Effects of Viewing Relational Aggression in the Media on Aggressive Behavior in Adolescents: A Three-Year Longitudinal Study

• In Event: Critical Discoveries About Violence and Conflict in Media

Abstract

Most research on media and aggression has examined the behavioral effects of viewing physical aggression in the media. Conversely, the current study examines longitudinal associations between viewing relational aggression in the media and subsequent aggressive behavior. Participants included 500 adolescents who completed a number of different questionnaires involving media and aggression at three different time points. Results revealed that viewing relational aggression in the media is longitudinally associated with future relational aggression. However, early levels of relational aggression did not predict future exposure to media relational aggression. A crossover effect of media was also examined and found to support a bidirectional relationship between media relational aggression and physical aggression over time. These results support both the General Aggression Model (GAM) and downward spiral model and suggest that viewing relational aggression in the media can have a long-term effect on aggressive behavior during adolescence.

Author

• Sarah M. Coyne, Brigham Young University