Does Sex and Violence on Television Have a Negative Effect on Children?

Does sex and violence on television have negative effects on children? The issue that I am addressing is the effect of sex and violence in the media on children. As long as there has been television, there has been an association made between media and violence – children who repeated what they saw on cartoons leading to their death, teenagers injured while emulating a popular movie, and mass killings blamed on video games. Primarily this relationship has been assumed to be causal with television being the assumed central cause in violent or risky behavior.Once you begin delving into the roots of violent and risky behavior, however, the association between modeled violence and expressed violence becomes less and less obvious. Violence in society in general is complicated and requires unpacking so that each aspect of the roots of violence can be analyzed and ultimately discussed in a meaningful way, including acknowledging that the origins are just as layered and complex as the solutions. Summary of Internet Information I began looking into various studies and articles about violence in media to see what kind of information was already available on the subject.There were a number of points of view represented, however, none of them outright dismissed that there was some relationship between sex and violence in the media and violent behavior. The studies also generally agreed that the complexities of violent behavior may potentially be ultimately unknowable because of that complexity. What may drive one person to violence may have little to no effect on another or the level of exposure to images of sex and violence in combination with other influences, including parental and peer attitudes towards sex and violence, may be a stronger relationship than media influence alone.The article â€Å"It’s not all sex and violence† by Agustin Fuentes set the tone for how I came to look at my research because it brought up the important point that sex and violence are over emphasized in modern culture and can give the false impression that sex and violence are at the very center of every human motivation rather than showing the reality that sex and violence are merely two aspects of the human experience, rather than central or common. The topics are scintillating and therefore more discussed.I also included research done to determine the effect of three safe sex campaigns run on Netherlands television during the mid-1990’s in order to see if there were positive messages that were also being sent on television about sex and sexual behavior (â€Å"Can public campaigns effectively change psychological determinants of safer sex? †), an evaluation of three Dutch campaigns that determined that the campaigns were successful in their goals of increasing safe sex practices in the Netherlands.I wanted to see if positive messages about sex and sexual behavior also had an effect on teenagers and young adults as this could be assoc iated back to imitating modeled behavior in general. The determination in the case of the Dutch safe sex campaigns was that effectiveness of the televised messages was related not only to the message itself, but also to the amount of exposure the subject had to the message.Those who were more exposed to the messages were more likely to engage in safe sex than those who were less exposed or not exposed at all. In â€Å"Mass Media Effects on Violent Behavior† by Richard Felson discussed in detail the difficulties of studying the effects of media violence on children because it’s difficult to measure intent and the inherent issues present in building experiments that have the greatest possibility of delivering reasonable results.It was the most comprehensive and inclusive article that I read as it looked at a number of different methods of measuring media effects on children – ultimately demonstrating that there is a provable corollary between exposure to violence seen on television and later violent behavior, however, the media input was shown to be part of a greater set of environmental concerns.What I could determine from my sources was that the greatest issue faced by researchers interested in studying the possible corollary between seeing sex and violence on television and that exposure being the driving force for later acts of violence by the subject is that there is no consensus in the data. Replicating a real world experience in the laboratory requires introducing controls that may cause the subject or subjects to feel freer to engage in extreme behavior as the environment created in the experiment can lack the third-party controls that exist in the real world.There is also some difficulty in repeating the results regardless of the conclusions drawn from the data. Additionally, there are complications where the studies are not necessarily using the same metrics in their research so their conclusions may be similar or even confirm the findings of other research but not using the same methodology. The scientific method relies primarily on replication of results when executing the same experiment and that doesn’t seem to be happening in the research done on this topic.The shared determinations between each of my sources all acknowledged the shortcomings in the research; however, this did not prevent them from coming to some kind of conclusion. The most common conclusion was that there was a relationship, however, that relationship was not a direct one to one corollary. This was true for both negative and positive messages. The general acknowledgements is that while there is an association between exposure to messages in sex and violence in the media, that these messages were not necessarily a driving force in later acts of violence, but were certainly