Review of literature reveals the existence of contrasting opinions about the relationship of exposure to social media and gaming violence on teen and young adults’ violent behavior. The concept of media violence and societal violence has been examined for years with a bias towards movie violence and homicide rates. Ferguson (2014) posited that examination of the relationship in the US context revealed the existence of small to medium correlation. Ferguson (2014) further observed that the 20 th century saw a reversal in the trend with movie violence and homicide rates assuming an inverse relationship. The proliferation in technological developments over the last two decades lead to increased consumption of media content, particularly among teens and young adults. Consequently, attention shifted to exploration of social media and video gaming violence and their implication on youth behavior. The evidence in the field is inconclusive. However, growing body of current research supports argument that exposure to social media and gaming violence is a precursor for violent behavior among teens and young adults, and understanding the relationship is imperative to address the social problem.
Care must be exercised when using findings from studies in the field of media violence and youth behavior. Questions about the applicability and generalizability of findings linking media violence to violent behavior persist and must be addressed. Ferguson (2014) and Ferguson et al. (2016) established that exposure to violent media is not predictive of increase in violence rate in a society. On the contrary, recent research in the field shows the existence of a positive correlation between conception of violence social media and video gaming content and violent behavior among youths. The reason for lack of consensus about the relationship between these phenomena is evident in the findings of the study by Greitemeyer and Mügge (2014), in which video games were established to have dual effects on social behavior. According to Greitemeyer and Mügge (2014), violent video games increase aggression and reduce pro-social outcomes, while non-violent ones had the opposite effect. The findings suggest the onus is in the definition of what constitutes violent media and whether it meets the threshold to influence change in social behavior of the consumers. Whereas pro-social media content is perceived to have positive behavioral outcomes, increased attention needs to be paid to the negative effects of violent social media and video games. This paper explores the relationship between the two to inform better understanding and mechanisms for redress.
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Social Media Violence and Teenaged and Young Adult Violent Behavior
Modern teens and young adults live in a networked environment where experiences are shared in a manner that influences behavior and practices worldwide. Ferguson (2014) contended that whether media violence predicts social violence is dependent on specific factors and time. In light of this understanding, it is imperative to examine the predictive role of social media violence in antisocial behavior among youth. Patton et al. (2014) contended that social media is a conduit for youth violence. The assertion is founded on the link between social media use and homicide, the leading cause of among the youth. Exposure to violence has been demonstrated to have negative impacts on mental health, relationships, and academic performance of young people. According to Patton et al. (2014), social media platforms are online spaces predominated by youth violence including gang violence, bullying, and self-directed violence. Some forms of online violence are limited to internet-based interactions, but in other instances, such violence has found its way into physical manifestation. The overall implication is that that interaction with violent content through social media is predictive of violent social behavior among teens and young adults.
The predictive relationship has been explored in under the paradigm of cyber dating abuse. Social media provides a platform through which youth teens harass, control, and abuse their dating partners (Zweig et al. , 2013). However, such abuse transcends internet boundaries into the physical world. Examination of rates of cyber abuse and their influence on other forms of dating violence established a worrying trend that poses significant threats among youth. According to Zweig et al. (2013), teen victims of online dating abuse were seven time more likely to experience sexual coercion than non-victims; while perpetrators of the same were 17 times more likely to inflict sexual coercion compared to non-perpetrators. Zweig et al. (2013) findings are consistent with Greitemeyer and Mügge (2014) observation about exposure to violent or non-violent media content being predictive of social behavior among teens and young adults.
Social media has penetrated deeper into all societies and youth are increasingly exposed to violent content shared and perpetrated in these platforms. The technological advancements in the field of social media make it difficult to control what the youth consume, a process necessary to promote non-violent content that aids pro-social behavior. Concerns stems from the continued exposure to aggressive social media, which Friedlander et al. (2013) contend to be a longitudinal risk factor for dating teens. Social media violence also extends to other forms such as gang violence where groups taunt each other through online platforms. Online violence can easily escalate to physical violence. Vivek (2017) argued that the link between social media violence and violent behavior among teens and youth stems from the diminished boundaries between what is virtual and what is real. Youth spend substantial amount of time on social media platforms, potentially exposing themselves to online violence. Sharing of emotions of hate, anger, love, aggression, and violence online negatively influence their daily life and behaviors.
