Do you think that watching violence can lead to violent behaviour?

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   SandCastlesposted 12 years ago

   Sometimes watching violence eggs people on and encourages them to be violent. Not always, but I've known violent people who liked watching violent movies. I noted that these individuals liked violence when it involved someone getting beat up or victimized--not the bad guy--but the victims. They rooted for the bad guys.

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      dianetrotterposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I think it, if there are no medical issues, that violence is a learned behavior.  My most hostile students come from hostile environments.  When I say I will call the mom, I'm often told, "You think I'm a fool?  Talk to my mom!"  I called one parent to tell her that he daughter was being disrespectful.  The mom told me, "I heard you were being disrespectful?"  Little kids often don't seem impacted when their parent(s) and baby mama or baby daddy fight.  However, those are the ones who get into fights at school.  When I was a kid, dracula was the bad guy.  Now dracula is the good guy, blood-dripping teeth and all.

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         SandCastlesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         That's an excellent point-people do like vampires now. They are depicted as cool.

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      NMLadyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Of course.  You are what you put in your body;  mind, body, soul.  While there are studies for that it is also very obvious.

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      SandCastlesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you everyone for your feedback. I find all your responses very interesting to read!

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   ReneeDC1979posted 12 years ago

   I think the two are separate.  People like watching violent movies for many reasons: action, special effects, drama, pain and suffering of others, the ability to figure the story out before it ends, etc.  Look at all of the reality shows where girls/women fight and the ratings are extremely high. It makes for good television.  Those who choose to carry out violent acts are angry, mentally ill, upset, seeking revenge on the world because of their life, depressed, looking for justice that the law doesn't satisfy, etc.  It is what it is, unfortunately.

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   Charles Jamesposted 12 years ago

   When I was about five or six years old I had an annoying loud little sister. I had seen on TV that if you hit someone on the head with the handle of your gun they go quiet.
   I hit my little sister on the head with the handle of my toy gun. It didn't work = she made even more noise!
   Definitely copied behaviour on my part..

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      ReneeDC1979posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Ha ha!  Okay, great point.  I wonder if that's what my sister did when she pushed me down the stairs.  I wonder if the excuse, tv told me to do it would have kept her out of trouble.

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      Alastar Packerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      When a little boy I stuck the tip of a plastic sword into a fire-place that was burning and then touched it on my little sister's shoulder. Got the whooping of my young life for it, too. The lesson was learned and never repeated. Remember the leaked video of recent years with the helicopter gun-ship crew gunning down all those people standing at the corner - including the ambulance crew that tried to help the fallen? The 'copter crew were whooping it up and acting like it was a video game. Does make me wonder about the correlation of the kind and intensity of violence exposed to in the formative years.

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      HowardBThinameposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      And think about that movie, the Deer Hunter. Every time they show it again, deaths from playing Russian Roulette increase.

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   Charles Jamesposted 12 years ago

   It did not stop me getting spanked!

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      ReneeDC1979posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Her either!

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   ahorsebackposted 12 years ago

   YES !  We  watched the" three stooges " when we were kids and  imitated thier every action , even to this day I have a flat forehead where my brothers  would wooop wooop wooop me ! And it also affected my vision considerably , I hear tweeties constantly and see double !

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   tattuwurnposted 12 years ago

   With kids, I think -- they're quite impressionable and will imitate anything they see.  But it really depends on people I guess.

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   CMHypnoposted 12 years ago

   I do wonder what it says about our civilisation that we buy our children games where they shoot/slash/steal/blow up/set fire to other people for amusement.
   
   Then we tell them that it is wrong to do it in real life.  No wonder they are confused!!

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   velzipmurposted 12 years ago

   I believe that the behaviour that children see on tv, computer and video games is definitly copied in real life. In my opinion the killing/stealing/violence in video games desensitizes them and some (not all) just do not care because it really doesn't bother them like it should.

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      habeeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I was going to bring up the desensitizing thingie. I think it has that effect for some people. Watching or reading about graphic violence literally makes me nauseous. I have known a few adults, however, who got "turned on" by such.

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         velzipmurposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Yes it only applies to some, not all. I don't like graphic violence at all but I have nephews who love it and honesly it is scary!

