Violence on TV: What Happens to Children Who Watch?

The following is excerpted from an online article posted by MedicalXpress.

Results of a study led by Linda Pagani, Professor at the Université de Montreal’s School of Psychoeducation, reveal long-term associated risks of early exposure to violent content in childhood and later teen antisocial behavior, more than a decade later.

The paper is published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

“Although past evidence showing causal links between modeling and getting rewarded for violence had an immediate impact on aggressive behavior in 4-year-old children, few studies have investigated long-term risks with antisocial behavior. We studied such risks in mid-adolescence,” explained Pagani, who is also a researcher at the Center de recherche Azrieli du CHU Sainte-Justine.

Pagani and her team looked at 963 girls and 982 boys born between the springs of 1997 and 1998 who were enrolled in the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development. Parents reported the frequency of their child’s exposure to violent television content at ages 3.5 and 4.5 years old. Boys and girls then self-reported on several aspects of antisocial behavior at age 15.

The researchers then conducted analyses to examine whether exposure to violent television content at ages 3.5 and 4.5 years predicted later antisocial behavior eleven years later.

At age 15, for boys only, preschool violent televiewing predicted increases in antisocial behavior. Being exposed to violent content in early childhood predicted later aggressive behaviors such as hitting or beating another person, with the intention of obtaining something, stealing, with or without any apparent reason.

Risks also included threats, insults, and gang fight involvement. The use of weapons is also among the behavioral outcomes predicted by exposure to childhood television violence in this study. No effects were found for girls, which was not surprising given that boys are generally more exposed to such content.

Pagani concluded, “Our study provides compelling evidence that early childhood exposure to media violence can have serious, long-lasting consequences, particularly for boys. This underscores the urgent need for public health initiatives that target campaigns to inform parents and communities about the long-term risks and empower them to make informed choices about young children’s screen content exposure.”

Source: MedicalXpress
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-01-violence-tv-children.html