Does Media Violence Cause Aggression?

[Keny]

ISSUE 18. Does Media Violence Cause Aggression?

YES: BRAD J. BUSHMAN AND CRAIG A. ANDERSON, FROM “MEDIA VIOLENCE AND THE AMERICAN PUBLIC: SCIENTIFIC FACTS VERSUS MEDIA MISINFORMATION,” AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGIST (JUNE/JULY 2001)

NO: JONATHAN L. FREEDMAN, FROM MEDIA VIOLENCE AND AGGRESSION (UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO PRESS, 2002)

Brad Bushman and Craig Anderson contend that an overwhelming amount of research indicates that media violence is a significant cause of violent and aggressive behavior. Despite this overwhelming evidence, media corporations irresponsibly downplay the impact that media violence may have. Jonathon Freedman argues that the evidence linking aggression to media violence is not as strong as it is believed to be. Psychologists who contend that such a link has been proven are misunderstanding or misrepresenting what the data actually indicate.