Do antisocial acts portrayed on television lead to antisocial acts in viewers? The long-standing debate on this important questions has, up to now, been conducted in something of a vacuum- a vacuum caused by the lack of crucial experimental evidence. This book reports a pioneering study in which the experimental variable- the content of television programming itself. Through the cooperation of a major television network, the investigators were able to produce and air three versions- with differing antisocial content- of an episode of the popular prime time program, Medical Center. They then carried out a series of highly original field experiments designed to assess the effects of the antisocial elements in the programs on the subject population. This book is a clear and reasoned report of the history, design, and results of this research. The book will be of great interest and value to social psychologists, sociologists, mass communications and media researchers, those professionally involved in broadcasting, and many others.

This book, published originally in 1980, addressed the needs for a profile of televised violence which considered the advantages and disadvantages of various measures and for a furthering of research directions beyond the then-popular emphasis on children. The Committee on Television and Social Behavior was formed in1972 and stimulated new research in order to provide a multidimensional profile of the social effects of television programming. Chapters here look at the effect of television on adults as well as children, particularly special audiences such as the elderly and minority groups. An excellent summary of the various conceptual, substantive and methodological issues around television’s influence.

Abstract: A comprehensive report summarizes the past 10 years of research activities and findings concerning the effects of television viewing on child behavior and development. Approximately 90% of all research publications on this topic appeared during this period, representing over 2500 titles. The report is presented in 2 volumes, a summary report and technical reviews. The technical reviews comprise overall, comprehensive, and critical syntheses of the scientific literature on specific topic areas, developed by 24 researchers in this area. The topic areas address such issues as cognitive and emotional aspects of television viewing; television's influences on physical and mental health; television as it relates to socialization and viewer's conceptions of social reality; and television as an American institution. The overall orientation of the report is toward research and public health issues.

This volume presents new research, theory and practice in the field of social psychology. Topics covered include arousal regulation, social perception, social norms, and non-verbal behaviour.

In this book, Barrie Gunter provides a broad overview of the methodological perspectives adopted by media researchers in their attempt to derive a better understanding of the nature, role and impact of media in society. By tracing the epistemological and theoretical roots of the major methodological perspectives, Gunter identifies the various schools of social scientific research that have determined the major perspectives in the area. Drawing a distinction between quantitative and qualitative methods, he discusses the relative advantages and disadvantages of each approach, and examines recent trends that signal a convergence of approaches and their associated forms of research. The unique strength of this

Advances in Experimental Social Psychology

"The Case for Television Violence is a dense, dry and devastating dissection that surely counts as one of the most important books about American culture to appear in the last decade." --Andrew O′Hehir, "The Myth of Media Violence," Salon.com, 3/17/05 The Case for Television Violence makes the provocative argument that television violence has been misinterpreted. Rather than undermining the social order, television supports it by providing a safe outlet for aggressive impulses. Media scholar Jib Fowles challenges the conventional wisdom by: 1) demonstrating that the scientific literature does not say what many believe it says; 2) calling attention to the viewing habits and behaviors of the reader and those the reader knows; 3) explaining that the anti-violence critique is most profitably understood as the signature issue in the conflict between high and popular culture and 4) situating the arrival of televised violence within the historical context of the disallowance of traditionally sanctioned targets of aggression. The Case for Television Violence will intrigue scholars and students of Media Studies, Cultural Studies, Politics and Mass Communication.