Why Are Human Beings Attracted To Violence In The Media?
Does humanities attraction to violence in the media desensitize people to the continuing problem of violence against women?
Executive Summary
In questioning whether it is possible that media violence is desensitizing people to violence against women this report explores research from two different fields of inquiry; Media Violence and Violence Against Women. This report examines the history of violence against women, the statistics on violence against women as well as the objectification of women in the media, while also exploring the effects media violence has on consumers behaviour and if it is indeed possible that exposure to media violence has desensitized viewers to violence against women.
Research Question
This report investigates whether media violence may desensitize viewers to violence against women. Many investigations have been made into the like between violence and violent media, yet the question of whether violent media has any effect on violence against women specifically is not something that appears to have been rigorously investigated and as such this report aims to open a dialog about the effects of media violence on violence against women.
Research and Methodology
In order to explore the question of whether media violence has an impact on violence against women research was conducted in two separate areas; media violence and violence against women. As there is very little research exploring the direct link between media violence and violence against women, the initial research parameters were broad where it pertains to media violence. In investigating media violence, many researchers have studies many facets of violence including violence against women.
Many Government papers have been released in the field of violence against women; investigating this subject was a matter of finding the most current research in the field as well as findings on a larger and at time world scale. In order to gain a broader understanding of the issue of violence against women, journals from various fields including Psychology, Social Issues, Violence Studies and Women’s Studies were researched for the most recent and thorough statistics and information.
Given that the research into media violence was initially very broad journals in Social Issues, Media Psychology, Violence Studies, Personality and Social Psychology, Social Science, and Cultural Studies were analysed in order to find papers and studies that contained research specifically related to violence against women.
As well as Journals and Government documents; research was undertaken to discover information on both violence against women and media violence in newspaper articles and through various organisations including Australian Human Rights Commission, UN Women, and World Health Organization.
Literature Review
In 1991 twenty people were wounded and one person was killed when the film Boyz N the Hood opened to gunfire across America (Reuter 1991). This is one of many articles that feature both violence and media in the story.
Media Violence has been studied for decades and a clear theme that the various research shares is the link between violent media and violent behaviour. With research indicating that viewers who consume media violence are more at risk of behaving aggressively (Sparks, Sherry & Lubsen 2005, pp. 22), as well as becoming acclimated and desensitized to violent images causing consumers of violent media to be in continuing need for excitement (Goldstein 1999, pp. 280).
Another common theme that is discovered in the research into media violence is the amount of violent media that is consumed by viewers today. ‘Violence is a dominant theme in both entertainment and news media (Anderson & Bushamn 2018, pp. 407)‘, and research shows that ‘More violence is marketed today on more TV networks during “family prime time” than ever before (McCleneghan 2002, pp. 596)‘.
Literature on the subject of violence against women contains statistical information about physical and sexual assaults, intimate partner violence, stranger assault and stranger sexual assault, as well as the deaths because of intimate partner violence (García-Moreno & Pallitto 2013, pp. 2). With intimate partner violence being one of the most common forms of violence against women (Australian Human Rights Commission 2017, pp. 4); this subject is investigate frequently in literature on violence against women.
Themes such as ‘race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or socio-economic status (Australian Human Rights Commission 2017, pp. 5)’ are also investigated by various reports on violence against women. Not only does literature on violence against women contain statistical information it also covers issues that Women who have experienced violence may face such as depression, anxiety, alcohol abuse and drug abuse (García-Moreno & Pallitto 2013, pp. 2).
As well as coving current numbers and statistics, investigations are also being done into the history of violence against women (Fox 2002, pp. 15). One thing that literatures in the study of violence against women have in common is they investigate current laws, assistance, or programs in place to stop violence against women or they make recommendations on how violence against women should be handled in a wide range of areas.
Findings
Globally ‘women suffer intimate partner violence, marital rape, rape by other men known to them and by strangers, incest, foeticide, sexual harassment, trafficking for the purposes of forced labour or prostitution, dowry-related violence, honour killings, other forms of femicide, acid attacks, and female genital mutilation (Johnson, Ollus & Nevala 2008, pp. 2)’. The numbers show that:
- ‘Women account for nearly half (49 per cent) of all human trafficking victims detected globally (UN Women 2019).
- Women and girls together account for 72 per cent, with girls representing more than three out of every four child trafficking victims (UN Women 2019).
- 15 million adolescent girls worldwide, aged 15–19 years, have experienced forced sex (UN Women 2019).
- Less than 40 per cent of the women who experience violence seek help of any sort (UN Women 2019)’.
In Australia:
- 1 in 3 women (30.5%) has experienced physical violence since the age of 15 (Our Watch 2020).
- 1 in 5 women (18.4%) has experienced sexual violence since the age of 15 (Our Watch 2020).