a factor in later acts of violence.Summary of a Research Study The research study that I am summarizing is â€Å"Can public campaigns effectively change psych ological determinants of safer sex? An evaluation of three Dutch campaigns† by M. C. Yzer, F. W. Siero, and B. P. Buunk. The research was designed to establish the effectiveness of Dutch safe sex campaigns that were run between 1994 and 1996. There were several metrics being measured, â€Å"improved attitudes, perceived social norms, self-efficacy and intentions regarding safer sex (Yzer, Siero & Buunk, 1999)The methodology of the study was to use a representative sample of the Dutch population and then ask them to answer electronic questionnaires where you could not advance through to the next question without answering previous questions in order to minimize missing data. Each participant was issued a unique PIN number in order to further identify the participants. There were also five waves of questionnaires, and an individual participant could be eligible for more than one of these waves, however, they could only participate in one wave.The PIN numbers were also used to e nsure that there were no duplicate participants from wave to wave. These methods were also employed to exclude testing effects, history effects, cultural changes and sample differences as alternative explanations for the data collected. (Yzer, Siero & Buunk, 1999) The questionnaires measured attitudes towards safe sex practices, social norms , â€Å"self-efficacy† (Yzer, Siero & Buunk, 1999), and whether or not the participant intended to engage in safe sex practices in the future.The key results in this study were that while the initial levels of positive attitudes and practices of safe sex, there was indeed room for an increase in those metrics. The increases were the most steep immediately after a campaign aired, but that uptick did not dip below the previous level but maintained over time. It was also shown that increases were not always across the board in every category during every campaign. There were different effects that depended on which campaign was aired.When sp lit out into separate categories, â€Å"self-efficacy was enhanced by the 1994 campaign, and that intentions were enhanced by the 1994 and 1995 campaigns. To summarize, all target variables were generally more positive with respect to safer sex after a campaign than before. † (Yzer, Siero & Buunk, 1999) The thesis of the experiment was the following: 1. Attitudes, social norms, self-efficacy and intentions would become more favorable towards safer sex in response to each of the 1994, 1995 and 1996 campaigns. 2.In the period of time after the 1996 campaign when no campaign was conducted (but in a similar time interval as between the 1994 but in a similar time interval as between the 1995 and 1996 campaigns), attitudes, social norms, self-efficacy and intentions would become less favorable towards safer sex. (Yzer, Siero & Buunk, 1999) The data showed that after the campaigns were aired, that all of the measured areas showed an increase both short-term and long-term. They also noticed that there was a quick uptick in positive feelings shortly after a campaign was aired.Overall, the campaigns served to uphold and enhance already present social norms and attitudes towards safe sex and safe sex practices. The conclusions of this study also confirmed the conclusions of a study done in Germany that evaluated German safer sex campaigns. How this relates to the issue of what effect sex and violence on television effects children is that there is here a strong relationship between media messages and future behavior and that this relationship is related to amount of exposure to the message.It was already well established that there was an agreed upon corollary between violence seen on television and violent behavior, however, this study shows that the relationship is also built on frequency of exposure to the medium. Additionally, there can be changes in different areas over time, which shows the diversity of how media messages influence people and how that influe nce can be different while still present. Critical Analysis of Internet Information and Research Study In â€Å"It’s not all sex and violence† by Agustin Fuentes, the information provided by Dr.Fuentes is factual and points out that human beings are diverse and complex beings driven by a variety of things. The overemphasis on sex and violence in media is pervasive and dangerous to how we see ourselves as human beings. The amount of cooperation, joy, sharing, etc. that human beings do far outweigh the amount of violence we engage in as a species. However, we as a species are also fascinated with sex and violence and seek out that information – drawing focus towards it, rather than acknowledging their purpose and role in life and placing it among everything else in life, maintaining perspective.The evidence that is used is a walk through the development of human societies and what scientists know about the behavior of our ancestors and the results of primatologica l research with social behavior of primates. He shows that the majority of the behavior that we engage in is positive and helping behaviors, rather than negative behaviors. The strength of the evidence is weak, but the piece is intended to be an emotional appeal that includes appeals to the intellect. Because of the rhetorical mode of the piece, this is to be expected and does not immediately remove it from consideration as a good source of information.In â€Å"Can public campaigns effectively change psychological determinants of safer sex? † there is a great deal of factual evidence supported by strong evidence with a reasonable and intelligent analysis of the data gathered from their research. The strength of the