Study Links Swearing on TV to Teen Aggression

Brigham Young University has just released a study that they say profanity on tv is linked to teen aggression.

www.foxnews.com...

Swearing on television during prime time will most likely get a show fined by the Federal Communication Commission, and new research suggests it might be for good reasons. By studying Midwestern youths, the study found that the more profanity they are exposed to through television and video games, the more accepting they are of swearing and the more likely they are to use profanity themselves. Those kids who swore more were also more likely to engage in physical aggression.

I believe this article is very interesting because it is something I have been thinking about for some time now. I am not sure if being exposed to profanity would necessarily lead to aggression in teenagers, but I do believe that being exposed to violent video games, tv, and movies would certainly lead to it. I think that kids become desensitized to this sort of thing, and perhaps their sense of reality may become distorted. I have to admit when I was a teenager, I cursed like a sailor because I (like most people probably) was raised around it. However, when I became an adult, I learned that there is a time and place for everything, and learned to choose how to speak with better language. I hate to admit it, but I do still curse at times, but I find that it does not dominate my language.

"Profanity is kind of like a stepping stone," said study researcher Sarah Coyne, of Brigham Young University. "You don't go to a movie, hear a bad word, and then go shoot somebody. But when youth both hear and then try profanity out for themselves it can start a downward slide toward more aggressive behavior."

The researchers found links between the amount of swearing in video games and television and how often the students used profanity themselves; participants who used more swear language were more likely than other students to exhibit physical and relational violence. However, because the study is correlational it can only show that swearing on TV is indirectly linked to aggression, not whether one causes the other.

I think they should have looked at other types of media. There is a plethora of profanity in music (um, rap music comes to mind haha, no offense to anyone that listens to rap) and it does seem rather biased against tv and video games. Perhaps it is a ploy for the FCC to regulate what we watch and see. (Hey, this is ATS, I had to throw that in there for conspiracy theory) although that might not be too far from the truth.

here are some caveats to the study. First, they only relied on the student's self-reports of media and swearing, and self-reports are notoriously variable. Secondly, they only looked at video games and television; they didn't look at other sources of profanity, including music and profanity use in the home. Many video games also have a social component, where users can talk to each other. This talk is often profanity laden, and uncontrolled, the researchers noted.

What the researchers don't note, however, are the positive effects of media and yes, even swearing, Jay said. "There is a literature that shows the prosocial effects of media on children, the authors ignore these reports," Jay said. "The authors make no case for profanity being beneficial, as in humor elicitation, or social bonding, or as a coping mechanism, or as a relief from pain."

I do agree that there is a lot of literature out there that used profanity ( I can think of several books out there that have been banned because of the profanity and nature of the book) but I suppose that it was used to bring the point across to the reader. I also think that they should have looked into it being used as a coping mechanism, social bonding, and relief from pain. I know there have been times when I just had to get it out of my system.

Now with that being said, I do however believe that using profanity denotes that the user may have a limited vocabulary. I honestly don't know how many words are in the english language, but for someone to use profanity in every other word seems to be lacking (but like I said, there is a time an place for everything I.) I wonder if those who use profanity quite frequently use that type of language at work, job interviews, around certain family members and such? I suppose that there are times when hanging out with friends would be different, but more than likely most would not. Do you think that there is a valid correlation between the two? Do you think that getting into an argument with someone who is using profanity in their debate would lead to aggressive behavior. When thinking about this, I am reminded of an old qoute I heard a while back -"“When a man uses profanity to support an argument, it indicates that either the man or the argument is weak - probably both”. Im not sure who said it, but it makes a lot of sense to me. So, I am eager to hear what others have to say about this.

You don't say.
SIMS too.
OMG Sims should not be for kids in my opinion.

reply to post by Manhater


haha, there are days when I feel like I am in a SIMS game...(I don't wet myself though) but I have not played the online SIMS game, and probably won't.

i just had to WARNING MATURE LANGUAGE




profane or offensive words are such a silly concept
shows us how fragile how psyches still are.

words are words

if only all words resulted into action


its a very debatable study

its like the bullying issue, hell and this whole internet forum thing.

you never know the impact your words have on others.

but when others seem so prone to be put down in anyway by mere words

i have to question not the conotations some words have but how these days people are being bred and raised to be weak and defenseless


im not pro violence, but im also weary of those who want to remove our ability and right to express it, if and when needed.

these type of studies become the backbone of more restrictions and further measures to control what the populace does, better yet, able and allowed to.

plus a better study would be explaining to people what tv does to your brain, why does it leave you in a susceptible state where one absorbs and starts to emulate whatever one's watching.

i grew up in the nineties, the era of violence on tv, and i still like to think i turned out fine.
but i guess no one cared back then uh

violence on tv was having to watch starving people daily on the news
violence is knowing those same people are still starving, but where are the cameras now?

pointed at YOU!

My Niece told her doctor that her little boy and all her kids are going to grow up to be a bank robber and go to jail. Have no clue where got that from, but I know, she's always making her SIMs character, not connected to the internet. pregnant. And I look at her mother. And this is kid friendly? And she's, like it's a make believe cartoon.

Nickoldean is cartoons,Disney is cartoons. lol Sublimely they're just as bad.

I use this kids browser that keeps her locked on, and the only way she get off the browser is if she can crack my passcode. She's trying to crack it and keeps asking me how many letters?

I think it's about time everyone stopped blaming tv, video games, music, etc etc etc for their own bad parenting skills..
Teens aren't stupid, they know tv/video games aren't real.. the same as 5 year olds know they can't jump off buildings using an umbrella to float down to safety, because donald duck did it in a cartoon.

Teens will always push the boundaries, it's up to the parents to teach them right from wrong, and groundwork should have been started on that waaaay before they hit their teens..

If you're not smart enough to teach them that ''just because they see it on tv doesn't mean they should behave like that'' from an early age, then either turn off the tv/games/music until they turn 18... or stop having kids.

The sooner people in this country, and yours realise that every time they pop out a child, they are actually now responsible for a PERSON, the better.