Violent Content Research Articles

Child and Adolescent Pornography Exposure.

Child and Adolescent Pornography Exposure.

The impact of video games on destination image

ABSTRACT Destination Marketing Organizations use a plethora of media to communicate with potential visitors, including advertisements and product placement in entertainment media. This experimental study compares the impact of playing Far Cry 5, a video game set in Montana, U.S., with printed materials and a movie on destination image and behavioural intentions. Despite their growing appeal and interactive nature, the video game group returned less positive ratings than those in other groups, including the control group. This suggests that tourism marketers should be mindful of the media’s intent and use of a destination’s imagery, especially when it comes to violent content.

Translating the Violent Content of Grimm Brothers’ Fairy Tales: An Eye-Tracker Experiment

O rastreamento ocular tem sido introduzido como uma ferramenta para analisar os processos cognitivos dos tradutores. Pesquisas recentes com rastremento ocular concentram-se em examinar processos de tradução. No nosso conhecimento, no entanto, tal ferramenta ainda não foi usada para detectar comportamentos de movimento ocular relacionados ao Transtorno de Estresse Pós-Traumático (TEPT) dos tradutores, já que tais estudos estão apenas emergindo. Este artigo apresenta um estudo experimental que investiga os processos cognitivos envolvidos na tradução de três versões condensadas de contos de fadas dos irmãos Grimm. Os textos selecionados apresentam conteúdos violentos pelos quais esses contos são renomados, desde adaptações mais modernas que removem o conteúdo violento a histórias com violência explícita. Os textos foram traduzidos do espanhol (L2) para o inglês (L1). Os índices de fixação e duração da fixação foram calculados para cada participante em dez Áreas de Interesse (AOI), representando desafios na tradução de vários aspectos de conteúdo gramatical e violento apresentados nesses contos.

A content analysis of violence on turkish primetime television shows

Objective: Violence has a great impact on society, as is often the case with television programs. This study aims to assess how the violence is portrayed on television channels that reach a large audience of children, adolescents, and adults in Turkey. Method: This study is a media content analysis (28 television shows and 84 episodes) of the six most popular Turkish primetime television shows aired between November 18, 2019, and December 8, 2019. The violence types have been classified into one of the following five categories: verbal, physical, psychological, social, and economic. Besides, some vulnerable special groups, such as children and healthcare workers, have also been evaluated. Results: Our findings indicate that each show has at least one violent behavior. Contrary to the perception in society, men are exposed to violence more than women (56.6% vs. 27.6%). The number of psychological violence content in television shows (median:16.5) was significantly higher than the number of physical (median:11.0) and verbal (median:13.0) violent content (p<0.05). Conclusion: Our findings have significant consequences as exposure to popular media affect the behaviors and perceptions of the entire society, not just children.. Our study has the potential to shed light on the need to create new content in television shows watched by the Turkish society with educational messages on the risks and consequences of violent behavior.

Az új média veszélyei – az elmagányosodás, illetve radikalizálódás biztonságpolitikai aspektusból

Az új média platformjainak népszerűsége töretlen, a társadalmi kapcsolatok áttevődnek a virtuális térbe. Társadalomkutatók rámutatnak, hogy egyre nehezebb az erőszakos tartalmak megfékezése, és a túlzásba vitt internetezés összefüggésben állhat a szociális kapcsolatok romlásával, amely súlyosabban jelentkezhet az egyébként is érzékenyebbeknél. Jelen tanulmány azt célozza meg, hogy biztonságpolitikai szempontból világítson rá az új média, s azzal összefüggésben az elmagányosodás, a radikalizálódómagányos elkövetők veszélyére.