evidence is significant, especially in light of the inclusion of the information that a German study came to similar conclusions. â€Å"Mass Media Effects on Violent Behavior† is a research study that gathers a number of different research studies and provid es that data along with the conclusions of the author.The information is good and because of the amount of provided data, the reader can see where the author’s conclusions came from. Because of this article’s appearance in a peer-reviewed journal, it can be assumed to be a trustworthy source of information with strong evidence supporting its conclusions. Conclusion In answer to the specific question as to whether or not sex and violence on television is harmful to children – there is no simple answer. Through looking at the evidence, there is an undeniable effect of what people see on television and their future behavior, but that link is not causal.The factors that exist in order to drive an individual to violence are difficult to measure due to basic problems with creating appropriate test trials, the complexity of human nature, and the overwhelming amount of input that everyone has on a regular basis. A worthwhile avenue for research would be to measure expos ure to specific stimuli in media messages and whether or not it’s the amount of sex and violence that someone is exposed to that is the deciding factor in future behavior. Another avenue would be to do a longitudinal study of children of ifferent socio-economic backgrounds to see what other factors exist (exposure to violence in daily life, attitudes about sex, etc. ) along with measuring how the child is interpreting the media messages that it is exposed to along with the frequency of that exposure. It would be holistic, but perhaps prohibitively complex and long term to execute. What remains unknown is what the full impact of media messages on children is, there is an effect, that’s undeniable, but that effect is clearly influenced by a variety of factors and may only be a reflection of what the child has already learned elsewhere.References Bushman, B. (2013). Why do people deny violent media effects?. Psychology Today, Retrieved from http://www. psychologytoday. co m/blog/get-psyched/201302/why-do people-deny-violent-media-effects Felson, R. (1996) Mass media effects on violent behavior. Annual Review of Sociology, 22, 103-128 . Retrieved from http://www. jstor. org. libproxy. uml. edu/stable/2083426 Fuentes, A. (2013). Busting myths about human nature. Psychology Today, Retrieved from http://www. psychologytoday. com/blog/busting-myths-about-human- nature/201302/it-s-not-all-sex-and-violenceWalker, M. (1983). Some problems in interpreting statistics relating to crime. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, 146(3), 281-293 . Retrieved from http://www. jstor. org. libproxy. uml. edu/stable/2981656 Yzer, M. C. , Siero, F. W. & Buunk, B. P. (1999). Can public campaigns effectively change psychological determinants of safer sex? An evaluation of three Dutch campaigns. Health Education Research, 15(3), 339-352. Retrieved from http://her. oxfordjournals. org/content/15/3/339. full

Quotes From The Handmaids Tale

Quotes From The Handmaids Tale The Handmaids Tale is a best-selling novel by Margaret Atwood set in a feminist dystopian future in which war and pollution have made pregnancy and childbirth increasingly difficult and women are enslaved as prostitutes  or virginal concubines - handmaiden - in an effort to repopulate and control the population. Atwoods beautiful, haunting prose in The Handmaids Tale is told from the first person perspective of a woman called Offred (or Of Fred, her master). The story follows Offred through her third service as a handmaiden and also offers flashbacks to her life before the Revolution that led to this new American society founded on religious fanaticism. Blessed be the fruit, Atwood writes in Chapter Four, an indoctrination for the handmaidens who have to go through intense training for their servitude before being assigned to a master whose child she will bear. Read on to discover more quotes from this famous novel and learn more about the not-too-distant-or-improbable future of Margaret Atwoods The Handmaids Tale, which is also an acclaimed television series. Quotes About Hope In Dystopia The character of Offred carries with her a certain quiet optimism that her daughter, who was taken from her when she tried to flee to Canada with her husband at the start of the revolution, is still alive, though this hope is diminished by the harsh conditions she lives under as a handmaiden, as described in Chapter 5: There is more than one kind of freedom ... Freedom to and freedom from. In the days of anarchy, it was freedom to. Now you are being given freedom from. Dont underrate it. Of her daughter, Offred says, also in Chapter 5, She is a flag on a hilltop, showing what can still be done: we too can be saved. Here, the character reveals her hope hinges upon the fact that her daughter has still not turned up on the wall where the ruling class hangs sinners near where Offred is held. Still, this optimism and hope is nothing in the face of the reality Offred finds herself in, and she admits in Chapter 7 that shes pretending the reader can hear her, But its no good because I know you cant. The Other Handmaidens Offred seems to have contempt for her fellow handmaidens, perhaps for their complacency or their simplistic view of the world: They are very interested in how other households are run; such bits of petty gossip give them an opportunity for pride or discontent. Still, Offred shared similarities with all other handmaidens in that they were the people who were not in the papers, the ones who lived in the blank white spaces at the edge of print, which Offred said gave them more freedom. All of them also undergo an indoctrination, a brainwashing ritual at the Academy where they train to be handmaidens. In Chapter 13, Offred describes a scene where the handmaidens are all seated in a circle around a woman confessing to being raped - Her fault, her fault, her fault, we chant in unison, Atwood writes. The woman training them, Aunt Lydia, also encourages all the handmaidens that though the new concepts introduced in their schooling may seem strange at first, they will eventually become mundane, but if not, the handmaidens would be punished for stepping out of line like one woman Offred describes in Chapter 8: She doesnt make speeches anymore. She has become speechless. She stays in her home, but it doesnt seem to agree with her. How furious she must be now that she has been taken at her word.   