- 1 in 3 women (34.2%) has experienced physical and/or sexual violence perpetrated by a man since the age of 15 (Our Watch 2020).
- 1 in 4 women (23.0%) has experienced physical or sexual violence by current or former intimate partner since age 15 (Our Watch 2020).
Research into violence against women also found that approximately 35 per cent of women around the world have ever experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner, or a non-partner (UN Women 2019). In Australia 9.4% of women; approximately one in 10 women, have experience some kind of stranger violence since the age of 15 (Our Watch 2020).
When it comes to the topic of the effect of media violence on violent behaviour; there is abundance of research being and having been conducted. Evidence suggesting the link between exposure to violent media such as television, movies, video games, social media and the internet with violent behaviour has been gathered since the early 1960s (Huesmann 2007, pp.1). Since research began in the 1960s more and more violent entertainment is being consumed; especially by younger viewers. In fact ‘More violence is marketed today on more TV networks during “family prime time” than ever before (McCleneghan 2002, pp. 596)’.
Research into ‘Repeated exposures to emotionally activating media or video games (Huesmann 2007, pp.4)’, showing that desensitization can occur when the automatic emotions that viewers experience when witnessing a violent scene decline in intensity (Huesmann 2007, pp.4). Research findings support the desensitization hypotheses (Krahe et al. 2011, p. 642), and other findings also show that when viewers become desensitized to the arousal that is generated by violent images thy then have a need to find continued excitement (Goldstein 1999, pp. 280).
Discussion
In Australia one woman is murdered every week by a current or former partner, and on average 10 women a week is treated in hospitals around the country for injuries obtained by a spouse of domestic partner (Our Watch 2020). On a Global scale 137 women a murdered everyday by a family member (UN Women 2019).
Researchers, Governments and the general public all understand that violence against women is not a new development, the new development in this subject is ‘the growing recognition that acts of violence against women are not isolated events but rather form a pattern of behaviour that violates the rights of women and girls, limits their participation in society, and damages their health and well-being (García-Moreno & Pallitto 2013, pp. 1)’.
When viewing violence against women from a historic perspective; great gains have been made in changing laws and minds in regards to violence against women. As recently as 1978 husbands could force their wives to have sex with them and it wasn’t a crime (Fox 2002, pp. 25). When discussion rape in 1978, marital rape wasn’t even a consideration until New York State outlawed it in 1978 (Fox 2002, pp. 23). While society has come a long way in changing laws to punish violence against women and to educate about violence against women it still has a long way to go especially in the way women are still viewed today.
Findings reported in Wright &Tokunaga 2015, pp. 959 show that
- 37.40 % of men expressed at least modest agreement that “Being roughed up is sexually stimulating to many women’’
- 23.50 % of men expressed at least modest agreement that ,‘‘Many times a woman will pretend she doesn’t want to have intercourse because she doesn’t want to seem loose, but she’s really hoping the man will force her’’
- 52.40% of men expressed at least modest agreement that “When women go around braless or wearing short skirts and tight tops, they are just asking for trouble’’
Media today; both mainstream and pornographic still portray the objectifying of women as normal and appropriate, making women a reward for men (Wright &Tokunaga 2015, pp. 956). With women being assigned the role in media of sexual objects whose attractiveness and sexual accessibility is purely for male sexual gratification (Wright &Tokunaga 2015, pp. 956). If this objectifying of women is still taking place in the media, should it be surprising that this behavioural is still taking place in real life? Just how much impact does the Media play on consumer’s behaviour?
Investigations into media violence shows that viewers fear and anxiety are weakened in response to violent media and that repeated exposure actually promotes aggression and can ultimately lead to views behaving aggressively (Krahe et al. 2011, p. 644). In fact some experiments show conclusively a link between the increase in aggressive behaviour in children and adults in the short term after exposure to media violence (Huesmann 2007, pp.8). As for long-term effects of exposure to media violence; these effects are being studied by neuroscientists and psychologists now. It is now understood that exposure to violent media is particularly dangerous to young children as it desensitizes them through their observational learning and could lead to long-term consequences (Huesmann 2007, pp.8).
Research shows that there are three psychological processes that increase aggressive behaviour in the short-term after consuming violent media:
- Priming (activating pre existing aggressive knowledge)
- Mimicking aggressive behaviour and
- Physiological arousal
These are just the short-term effects (Anderson & Bushamn 2018, pp. 394).
Research into the long-term effects of exposure to violent media shows psychological increases in aggressive behaviour when it comes to:
- observational learning (learning that occurs by watching) and
- desensitization
These are on top of the short-term effects that consumers may experience after each exposure (Anderson & Bushamn 2018, pp. 396).
