Experts: Violence begets violence, whether from real life or reel

PETALING JAYA, March 28 — The unbridled, uncensored materials available online are not the only factors that impact younger generation in their actions and perceptions.

Children who bully their peers are more likely to have been exposed to various factors that shape their violent tendencies.

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia psychology lecturer Dr Suzana Mohd Hoesni said a family history of violence was one of the major contributors to a child’s psyche.

“Children are also largely moulded by their environment. While violent content in mass media is easy to blame, the child’s family background is also important,”
she said.

“He or she might be exposed to violence within the household at an early age which would have dire effects on their psychology.”

According to Suzana, peer pressure also affected how growing teens react to their surroundings.

“At nine years old, some children are phasing towards late childhood to early teenhood. They are largely motivated by building a self image and more attentive to how their peers perceive them,” she said.

“In some group bullying cases, those who participated might be pressured or even bullied to join the act. However their participations also emboldened those who intend to hurt others.”

This follows the incident where an eight-year-old boy was bullied into cutting his own tongue in fear of being beaten up by five nine-year-old tormentors in Bukit Tinggi, Klang, last Friday.

Universiti Sains Malaysia social psychology professor Dr. Intan Hashimah Mohd Hashim said young minds were more likely to replicate actions they saw in the media.

“Kids nowadays associate more easily with personalities on screen than real life people. By imitating their ‘heroes’, they view their actions acceptable among their peers, not knowing fully they are hurting someone in the process,” she said.

“They are also more prone to behave in aggressive or harmful ways toward others and become less sensitive to the pain and suffering of others.”

According to Intan, limiting children to an ever-evolving mass media would not help in reducing violent tendencies.

“By clarifying or dismissing extreme content in the media such as violent material, it contributes to their moral gauge which helps children maneuver safely into young adults,” she said.