Offred feels a pressure to fulfill these new standards despite herself, and in Chapter 13 says of her shortcomings, I have failed once again to fulfill the expectations of others, which have become my own. In Chapter 30 Offred says of her oppressors, That was one of the things they do. They force you to kill, within yourself, and ultimately in Chapter 32, she realizes an important lesson when her master Fred tells her,  Better never means better for everyone... It always means worse for some.   Various Other Quotes I dont want to look at something that determines me so completely. (Chapter 12)Give me children, or else I die. Am I in Gods stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? Behold my maid Bilhah. She shall bear fruit upon my knees, that I may also have children by her.(Chapter 15)Moira had power now, shed been set loose, shed set herself loose. She was now a loose woman. (Chapter 22)Maybe none of this is about control. Maybe it isnt really about who can own whom, who can do what to whom and get away with it, even as far as death. Maybe it isnt about who can sit and who has to kneel or stand or lie down, legs spread open. Maybe its about who can do what to whom and be forgiven for it. Never tell me it amounts to the same thing. (Chapter 23)There is something subversive about this garden of Serenas, a sense of buried things bursting upwards, wordlessly, into the light, as if to say: Whatever is silenced will clamor to be heard, though silently. (Chapter 25)Agreed to it right away, really she didnt care, anything with two legs and a good you-know-what was fine with her. They arent squeamish, they dont have the same feelings we do. (Chapter 33) And Adam was not deceived, but the women being deceived was in the transgression. Notwithstanding she shall be saved by childbearing. (Chapter 34)There is something reassuring about the toilets. Bodily functions at least remain democratic. Everybody shits, as Moira would say. (Chapter 39)The trouble is I cant be, with him, any different than I usually am with him. Usually, I am inert. Surely there must be something for us, other than this futility and bathos. (Chapter 39)It makes me feel more in control as if there is a choice, a decision that could be made one way or the other. (Chapter 41)The crimes of others are a secret language among us. Through them, we show ourselves what we might be capable of, after all. This is not a popular announcement. (Chapter 42)Dear God, I think, I will do anything you like. Now that youve let me off, Ill obliterate myself, if that is what you really want; Ill empty myself, truly, become a chalice. Ill give up Nick, Ill forget about the others, Ill st op complaining. Ill accept my lot. Ill sacrifice. Ill repent. Ill abdicate. Ill renounce. (Chapter 45) Dont let the bastards grind you down. I repeat this to myself but it conveys nothing. You might as well say, Dont let there be air; or Dont be. I suppose you could say that. (Chapter 46)

My Childhood essays

My Childhood essays The experiences of my past are undeniable. It goes without saying that my childhood was more than just a learning experience. These are my greatest memories! This is an essay is not only on my childhood but also about the lessons I have learned throughout my childhood. At the age of 3 or so, my mom and dad moved to the states. My mother, originally from Germany, brought us overseas due to my father who was in the United States Army. I can not tell you what his rank was or pretty much any other detail about him because I honestly do not recall anything of the sort. I remember that at one point and time we lived in Colorado Springs, Colorado. My sisters and I would play outside constantly more than likely because we had a tendency to drive our parents crazy with our wild and rambunctious nature. I recall we would run around in the yard jumping as high as we possible could trying so hard to catch the huge balloons that would float above us. As far as we could tell they were coaxing us begging for our attention! We were willing to give that attention struggling with our minds trying to find some way to get them down. The harder we tried the easier is seemed we were able to fail on that specific attempt. It seemed as though just as we had moved to thi s glorious land we were being forced to move. Feeling as though we had been given the worst punishment in the world, we packed up our possessions and moved away. This landed us into the great land of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. I really remember that city more than others that we had lived in. This is where the evil turkey once lived. I dreaded every day that I had to come face to face with this demonic animal. I would go outside to play and of course my picking on this bird that was four times my size really did not help matters. He would run after me pecking my clothes looking for god knows what and of course I would curl up into a ball begging it to leave...