With numerous studies now supporting the view that exposure to violent media; whether it is short-term or repeated exposure, causes an increase in aggression, a decrease in empathy and a decrease in anxiety when viewing or thinking about violence (Anderson & Bushamn 2018, pp. 399). Why are we still allowing violent media to be made?
An experiment into how much enjoyment violence brings to viewers showed that violence doesn’t actually add to the enjoyment of a film (Sparks, Sherry & Lubsen 2005, pp. 29). If we know that violence has a negative effect on people’s aggression and that it doesn’t add to the enjoyment levels of entertainment, why is violent media still being produced? If we can remove violence from entertainment without losing entertainment value (Sparks, Sherry & Lubsen 2005, pp. 22), why are we still risking aggression, and who is actually gaining anything from having violent media?
Conclusion
With the connection between media violence and violent behaviour having be studied for many years with virtually the same or at least very similar results showing that there is indeed a connection between the two, is it at all possible to not question whether humanities attraction to violence in the media desensitize people to the continuing problem of violence against women? We have seen the evidence on how media violence can affect people’s behaviour, yet we have very little, if any, studies being undertaken between the possible link between media violence and its impact on violence against women in particular.
With more recognition and more research being done into both violence against women, and media violence, we will discover more about the both subjects individually but what we really need is research to be conducted into the two subjects as a unit and their possible link. We have see the numbers in both cases and we are learning more about each subject every day, but while we continue to treat each subject as an isolated field we will never discover the impact violent media may be having on violence against women.
With more than 137 women being murdered on a daily bases, and the link between media violence and real life violence becoming clearer every day, we cannot afford to not do more research into the strong possibility of a link between media violence and violence against women.
Reference List
Anderson, Craig A & Bushamn, Brad J 2018,Media Violence and the General Aggression Model, Journal of Social Issues, vol. 74, No. 2, Wiley-Blackwell, New Jersey, USA, pp. 386-413
Australian Human Rights Commission 2017, Violence against women in Australia, Australian Human Rights Commission Submission to the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, 20 January 2017, Sydney, N.S.W., Australia
Facts and figures: Ending violence against women, UN Women, Page last updated in November 2019, retrieved 13 November 2020 https://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/facts-and-figures
Fox, Vivian C 2002, Historical Perspectives on Violence Against Women, Journal of International Women’s Studies, vol. 4, No. 1, Bridgewater State University, Massachusetts, USA, November 2002
García-Moreno, Claudia & Pallitto, Christina 2013, Global and regional estimates of violence against women: prevalence and health effects of intimate partner violence and non-partner sexual violence, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
Goldstein, Jeffrey 1999, The Attractions of Violent Entertainment, Media Psychology, vol. 1, No. 3, pp. 271-282, https://www-tandfonline-com.libraryproxy.griffith.edu.au/doi/abs/10.1207/s1532785xmep0103_5
Huesmann, L. Rowell 2007, The Impact of Electronic Media Violence: Scientific Theory and Research, J Adolesc Health, NIH Public Access, The University of Michigan, Michigan, USA
Johnson, Holly, Ollus, Natalia & Nevala, Sami 2008, Violence Against Women An International Perspective, Springer Science+Business Media, New York, USA
Krahe´, Barbara, Möller, Ingrid, Huesmann, L. Rowell, Kirwil, Lucyna, Felber, Juliane & Berger, Anja 2011, Desensitization to Media Violence: Links With Habitual Media Violence Exposure, Aggressive Cognitions, and Aggressive Behavior, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, American Psychological Association, Washington, D.C., USA, vol. 100, No. 4, 630 – 646
McCleneghan, J Sean 2002, ‘Reality violence’ on TV news: it began with Vietnam, The Social Science Journal, vol. 39, No. 4, pp. 593-598, https://www-tandfonline-com.libraryproxy.griffith.edu.au/doi/full/10.1016/S0362-3319%2802%2900232-X
Our Watch 2020, what is “violence against women”?, Quick facts, Our Watch, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, viewed 13 November 2020 https://www.ourwatch.org.au/quick-facts/
Reuter 1991, Youth gang film sets off violence in US, The Canberra Times,15 July 1991, Fyshwick, A.C.T, Australia, pp. 7, viewed 04 Nov 2020, [Trove], http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article122370710
Sparks, Glenn G, John Sherry & Graig Lubsen 2005, The Appeal of Media Violence in a Full‐length Motion Picture: An Experimental Investigation, in Communication Reports, vol. 18, No.1, Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, 2005, pp. 21-30. retrieved 21 September 2020, [Google Scholar].
Wright, Paul J. & Tokunaga, Robert S 2015, Men’s Objectifying Media Consumption, Objectification of Women, and Attitudes Supportive of Violence Against Women, Springer Science+Business Media New York, New York, USA
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