Gaming Violence and Teenaged and Young Adult Violent Behavior
Video gaming another paradigm that has gained significance in the youth culture and its consumption is aided by the changes in lifestyle that have reduced the opportunities for outdoor play dramatically. Video games came in different genres, but aggression and violence is a recurring theme in this form of media. Ferguson et al. (2016) contended that violent video games were not predictive of violent behavior among teens, but these findings have been challenged by different other researchers expressing contrary opinion. The debate on the influence of media violence on social behavior continues to draw conflicting opinions despite experts expressing concerns about its detriments.
Exploration of the association of video gaming and civic engagement in teens established violent gaming to have negative effects on teen behavior and vice-versa. The findings corroborate those by Fergeson (2014) and Greitemeyer and Mügge (2014), which found out that social behavior among teens depended on the whether media consumed was violent or non-violent. The findings also point towards the role of frequency of exposure, with youth who spend more time consuming violent video gaming content shown as more likely to express antisocial, aggressive, and violent behavior. However, Breuer et al. (2015) noted that the evidence on the correlation between violent video games and teen behavior is inconsistent because of the limited literature as most previous studies focused on studying college students. The bias in the results showing the association between violent video games and aggressive teen behavior is an outcome of the developmental factors. Breuer et al. (2015) determined that in the later stages of adolescences and early adulthood, violent video games are not predictors of aggressive behavior. The positive correlation between the two is drawn from previous research that focused on children or young adolescents and used convenience samples. The limited body of longitudinal research on how the two phenomena are related remains a major concern for stakeholders in the field of youth affairs.
However, the contradiction in research findings cannot be used to understate the fact that violent video gaming has a dark influence to teen social behavior. The theory advanced by Hartmann et al. (2014) to explain the link between violent video gaming and aggressive teen behavior is that moral disengagement. According to Hartmann et al. (2014), violent video games have embedded moral disengagement factors that aid justification of portrayed violence, distorted portrayal of consequences, and dehumanizing of opponents. Therefore, is can be argued that violent video games encourage perception of aggressive behavior as acceptable under certain circumstances. The diminished boundary between teens and young adults virtual and real worlds implies these conceptions find their way into the practical life the gamers.
Overall Implications of Exposure to Social Media and Video Gaming Violence
Whether social media and video gaming violence influence aggressive social behavior among teens is a hotly contested topic with both proponents and critics. The lack of consensus is further worsened by exiting research evidence supporting either side of the debate. However, it is important to recognize the implications of the findings associating violence in such media with increase in violent behavior among teens and young adults. It is necessary to point out that the progression to violence from the consumption of violent media is dependent on a number of social and individual factors.
Consumption of violent social media and video gaming content has been found to have varying outcomes among vulnerable populations of teens and young adults. Ferguson and Olson (2014) established that violent video games were not predictive of increases in delinquent behavior or bullying among youth with clinically elevated mental health problems. Nikkelen et al. (2016) posited contradicting findings linking youth with elevated mental health problems to increased negative influence from violent video gaming. For instance, individuals suffering from ‘Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder’ (ADHD) show high levels of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, which can be complicated by violent video games. Such vulnerable populations need to be taken into consideration in wake of differing evidence on how they are affected by media violence.
Addressing negative effects of exposure to violent social media and video gaming content among teens and young adults remains an elusive task. Concerns have been expressed about the conflicting evidence and the need for a single perspective from which to address the problem. It is important to recognize that the type of content, individual mental health, and context are some of the factors that should be given due attention. Implications of the findings should be examined for both positive and negative influences of media on youth to address the concerns.
Conclusion
Evidence on the relationship between social media and video gaming violence and aggressive behavior among teens and young adults is contentious. A significant proportion of literature supports the argument that such media is not predictive of violent social behavior in the target population. The opposite is also true because longitudinal studies have demonstrated the role of exposure to violent social media and video games in enhancing antisocial and aggressive behavior among teens. The contrasting findings have different implications for stakeholders in the field of youth affairs because they make it difficult to have a consensus on the way forward. There is need for further research into the field to determine if there are underlying socio-cultural factors contributing to the differences. This is critical in the development and implementation of policies to regulate exposure to violent social media and video content.
References
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