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            Alastar Packerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            For most young men, well, men in general, it's a tribal thing that goes way back in the DNA. But there's a difference between hunting and defending the tribe and mindlessly going about creating slaughter and mayhem and enjoying it. Present day culture and its lessons to the young are skewed in this regard - no question about it.

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               velzipmurposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               agreed

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                  Alastar Packerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  Triple agreed to, velzipmur.

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   psycheskinnerposted 12 years ago

   I think that older children can quickly be taught about real versus made up. But it is wise to limited access to violent materials for young kids.

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    watergeekposted 12 years ago

    Yes I do, especially if you do it a lot. Here's why. Everything we've ever created started out in the imagination. The imagination is the building block for our world. It creates the general vibration (our energy) that we radiate out into the world, which then draws experiences/opportunities to us. If we are imagining violent things on a regular basis, we will draw the kinds of experiences that let us experience violence coming from someone else or act it out ourselves.
    
    If we are solidly against being violent ourselves, but watching violent shows or playing violent games, we will be fighting ourselves inside to block the impulse to be violent, which brings on headaches. And aren't those violent, really? Attacks against the self?  I've had only 4 or 5 headaches in the last 30 years, and those were directly related to anger.

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       Alastar Packerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       You've nailed the subject on the head there, watergeek. No pun intended with the headaches.

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    aykianinkposted 12 years ago

    Hm.  I need to post my questions on the forums.  Much better response.
    
    And 'no' because many, many people watch violent things, but only certain people believe it's okay to hurt others.

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    chicagoguyposted 12 years ago

    Up to some extent , it might ...but i am not quite sure if there is any research done in this area.

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    TheLady111posted 12 years ago

    Since whatever we hold in our minds, propelled by our strongest e-motions (energy in motion) is made manifest in our reality...the answer is Yes, watching violence can lead to not only violent behavior...but it can also draw violence to the observer. Most are not aware of the awesome power of their own minds, so most people create by default. But imagine what U can create if U disciplined the to hold only the thoughts that u want to come to life... It works both ways, negative or positive...what U hold in your mind, propelled by strong emotion, good or bad...will become reality. Thoughts become things, so choose the good ones. **Blessings**

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    Marcy Goodfleischposted 12 years ago

    There have been various studies about this, and indications are that there's a connection.  This is especially the case with games involving role-playing, it appears. I think a lot more research would be helpful before trying to apply the information in terms of creating change in our culture.

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    rebekahELLEposted 12 years ago

    I think genetics play a bigger part than we realize, and environment.  It doesn't necessarily have to be a physically violent environment, but one that is confining and restrictive, demanding.  This kind of environment may lead someone to want to role-play and hurt others by playing violent video games, but I'm not entirely convinced that watching violence in itself leads to violent behavior.  It may in some, but certainly not all participants, or we would see much more violence than we do.  The top selling video games are full of violence, as well as movies, top rated tv shows. 
    
    Personally, I can't watch shows with too much graphic violence, and I wouldn't let young children watch/play them, as graphic as they are now.  But  parents need to watch more their own behavior and expectations before blaming media violence, parents need to be more observant of their child's inner life and listen to what is and isn't said/communicated.

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       watergeekposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       It's not children who are doing all the shooting of guns for real.

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    ARUN KANTIposted 12 years ago

    Not necessarily but restricted viewing of violent pictures is need of the hour as there is now a growing trend of violence in any society .Minor children are more prone to be attracted to replay such ghastly scenes and those who are genetically violent will definitely get a booster.

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    2uesdayposted 12 years ago

    I think that parents need to have an awareness of the age of the child when they are assessing if something is suitable for them to view it or not. Unfortunately the children most at risk of seeing unsuitable violent images are the ones who have to parents who are not even aware of the potential problems.

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       dianetrotterposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       2 true!

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    SoManyPathsposted 12 years ago

    It is not always a parental problem. parents can do so much. No graphic violent movies and TV shows depicting how the mind of a serial killer works, and how they get off on the pain of others isn't going to help the general public. Thee weren't so prevalent in the 80s as they are today. Cop shows yes, but shows like Criminal Minds, Dexter and the like go a bit too far. They have virtually replaced comedy. I am surprised there isn't a home gamer show.

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       SandCastlesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       I think Dexter is creepy even if he is killing other bad guys.

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