İlköğretim 3. ve 4. Sınıf Öğrencilerinin Bilgisayar Oyun Bağımlılığı İle Şiddete Eğilimleri Arasındaki İlişkinin İncelenmesi

INTRODUCTION: With the development of technology in recent years, computer games have become indispensable for children. However, the excessive play of these games causes some problems. One of these problems is computer game addiction. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the relationship between computer game addiction and tendency to violence. 572 students were included in the study. METHODS: This study is a cross-sectional study. Data were collected by using computer game addiction and tendency to violence scale. A positive relationship was found between computer game addiction and tendency to violence. In the analysis of data, Whitney U, Kruskal Wallis and Sperman's corelation tests, descriptive statistics such as mean, percentage and frequency, were used. RESULTS: Children playing violent content were found to be high all computer game addiction sub-scale scores and total computer game addiction scores according to children who do not play violent games. Computer game addiction subscale scores and total computer game addiction scores and tendency to violence scores of students who play 9-10 hours per day on computer are higher than students who play shorter time. The tendency to violence scale mean score of the children who play computer games is higher than the children who do not play games on the computer. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: As a result with long-term playing violent games on the computer and computer game addiction can be said to increase the tendency to violence.

The Impact of Video Games on Gamers: the Problem of Determining the Transformational Potential of Gaming Activity

The paper presents a critical and analytical review of national and foreign scientific works on transformational effects of video games. It focuses the attention on contradictions in the data presented by scientists on the impact of the gaming activity on psychological changes among gamers. It carries out a comparison of the results of the research, presented in the scientific literature, on the impact of computer games on gamers with aggressive and violent content. The article shows the differences in the results of investigating the impact of video games on attention deficit among players, their anxiety and depression, and poor progress at school. It indicates the tendency to unreasonable stereotyping of ideas about the negative effect of the gaming activity. It shows that the differences in the results obtained are caused not only by the subjectivity of the researchers and the ambiguous research methodology, but also by the fact that the game is not differentiated, without isolating its formal and substantive components, which alone or in systemic interaction with other components of the game can explain the transformational effect.

Violence Detection in Social Media-Review

Social media has become a vital part of humans’ day to day life. Different users engage with social media differently. With the increased usage of social media, many researchers have investigated different aspects of social media. Many examples in the recent past show, content in the social media can generate violence in the user community. Violence in social media can be categorised into aggregation in comments, cyber-bullying and incidents like protests, murders. Identifying violent content in social media is a challenging task: social media posts contain both the visual and text as well as these posts may contain hidden meaning according to the users’ context and other background information. This paper summarizes the different social media violent categories and existing methods to detect the violent content. Keywords: Machine learning, natural language processing, violence, social media, convolution neural network

Reading Pornography: Methodological Considerations in Evaluating Pornography Research

IntroductionWith the emergence of rapidly expanding access to sexually explicit materials, research concerning pornography prevalence, pornography content, pornography users, and pornography effects has increased steadily among scientists and clinicians. Findings in this research area are often inconsistent and controversial. AimThe current discussion aims to assist scientists and clinicians to “read pornography—that is, pornography research—” from an appropriately rigorous scientific perspective, so that we may approach work in this area with a clearer understanding of the often contested evidence base and a clearer understanding of what science can, and cannot, tell us, at present, about pornography prevalence, content, users, and effects. MethodsDiscussion focuses on the critical implications, for scientific validity and clinical application, of variations in research design, participant sampling, conceptual and operational definitions of “pornography” and “use,” measurement of sexually violent content, and measurement of pornography use effects. ResultsFailure to acknowledge the implications of research design limitations and heterogeneity of conceptual and operational definitions of pornography have resulted in an inconsistent and contested evidence base in this area. Clinical ImplicationsClinicians must rigorously evaluate the published literature concerning pornography, according to classical principles of scientific research, before clinical application of diverse and inconsistent research claims. Strength & LimitationsThis analysis brings to bear classic scientific considerations in attempting to strengthen critical reading and research contributions in the area of pornography prevalence, content, users, correlates, and effects. Many of the assertions and suggestions contained in this discussion await empirical verification. ConclusionRigorous application of basic scientific research principles should guide the evaluation and conduct of research concerning pornography prevalence, content, users, covariates, and effects.Fisher WA, Kohut T. Reading Pornography: Methodological Considerations in Evaluating Pornography Research. J Sex Med 2020;17:195–209.

