SFL 358 Exam Questions With Complete Solutions
1. Critically discuss whether exposure to media violence
influences aggressive behavior. Correct Answers The effect of
media violence on subsequent aggression is JUST AS STRONG
as the effect that smoking has on lung cancer—r=.31! media
aggression=aggressive behavior!—there are over 1,000 studies
that show a link between media violence and aggression,. the
primary characters in children's films (esp. parents) are 3 x more
likely to be killed than in adult films—esp. Disney.
1. Direct, negative experience— Correct Answers (37%) have
exp. with object/person—like wasps;
1. Know all the different rating systems and what they mean.
Some strategies: Correct Answers a. Gatekeepers—Family
Entertainment Protection Act
b. Administrative tone of the current government makes a big
difference---FCC, Fed. Communication Commission--they are
who you write to if there's a problem and they have the power to
fine a producer or network for violated rules
2. Active--prearming Correct Answers have discussion
regarding media w/children and have discussion about what they
are viewing in media; promote children's critical viewing—talk
to kids about modesty, etc. must do this a LOT! What works?
Statements vs. questions—how do you feel if that happened to
you? Age that is best—questions will help at 9-12 but statements
are good at ages 5-8. Be thoughtful how you talk about media to
child;
,2. Describe real-life cases of where life imitated art. Correct
Answers In 1974 the Hi-Fi murders were committed by men
who watched Magnum Force where people were forced to drink
Drano and then they put duck tape over their mouths—these
killers imitated Magnum Force and killed several people this
way
2. Observational learning— (56%) Correct Answers you see
someone else have a negative experience and they have the fear
—like mouse.
2. Ratings Correct Answers the goals of ratings is to provide
info to parents to allow them to make informed decisions about
media content and help them reduce children's exposure to
inappropriate content—the goal is NOT to censor material!
3. Co-viewing or co playing or co reading Correct Answers it
does enhance media effects both positively and negatively;
meta-analysis showed that it increased aggression and time spent
w/the media; video game playing enhanced family relationships;
3. Critically discuss the limitations to the current ratings
systems. Correct Answers a. Ratings creep—ratings creep
means that you're able to get more explicit content in a lower
rating as time goes on; b. in a study w/26 countries, only 2
showed no evidence of ratings creep (Australia and New
Zealand) and only 1 showed rating intensification (Ireland).
b.Consistency--US places an enormous amount of weight on
profanity and sex but less weight on violence than almost all
other countries. Scandinavian countries place the most weight
on violence and least weight on sex; every country has its own
, rating system. inconsistent that you can have pg13 movie w/4 f
words and pretty strong violence but if it goes up to 5 f words
and no violence it is rated R—crazy! c.Incongruence with
scientific research about harm--is it glamourous or awful evil
thing like Schindler's list; d. lack of agreement w/parent ratings
—parents don't agree on what rating things should have e. lack
of publicity and clarity of ratings--people don't understand them;
3. Discuss the research literature on this topic. Correct Answers
a. What media violence can influence: 1. Physical aggression 2.
Aggressive thoughts 3. Aggressive feelings 4. Physiological
arousal, 5. Prosocial behavior 6. Empathy 7. Nightmares 8.
Relational aggression 9. Racism 10. Fear 11 Anxiety 12. PTSD
13. Sleep disturbances. Surgeon General's warning: Jesse
Steinfeld told Congress "it is clear to me that the causal
relationship between exposure to televised violence and
antisocial behavior is sufficient to warrant appropriate and
immediate remedial action. . . there comes a time when the data
are sufficient to justify action. That time has come"—this was in
1972! There have been zero laws passed to control it though!
3. Negative information transfer—(39%) Correct Answers you
hear other people TALKING about things being scary even
though you didn't SEE someone have neg. experience—like kids
talking about going to the dentist.