Correcting an Incorrect Business Email

Correcting an Incorrect Business Email What is the best way to correct an error in an email sent to multiple recipients, if you are listed in the cc: line of that email, along with other recipients? It can be a little confusing, because if you are listed on the cc: line you can assume you are being informed, with no expectation of a response from you. However, the one exception to this rule is when you know the message to be incorrect, requiring you to correct the misunderstanding. If time is not critical, do not reply to all and correct the sender. Instead, email the sender, explaining your correction, and ask him or her to resend the corrected information to the same recipient group. Only if the sender does not correct the message should you alert the group with your correction. If time does not allow you to alert the sender to correct the message, only then should you reply to all with your correct information. And, be kind and phrase your correction clearly but tactfully. This applies in both business email and personal email. I received a message from a friend this morning alerting me and a large group of recipients how to detect a two-way mirror in case we were being spied upon in clothing dressing rooms. Ok, it was silly. Still, my friend who sent this message is well-intentioned and a nice lady. Another recipient replied to everyone, providing a terse message that the sender was incorrect and included a Snopes link (a site which identifies urban legends) refuting her two-way mirror test. This correction was unkind. The corrector should have sent the Snopes link to the original sender and given her an opportunity to make her own correction. Give a colleague or a friend a chance to wipe the egg off their own face, before you throw some more. Master business email in your career in this Email Course.

Common Welfare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Common Welfare - Essay Example One of the first elements that define common welfare is with regards to the fact that the very same values that are used to fulfilling interpersonal relationships are also used towards fulfilling the needs of broader society; namely cooperation, appreciation, democracy, confidence building, and solidarity. With respect to the way in which this would work within and implementation level, it must be understood that this particular aspect of the theory is inarguable and must be accepted due to the fact that it is been proven to work throughout society and to be true as a whole. A secondary core element of this economic and social theory is that a fundamental shift must be made away from seeking profit and dominance within a given market alone. Instead, individuals should seek to maximize the common good. With respect to this particular approach, it must be denoted that this is an idyllic vision of the way in which a business interactions should take place; and one that is unlikely to su cceed in the real world. A third core element of the common welfare approach is the understanding that a regulatory framework is needed in order to encourage the shift away from a competition and profit based approach. This could foreseeable be engaged; however, the costs of implementing such a system, with respect to the lost efficiency that this would necessarily entail, could be massive. A fourth key factor of the theory is that the more effective/better the common welfare is, the more legal advantages will be passed along to the company in question; i.e. lower taxes, reduced customs/duties, loan rates etc. Although this may be true, the ultimate time that would take for the common welfare approach to signify a total and complete change to the entire economy could be far longer than might be expected; thereby leading to a breakdown in the system. A fifth cornerstone that is noted is that the financial balance sheet, the gold standard that has been used to measure success within p revious models, must become a secondary balance sheet alongside the common welfare balance sheet. The difficulty in this is that elements of common welfare are extremely difficult to measure; as compared to their more numeric and quantitative economic counterparts. This calls into question the efficiency or effectiveness of that such an approach could engender. Items 6 points to the fact that once a company is free of the drive to continue to promote profitability, it can then focus upon growing to the optimal size; keeping in mind that this optimal size does not necessarily denote complete domination of the market. The shortcoming that is inherent within this particular approach is the fact that such an approach decreases the incentive that a firm has to continue to provide a high quality of goods/services and merely seeks to survive. Item 7 discusses the way that cooperation and solidarity can become evidenced within firms that espouse the common welfare approach. This may indeed be true; however, once again, the incentive to cooperate and work together to