Journalism’s extraordinary audience: The characteristics and circumstances of news media consumption among Islamists

This study is the first to comprehensively explore Islamists’ consumption of news media and to describe the circumstances of their contact with different types of reports. Based on access to 34 Islamist prisoners and 9 former Islamists, the findings showed that cognitively radicalized individuals were typically exposed to stereotyped negative media coverage of Islam, the Salafi Politico scene, Islamophobia, and terrorist attacks – content that is perceived to portray Islam as a problem for mainstream society. Individuals characterized by violent radicalization typically consumed more violent content, such as media coverage of war in Muslim countries and terrorist attacks. The news media consumption was strongly influenced by leading propagandists who selected and forwarded ideologically exploitable media reports, thereby creating hybrid propaganda–media content. The findings highlight the need for journalists to recognize their responsibility when it comes to reporting on Muslims and Islamism.

Frustration and Violence in Mobile Video Games

Abstract. This study tests two competing hypotheses, one based on the general aggression model (GAM), the other on the self-determination theory (SDT). GAM suggests that the crucial factor in video games leading to increased aggressiveness is their violent content; SDT contends that gaming is associated with aggression because of the frustration of basic psychological needs. We used a 2×2 between-subject experimental design with a sample of 128 undergraduates. We assigned each participant randomly to one experimental condition defined by a particular video game, using four mobile video games differing in the degree of violence and in the level of their frustration-invoking gameplay. Aggressiveness was measured using the implicit association test (IAT), administered before and after the playing of a video game. We found no evidence of an association between implicit aggressiveness and violent content or frustrating gameplay.

Social Media: A Security Threat amongst Adolescents in Buea, Cameroon?

Social media provide a platform through which societies can either be constructed or destabilized. In view of the ongoing bloody conflicts in Cameroon, this study examines the extent to which social media could pose as a security threat (with particular focus on community security) amongst adolescents in Buea, capital of the South West Region in Cameroon. The study uses a quantitative approach, through the collection of data from adolescents in four communities in Buea (Muea, Bomaka, Mile 16, and Molyko). These four areas are selected because the current socio-political crisis rocking the two Anglophone regions of the country – Northwest and Southwest, is particularly severe in these communities. Social media (notably Facebook and WhatsApp) spread dangerous content, and adolescents are vulnerable to such content. Findings indicate that there is a high rate of social media use (Facebook and WhatsApp) amongst adolescents surveyed. Also, the most discussed items on social media are socio-cultural issues (68%), as opposed to political issues (17.8%). Respondents were receptive to discussions on socio-cultural issues like dressing, language and relationships. Results also show that though adolescents come across violent content on social media, they have distanced themselves from being involved in the production, consumption, and dissemination (for instance, share information as received) of such violent content, partly because of the judicial consequences of doing so, as contained in the country’s Terrorism Law of December 2014. The implication here is that, since the adolescents are not yet intoxicated (whether advertently or inadvertently) with destructive social media content, need exists for the effective education of the adolescents, to enable this vulnerable and younger population to continue desisting from negative social media content. Emphasis should be on the consumption of positive social media content that helps in the moral and psychological growth of adolescents.

Gender as a Moderator of the Association Between Exposure to Violent Media Contents and Aggressive Behaviour in a Sample of Nigerian In-School Adolescents

This is a correlational survey research which was carried out to find out if gender is a moderator of the association between exposure to violent media contents and aggressive behaviour in a sample of Nigerian in-school adolescents. The respondents were 603 senior secondary class 2 adolescents in Onitsha Education Zone of Anambra State. Two self-report questionnaires measuring violent media contents consumption and aggressive behaviour respectively were used for collection of data. Chart, partial correlation, and regression statistics were utlized to analyze and interpret the data. The research hypothesis was considered significant at .05 probability level. Results indicate that, to a very high extent, gender moderated the relationship between exposure to violent media contents and aggressive behaviour among in-school adolescents. Also, it was found that gender significantly moderated the relationship between exposure to violent media contents and aggressive behaviour among in-school adolescents. It is recommended that Nigerian secondary schools should initiate and promote gender-friendly and gender-transformative school-based interventions that would help mitigate aggression among in-school adolescents.