4. Critically discuss how the media should change in regards to
the portrayal of men and women. Correct Answers Qualitative
study of 50 pregnant or postpartum women—88% said that
media portrays pregnant women as unrealistic. 46% felt
negatively about their body b/c of the media. 3. Messages for
1. Critically discuss whether exposure to media violence
influences aggressive behavior. Correct Answers The effect of
media violence on subsequent aggression is JUST AS STRONG
as the effect that smoking has on lung cancer—r=.31! media
aggression=aggressive behavior!—there are over 1,000 studies
that show a link between media violence and aggression,. the
primary characters in children's films (esp. parents) are 3 x more
likely to be killed than in adult films—esp. Disney.
1. Direct, negative experience— Correct Answers (37%) have
exp. with object/person—like wasps;
1. Know all the different rating systems and what they mean.
Some strategies: Correct Answers a. Gatekeepers—Family
Entertainment Protection Act
b. Administrative tone of the current government makes a big
difference---FCC, Fed. Communication Commission--they are
who you write to if there's a problem and they have the power to
fine a producer or network for violated rules
2. Active--prearming Correct Answers have discussion
regarding media w/children and have discussion about what they
are viewing in media; promote children's critical viewing—talk
to kids about modesty, etc. must do this a LOT! What works?
Statements vs. questions—how do you feel if that happened to
you? Age that is best—questions will help at 9-12 but statements
are good at ages 5-8. Be thoughtful how you talk about media to
child;
,2. Describe real-life cases of where life imitated art. Correct
Answers In 1974 the Hi-Fi murders were committed by men
who watched Magnum Force where people were forced to drink
Drano and then they put duck tape over their mouths—these
killers imitated Magnum Force and killed several people this
way
2. Observational learning— (56%) Correct Answers you see
someone else have a negative experience and they have the fear
—like mouse.
2. Ratings Correct Answers the goals of ratings is to provide
info to parents to allow them to make informed decisions about
media content and help them reduce children's exposure to
inappropriate content—the goal is NOT to censor material!
3. Co-viewing or co playing or co reading Correct Answers it
does enhance media effects both positively and negatively;
meta-analysis showed that it increased aggression and time spent
w/the media; video game playing enhanced family relationships;
3. Critically discuss the limitations to the current ratings
systems. Correct Answers a. Ratings creep—ratings creep
means that you're able to get more explicit content in a lower
rating as time goes on; b. in a study w/26 countries, only 2
showed no evidence of ratings creep (Australia and New
Zealand) and only 1 showed rating intensification (Ireland).
b.Consistency--US places an enormous amount of weight on
profanity and sex but less weight on violence than almost all
other countries. Scandinavian countries place the most weight
on violence and least weight on sex; every country has its own
, rating system. inconsistent that you can have pg13 movie w/4 f
words and pretty strong violence but if it goes up to 5 f words
and no violence it is rated R—crazy! c.Incongruence with
scientific research about harm--is it glamourous or awful evil
thing like Schindler's list; d. lack of agreement w/parent ratings
—parents don't agree on what rating things should have e. lack
of publicity and clarity of ratings--people don't understand them;
3. Discuss the research literature on this topic. Correct Answers
a. What media violence can influence: 1. Physical aggression 2.
Aggressive thoughts 3. Aggressive feelings 4. Physiological
arousal, 5. Prosocial behavior 6. Empathy 7. Nightmares 8.
Relational aggression 9. Racism 10. Fear 11 Anxiety 12. PTSD
13. Sleep disturbances. Surgeon General's warning: Jesse
Steinfeld told Congress "it is clear to me that the causal
relationship between exposure to televised violence and
antisocial behavior is sufficient to warrant appropriate and
immediate remedial action. . . there comes a time when the data
are sufficient to justify action. That time has come"—this was in
1972! There have been zero laws passed to control it though!
3. Negative information transfer—(39%) Correct Answers you
hear other people TALKING about things being scary even
though you didn't SEE someone have neg. experience—like kids
talking about going to the dentist.
4. Critically discuss how the media should change in regards to
the portrayal of men and women. Correct Answers Qualitative
study of 50 pregnant or postpartum women—88% said that
media portrays pregnant women as unrealistic. 46% felt
negatively about their body b/c of the media. 3. Messages for
