Television Violence: Implications for Violence Prevention

Abstract
This article reviews the scientific and public opinion debate on the impact of television violence in America on aggression and violence. This body of research supports the view that television violence contributes to children's level of aggressiveness and subsequent violence and criminality. Developmental and social-cognitive explanations of how television violence viewing contributes to subsequent interpersonal aggression are discussed, and the reciprocal and dynamic nature of influences on antisocial pathways is emphasized. Universal interventions, including attempts to improve the quality of television programming for children and to inoculate children against the deleterious effects of TV violence, and selective interventions, aimed at young aggressive children, are described. Potential outcomes of the interventions are discussed.