Exposure to Violent Content, Effects on Child Development

The public’s concern over media violence and its effects on children tends to focus heavily on the media’s detrimental influence on children’s aggressive behaviors. Many parents and educators as well as the popular press worry that exposure to violent content can lead to fighting with siblings at home, hitting peers in the playground, or even shootings on school campuses. Although these are serious issues, understanding a child’s healthy development within the context of mediated violence is more complex [Page 148]than just framing it from a behavioral standpoint. The development of a child is multifaceted; hence, outcomes due to exposure to media violence vary in different aspects. Scholars in communication and developmental psychology have demonstrated the importance of studying this topic from perspectives that encompass a ...