Influence of the Media on Young People

As technology rapidly advances, we find ourselves more submersed in various forms of entertainment and communication. Televisions can be found in nearly every household along with computers equipped with internet access. Our society is becoming more and more capable of being constantly entertained, informed, or connected to other people at the click of a button. While this fast paced accessibility has positively affected people by providing educational materials and cultural experiences that would otherwise not be possible, it has also had negative effects.

The negative effects of the media can be seen most predominantly in today's young people. Research studies have shown media can have negative effects when the content contains themes such as violence and aggressive behavior, sexual content, body image, and stereotypes. Exposure to the wrong types of media is not the only concern. Studies have also shown that too much exposure, even too positive media forms, can inhibit mental development and adversely effect physical health. If not closely monitored, young people can suffer a vast array of negative effects from media exposure.

Before discussing the effects media has on children and young adults it is important to understand the concept of media literacy. In simple terms, media literacy is a set of skills that enables people to critically analyze messages in the media. By using an inquiry-based instructional model, media literacy encourages people to ask questions about what they watch, see, and read. Developing the skills needed to detect things such as propaganda, censorship, and bias are vital to creating an accurate account of media exposure. This is the primary reason that young people tend to be more adversely affected by the media. Young people, who might be called media illiterate, are far more vulnerable to media influence than older and more mature individuals who have developed these skills.

One of the most extensively studied areas of media influence is of media forms which contain violence and aggression. As early as the 1970's, studies have shown the significant exposure to media containing violence increases the risk of aggressive behaviors. Over the years the amount of violence in what we watch, the books we read, and the games we play have increased dramatically. The overwhelming consensus of studies conducted by various agencies such as the American Psychological Association and the National Institute of Mental Health is that there is substantial evidence that there is a definable link between exposure to violence in the media and aggressive behavior in children. Young people who view violent events such as murder, kidnapping, or fighting tend to view the world as a scary place. These fearful feelings can cause intense feelings of anxiety at a very early age.

It is a strong belief of many experts that the context of the exposure to violence greatly determines the influence it will have on the individual. According to the office of The Surgeon General children are theoretically more susceptible to behavioral influences when they are active participants than when they are simply observers. Kids who participate in violence through the media in forms such as violently themed video games are more likely to be affected in a more serious way than they are by more passive exposure. With the effects of passive exposure to violence already deemed very unhealthy for children and young adults, this new view on the ramifications of more interactive violent forms of media is becoming a huge concern to parents, and care givers, educators.

Violence is not the only aspect of the media that has increased greatly over the past few decades. The media has become increasingly sexualized. It has been estimated in a study labeled "Sex, Kids, and the Family Hour," that there has been an estimated 400 percent increase from 1976 to 1996 of sexual references during prime time television programming. Further studies found that exposure to sexual content affected moral judgment of adolescents.

We have certainly come a long way from married couples sleeping in separate beds. Casual sexual relationships occur with shocking regularity. Even more shocking is perhaps the age group much of this sexual behavior. Teens frequently participate in and casually talk about sexual activity in the media. Life on television and in movies is often unrealistic and void of serious consequences. It is more difficult for young people to apply the real life results of many of the potentially destructive behaviors that are frequently depicted by the media. People who participate in irresponsible sexual behavior on television and in movies rarely become pregnant and almost never contract sexually transmitted diseases.

When young people do not receive information about sex from other sources such as parents or educators they default to the media for sexual information. The portrayal of sex and sexual behavior in the media is no substitute for a proper education about the three C's of responsible sexual behavior: commitment, contraception, and consequences.

Another issue of influence that is dominated by the media is body image and self-esteem. Researchers suggest that the development of self esteem in young people is drastically effected by the media they are exposed to. The media portrays a very unrealistic standard of beauty and body weight. Young people are highly influenced by images of stars and models in the media without understanding that images are often altered to enhance appearances. One report claims that at the age of thirteen, 53% of American girls are "unhappy with their bodies." This numbers grows to 78% by the age of seventeen. In a survey funded by the National, Heart and Lung Institute, 40% of girls ages nine and ten years old were reported have tried to lose weight.

The depth of the effects of the media standard for body image on young people is yet to be fully determined. It has become an increased area of concern and is most certainly an area the where more study is needed to draw precise conclusions. It is popular opinion that the staggeringly large number of young people who suffer from eating disorders and engage in unhealthy dieting or take potentially harmful diet pills is a direct effect of media influence, but there is yet to be substantial hard evidence to prove this connection. In spite of this lack of evidence, it is apparent that young people today are under an extreme amount of pressure to achieve physical perfection.

Last but not least, perhaps one of the most pressing issues to be addressed with todays youth and media has less to do with the content and more to do with the amount. Even positive and educational sources of media are recommended only in small doses. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), kids in the United States watch about 4 hours of television a day. That is double the recommended daily amount. This estimated time does not include time spent by children with other media sources such as internet, movies, or music. The increase of time spent using media is undoubtedly the most significant cause of a dramatic decrease in physical activity among children. Childhood obesity, which is a growing epidemic in this country, is expected to be a direct result of this decrease.

The media is most certainly a highly underestimated source of influence for our children and adolescents. While it does not deserve to be completely vilified in the minds of parents and care givers, it certainly needs to be closely monitored. In almost all of the studies conducted on the effects of media on young people the results were greatly altered when there was close intervention by an adult. In this day and age it is nearly impossible to protect children from potentially damaging images in the media. By understanding the importance of media literacy and the potential negative effects the media can have on our youth, it will become easier to counteract these negative effects and equip young people with the necessary tools to accurately and effectively process media influences.