Citation

Eyal K, Metzger MJ, Lingsweiler RW, Mahood C, Yao MZ. Mass Commun. Soc. 2006; 9(4): 399-428.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2006, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1207/s15327825mcs0904_2

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between young people's exposure to media violence and their aggressive political opinions (APO), which were defined as support for positions that involve forceful resolution to social or political issues. Students from 2 U.S. universities completed surveys assessing their APO, exposure to violent media, authoritarianism, trait aggressiveness, political leaning, personal experience with crime, and demographics. Results revealed that violent television exposure significantly predicted several forms of APO above and beyond the control variables. Playing violent video games, however, predicted only a few aggressive political opinions. The results of this study support the reliability and validity of the APO measure, shed light on the relationship between exposure to violent media content and political opinions, and suggest some important differences between television and video game content in the effects process.