Parental Mediation as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Violent Media Contents Exposure and Aggressive Behaviour of In-School Adolescents

This study, through a correlational survey of 603 adolescent students in Onitsha Education Zone of Anambra State, Nigeria, aimed to find out if parental mediation is a moderator of the relationship between violent media contents exposure and aggressive behaviour. The researchers used Violent Media Contents Questionnaire and In-School Adolescents&amp;rsquo; Aggressive Behaviour Questionnaire for data collection. To analyze the data collected, the researchers used Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient and simple linear regression statistics. Results showed that the extent to which parental mediation moderates the relationship between violent media contents exposure and aggressive behaviour among in-school adolescents was very high. It was also found that parental mediation significantly moderates the relationship between violent media contents exposure and aggressive behaviour among in-school adolescents. Therefore, parents could play an active role in managing and regulating in-school adolescent&amp;rsquo;s media contents consumption and invariably influence the extent they display aggressive behaviour.

Gamification for Internet Gaming Disorder Prevention: Evaluation of a Wise IT-Use (WIT) Program for Hong Kong Primary Students.

Internet gaming disorder and risky online behavior (e.g., cyberbullying, exposure to online violent content) have emerged as serious problems in the digital age. Prevalence rates range from 4% to 40% across the globe, with Asia being one of the hardest-hit regions. To address these pressing problems, our team designed the Wise IT-use (WIT) program, a universal prevention program that (a) enhances students’ awareness of Internet gaming disorder and an array of common risky online behaviors, and (b) equips them with sufficient knowledge to handle such problems. The WIT program design was based on gamification principles and flow theory to enhance users’ motivation and learning experience. A program evaluation study was conducted to assess the social impact of this program in mitigating symptoms of Internet gaming disorder and risky online behavior, and in bolstering emotional well-being. The participants were 248 students aged 7 to 13 from four primary schools in various regions of Hong Kong. They completed validated questionnaires 1 month before and 2 months after participating in the program to evaluate changes in their symptoms of Internet gaming disorder, the frequency with which they displayed risky online behaviors, and their ratings of emotional well-being across the period. The results revealed that both the symptoms of Internet gaming disorder and the proportion of students at risk of the disorder were reduced after the program. The changes observed in students were related to higher levels of positive affect and lower levels of negative affect. Evidence from this study indicates that Internet gaming disorder and risky online behavior are detrimental to the emotional well-being of Hong Kong primary school students. More importantly, the findings demonstrate that our newly developed WIT program can have a social impact in successfully mitigating the symptoms of Internet gaming disorder and enhancing emotional well-being over time. The implications of these findings for the program’s broader impact on society and culture are discussed.

Dreams and Nightmares in Patients With Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Review.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can present with or provoke various psychological symptoms. In this article, we critically review studies that have examined dreams, dream recall, and dream content in patients with OSA. Obstructive events induce recurrent sleep fragmentation and intermittent desaturations in patients with OSA, which may trigger different parasomnias, including nightmares. Contradictory results have been reported concerning dreams in patients with OSA; while some investigators have reported less dreams in OSA patients, others have described that patients with OSA have increased dreams with emotional content, mainly violent and hostile content. Although there are reports of respiratory-related dream content in patients with OSA, most studies that have assessed the dream content of patients with OSA revealed that respiratory-related dream content was unusual. A clear association between post-traumatic stress disorders, comorbid OSA, and nightmares has been reported in several studies. Furthermore, an improvement in nightmare frequency with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment has been shown. An inverse relationship between the severity of OSA reflected by the apnea-hypopnea index and dream recall has been demonstrated in several studies. Future studies should differentiate between patients with non-stage specific OSA and patients with rapid eye movement (REM) predominant OSA.

