violence
... other people than of children who watched less when younger. The way children perceive violence is much different than that of adults. When children watch violent scenes, they know that they are watching make-believe scenes, yet their brains process the images as “real”. Children viewing excessive amounts of violence, store these images in their long-term memory. Finally, television is easily accessible, but there are other types of violent entertainment that are even worse. Music is just as violent as any other form of entertainment. Music is important and prominent in adolescent lives. The average teenager spends four to five hours a day listening to music, and prefers listening to music as his or her non-school activity. That is why parents, researchers, and government officials are concerned about the impact of music on young people. Teens contribute to the atmosphere of violence that is influenced by music. Some claim that music negatively effects teenagers by repeatedly exposing them to harsh themes, such as murder, suicide, drugs, and sexual violence. Negative images are then heavily reinforced and normalized by the simple rhymes being sung by “idols”. Heavy metal and rap music are especially noted for lyrics that many believe glorify violence. Teenagers are listening to music lyrics with increasing explicit material. Songs commonly make graphic references to sex, drugs, and violence, which are sung by famous musicians that young children respect and idolize. Musical lyrics need to be toned down, cleaned up, or at least cleverly disguised. Video games; however, are perhaps the most influential source of violence for children. There are many side effects of engaging in interactive violence. Researchers claim that when children play video games, aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behavior may increase. Children are being taught that violence is okay because they are earning points to kill people, blow things up, and steal. Violent video games may be more harmful than violent television or graphic lyrics because they are interactive and require the player to identify with the aggressive ch...