Media violence and aggression in children

Watching violence on TV and playing violent video games appears to temporarily affect the thoughts and feelings, increasing the likelihood of aggressive behaviour in children. Parents can limit the impact of violence by helping children make sense of what they are seeing. But media is not to be blamed entirely for their behaviour. Children are more likely to be influenced by media if they see instances of domestic violence at home. Researchers from the University of Birmingham in the UK analysed how media can influence violent behaviour in children. They reviewed 6 studies from North America that examined how children react to media violence. Their analysis included research that looked at both passive media, such as TV, and interactive media like video and computer games. It was found that watching media violence appeared to increase younger children's risk of acting aggressively, but only in the short-term. The trend was particularly noticeable in boys. There is less evidence concerning the effect of media on teenagers, and whether watching violence can have long-term effects on children of all ages. Children's tendency to commit crimes under the influence of media violence was unclear. It was, however, noted that children are likely to mimic the violence shown by the hero, when it is justified. Parents should monitor what children watch, and they should be aware of the less obvious forms of violence, such as DVDs, videos and computer games.