Incorporating Background Checks with Sentiment Analysis to Identify Violence Risky Chinese Microblogs

Based on Web 2.0 technology, more and more people tend to express their attitude or opinions on the Internet. Radical ideas, rumors, terrorism, or violent contents are also propagated on the Internet, causing several incidents of social panic every year in China. In fact, most of this content comprises joking or emotional catharsis. To detect this with conventional techniques usually incurs a large false alarm rate. To address this problem, this paper introduces a technique that combines sentiment analysis with background checks. State-of-the-art sentiment analysis usually depends on training datasets in a specific topic area. Unfortunately, for some domains, such as violence risk speech detection, there is no definitive training data. In particular, topic-independent sentiment analysis of short Chinese text has been rarely reported in the literature. In this paper, the violence risk of the Chinese microblogs is calculated from multiple perspectives. First, a lexicon-based method is used to retrieve violence-related microblogs, and then a similarity-based method is used to extract sentiment words. Semantic rules and emoticons are employed to obtain the sentiment polarity and sentiment strength of short texts. Second, the activity risk is calculated based on the characteristics of part of speech (PoS) sequence and by semantic rules, and then a threshold is set to capture the key users. Finally, the risk is confirmed by historical speeches and the opinions of the friend-circle of the key users. The experimental results show that the proposed approach outperforms the support vector machine (SVM) method on a topic-independent corpus and can effectively reduce the false alarm rate.

A soft computing approach to violence detection in social media for smart cities

In recent years, social media has become an everyday tool for the distribution of videos in which signs of violence appear in different ways. Citizens of smart cities are demanding increasing efforts to authorities in order to maintain public safety, as well as to be efficient in an emergency response. The complexity of monitoring automatically the enormous amount of information generated through social networks results in the need for the development of systems that allow for the automatic detection of violent content in videos. This fact is becoming increasingly important in order to guarantee security for the citizens in any smart city. As a result, this work proposes the development of a system for detecting violence in videos by combining different descriptors that calculate the acceleration produced between two frames of a video. To do this, different techniques, such as the Radon transform or optical flow, are used. The trained system then performs the classification using support vector Machines. The results are promising, with accuracy rates between 85 and 97%, depending on the complexity of the databases used, which demonstrates the validity of our proposal.

Parental media monitoring, prosocial violent media exposure, and adolescents' prosocial and aggressive behaviors.

Prosocial violent media (e.g., media that combines both violent and prosocial content) is especially popular in entertainment media today. However, it remains unclear how parental media monitoring is associated with exposure to prosocial violent content and adolescent behavior. Accordingly, 1,193 adolescents were asked about parental media monitoring, media content exposure, and behavior. Main findings suggest that autonomy supportive restrictive monitoring was associated with lower levels of exposure to prosocial violent content, but only among older adolescents. Additionally, autonomy supportive restrictive monitoring was the only form of parental media monitoring associated with lower levels of violent content and higher levels of prosocial content, and autonomy supportive active monitoring was the only parental monitoring strategy that promoted prosocial behavior via exposure to prosocial media content. Discussion focuses on the importance of autonomy supportive parental monitoring, as well as the implications of parents encouraging their children to watch media with limited violent content-even if it is prosocial violent content.

Reflective thoughts about violent media content – development of a bilingual self-report scale in English and German

ABSTRACT This study investigates audiences’ reflective thoughts about violent media content with the aim of developing a bilingual self-report scale in English and German. Scale development was based on an item pool of statements derived from previous qualitative interviews about individuals’ reflection and meaning-making of violent media content. Two survey samples from the US (N = 431) and Germany (N = 412) rated their agreement with these statements, with an example of violent fiction, violent nonfiction, or the most recent violent content they had seen in mind. Factor analysis of the data revealed five main dimensions including reflective thoughts about: (1) human cruelty and suffering from violence, (2) own or close others’ experiences with violence, (3) moral complexities of violence, (4) the true story behind violent content, and (5) strategies learned for dealing with violence in real life. Scale items selected to represent these five dimensions showed convergent validity with eudaimonic media experiences and perceived realism as well as comparable measurement properties across the two countries (US and Germany). Results are discussed with regard to the role of reflective thoughts as potential buffer against negative effects of exposure to media violence.