The Tadic Case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Tadic Case - Essay Example Nonetheless, ICTY has brought about various issues regarding the legality of institution of the international tribunal and its authority. ICTY statutes give concurrent jurisdiction to the national courts as well as the international tribunals1. ICTY, Trial Chamber, Decision on the Defense Motion on Jurisdiction In the case of Prosecutor v. Dusko Tadic, the defense challenged the primacy of the ICTY because there was no basis in international law to give primacy to the ICTY and it generated an infringement upon state sovereignty. The appellant used three reasons to attack the tribunal: unlawful establishment of Tribunal, its illegal dominance over state courts and its lack of jurisdiction2. Tadic argued that the Tribunal was not lawfully established; those who drafted the UN Charter did not envision such a tribunal, the General Assembly did not take part in its creation, the Council did not act in relation to individuals, and there was no threat to peace. According to Tadic, the Tribu nal would not promote peace and a political body could not create a judicial organ. Tadic argued that in establishing such a Tribunal in accordance with the rule of law, the council should have the appropriate worldwide standards; it has to offer the assurances of justice, fairness, as well as evenhandedness in total compliance with international renowned human rights implements3. This led judges to dissent arguing that the ICTY did not have any competence to decide on the issue. ICTY, Appeals Chamber, Decision on the Defense Motion for Interlocutory Appeal After an appeal on the sentencing, the appeal chamber decided that the Tribunal had the authority to articulate the statement that challenged the legitimacy of institution of the Tribunal; it had jurisdiction to determine whether the ICTY was lawfully established (la competence de la competence). The judges also dismissed the challenge to International Tribunal dominance over state-run courts and decided that the Tribunal had jur isdiction of subject matter in the state. In defense to the legality of institution of the Tribunal, the trial chambers decided that there were evidently adequate jurisdiction issues that were open for the Tribunal to determine the issues of place, nature of the offence and the time committed. The chambers decided that the legitimacy of establishing the Tribunal was not a matter of jurisdiction; it was a matter of the lawfulness of its creation. The defense did not have any right to raise the matter of Internal Tribunal primacy over national courts since only a sovereign state that should raise issues related to sovereignty and a person should not put itself in the position of a state in order to challenge the jurisdiction of an international tribunal4. The state is the only one that has the exclusive right to plead violation of the state sovereignty5. Only a self-governing state can raise the appeal or not claim it; the accused did not have any rights to take over the state’ s rights in this case6.The most affected states in this case were the Germany where the accused lived and Bosnia-Herzegovina where the crimes were committed; the two states accepted the International Tri

Animal rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Animal rights - Essay Example The domesticated animals play important roles in the home environment. However, over the years, animals have been mistreated or even treated to cruelty of a vast nature. From the handling of heavy luggage for donkeys to being killed for food, animals have been used in the society for various reasons. In contrast, human rights have been advocated for by several organization until it has been understood by the society. The rights and privileges of animals have been abused and not advocated for because of the inability for animals to stage demonstration against problems facing them (Owen 23).   Man can definitely live without eating flesh foods but the society today has engaged in eating flesh more than the healthier foods provided by nature. The truth is from research conducted plants offer healthier nutrients than the animal proteins. If the research is true the major question remains, â€Å"why do men kill animals†? The question may raise more questions than answer but my pe rsonal opinion is animals can be left to live their lives and still humanity make ends meet.Response oneThe writer covers issues of treatment and provision of the basic needs of the animal. The author highlights and compares the difference between the pet and the animals kept for food. The main contention area is the treatment differences of the pet and the domesticated animals. In conclusion, the author advocated for equal and even treatment of animals.Animals should be handling well and treated with courtesy.