Violence in America - Essay Example

Children learn at an early age the easiest and often quickest way to remedy a problem is not to amended the cause directly, but rather, to blame something else as being the cause of the predicament. This paper shall look at the typical causes of violence in America and the social problems associated with them. Lastly, a sociological reasoning and conclusion is made in light of the study. There are several factors associated with effects of violent television including developmental stages, types of socialization, and cognitive priming.

Other issues considered to play a part in the effect include the idea of a vulnerable viewer, result of desensitization and the creation of fear. Education that is more public is needed to inform American society of the possible negative effects of violence on television and the methods available to prevent these effects. (Best, 2003) American society is concerned with the negative effects of television as the amount of violent programming is increasing (Anderson, 2005). This concern is reinforced with an increase for television children are watching.

On average, children view three hours of television a day (Anderson, 2005). That works out to more than 40 days a year in front of the television. As violent content increases, children are watching more violence during their viewing hours. This makes the effects of violence on television a great concern to parents and American society. Most researchers believe that there is a relationship between violent television and violent behavior (Anderson, 2005). Researchers classify violent behavior as ranging from minor to severe.

Minor violence is defined as violence directed at toys while severe violence is the physical aggression involving intent to hurt another person (Lockwood, 2006). Studies by Best have concluded that no such relationship exists between violent television and violent behavior (Best, 2003). Still other studies have not been able to prove, nor disprove, the existence of a relationship among the two. Researchers do tend to agree that television does have a potential to influence behavior as so much time is spent viewing (Lockwood, 2006).

A realistic sociological theory, which explains the above scenario, is symbolic interactionism, as studied by Blumer. When a child views a violent scene on television, the scene is stored in their memory along with other ideas. When such ideas are activated, the child's mind is organized in such a manner that it responds to the activated idea in a violent manner because of the set of associations made with the original violent scene. (Blumer, 1962) Some children may be more vulnerable to violent television than others (Best, 2003) this includes children who identify with those portraying violence on television and see them as real, even cartoon characters.

These children watch many violent programs with little parental supervision. Desensitization can result from viewing violent television (Best, 2003). This effect is seen in children who show little interest or emotional trouble when they observe real life