine the female character.

Although the effect of media violence on aggression has garnered major attention, little is known about the link between bullying-related media exposure and bullying behaviors. Across three studies, we examined this association among Chinese adolescents. Study 1 used a large sample of adolescents ( n =10,391, 51.4% boys) to investigate the link between bullying-related media exposure and bullying perpetration. Using another adolescent sample ( n =3,125, 49.5% boys), Study 2 replicated the findings from Study 1 and extended the investigation from traditional bullying to cyberbullying perpetration. Study 3 examined the longitudinal associations between bullying-related media exposure and (cyber)bullying perpetration 6 months later ( n = 2,744, 47.0% boys). The results suggested a positive, albeit small, association between exposure to bullying-related media and (cyber)bullying perpetration. Importantly, personal anti-bullying attitudes moderated this link, with a significant association observed among adolescents holding weak anti-bullying attitudes. Findings are discussed with respect to the media's effect on bullying behaviors., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.