Psychology and the reduction of Violence
6-years old boy brings a gun to school and shoots a elassmate with whom, he had a playground dispute the previous day.
An elderl woman is killed by two teenage muggers during a robbery; she had less than $2 for them to steal.
Three white men tie a black man to a truck and drag him at high speed down a country road; he dies a gruesome death
Violence in the United has reached epidemic levels, and there are few signs that it will let up. Serveys consitently reveal that violence and crime rank near the top of the list of social problems that concern Americans most (Stone et Kelner, 2000; Taylor; 2000)
Yet violence has not gone unchallenged, and the field of psycology is playing a key role in efforts to reduce this social ill. Psycologists specializing in diverse areas and employing the major perspectives of the field are making a concerted effort to answer key questions relating to violence. These are some examples ;
§ Dpes watching violence on television and in movies lead viewers to be violent? Most social and developmental psycologist agree that observation of aggression in the media enhances the likelihood that viewers will act aggressively. Furthermore, it desenitizes viewers to displyas of aggression, leading them of react with passivity ot actual incidents of aggression, and it makes the world seem to be a more dangerous place (Seppa, 1997; American Academy of Pediatrics, 1996b).
§ What is the effect of extremely violent video games on the people who play them?
Playing violent video games has consequences similar to wathing violence in the media : an increase in subsequent aggression, desensitization to actual violence, and a view of the world as being more hostitle (Anderson et Dill, 1999)
§ How can youth violence be reduced?
Cultural, societal, and individual psygological factors – including parental neglect, frequent observation of violence, poverty, prejudice, and discrimination – are associated with higher rates of violence. Successful training programs have been designed to teach inner-city student with a history of agrression to respond to provocative situations without violence (Staub, 1996; Spielman et Staub, 2000; Enserink, 2000b)
§ How can rape be prevented? According to some estimates, one in four women in the United States stands a chance of being raped at some point during her lifetime (Koss, 1996). Psycologists from different subfields of the field –including clinical psycology, developmental psycology, and the psycology of women have-been working to reduce sexually aggresive behavior by teaching values that make aggression, o any kind, less likely (Hall et Barongan, 1997)
§ Is there a “cycle of violence” that extends violence from one generation to another?
Many child abusers were vietims of abuse in their own childhood. According, abuse and neglect during their childhood make pople more likely to abuse and neglect their own children. On the other hand, developmental psycologists who study growth and change throughout the life span have found that being abused does not inevitably lead to abusing one’s own children. Why some people are able tobreak the cycle of violence, while other succumb to it, remains a key question for psycologist (Wileman et Wileman 1995; Peled, Jaffe, et Edleson, 1995)
§ What role do biological factors play in aggression? Some psycologist have considered whether aggression is linked to biological factors. For instance, biopsychologists and social psycologists have found a link between aggresive behavior and the presence of certain hormones in the body. These findings suggest the possibility that medical treatments might reduce violence in perpetrators (Dabbs, Hargrove, et Heusel, 1996; Davidson, Putnam, et Larson, 2000)
Clearly, psychologist are taking a veriety of approaches to combating violence. And violence is ot he only societal problem to which psychologists are contributing their expertise in’an effort to alleviate human suffering. As we will explore in the Applying psycology in the 21st centry boxes in every chapter psychology’s basic principles help address and solve a wide range of social problems.
Assuming that the research on video games is confirmed, should violent video games be restricted to certain age groups? Should they be banned entirely? Why or why not?
source:essetials of understanding psychology
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