Citation

Tulloch MI. J. Youth Adolesc. 1995; 24(1): 95-115.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1995, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/BF01537562

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The study set out to examine the responses of children and adolescents to six televised excerpts selected from different genres but all raising questions about the appropriateness of violence within the context of various social institutions. Students ranging in age from 9 to 16 years each saw one 20-minute excerpt. Their attitudes to aggression were assessed from their choice of appropriate situational responses when presented with sets of behavioral options to scenarios created in the programs. No single pattern of age, social class or gender differences was found. Younger subjects were more likely than older subjects to endorse authority positions whether these were accepting or rejecting of violence. Middle-class and female subjects were generally more rejecting of violence, but this pattern was reversed in response to the portrayal of violence during an industrial dispute. The findings supported a subcultural and context-dependent interpretation of audience evaluation of televised violence.