Analyzing Media Violence Impact: A Comparison of Bandura & Livingstone

This essay provides a comparative analysis of the studies conducted by Bandura et al. (1963) and Livingstone et al. (2014) concerning the effects of media violence on children. It highlights similarities such as the evaluation of disturbing content, a child-centered approach, the study of children, and the use of participant blinding techniques. Key differences include the research design (experimental vs. qualitative), the specific variables assessed (media violence vs. broader disturbing content), the age groups studied (preschool vs. older children/adolescents), sample sizes (small vs. large), and the time span of the outcomes (short-term vs. long-term perceptions). The essay concludes that while both studies offer valuable insights, their differences, particularly in methodology and subject demographics, necessitate considering results from both perspectives for informed policymaking and parental guidance in mitigating the harmful effects of media violence.

Running head: EFFECT OF MEDIA VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN
EFFECT OF MEDIA VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN: SIMILARITIES AND
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN STUDIES CONDUCTED BY BANDURA AND LIVINGSTONE
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1EFFECT OF MEDIA VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN
Introduction
Children are exposed to a wide variety of explicit content leading to the consideration of
the effects of such content (Cocker et al. 2015). This essay assesses the similarities and
differences between the studies conducted by Bandura et al. (1963) and Livingstone et al.
(2014), on the effects of media violence in children.
Discussion
Similarities
One of the key similarities is the common evaluation of the effects of disturbing content
in children. This was evident through the usage of a television recording of an adult as well as
fantasy model in Bandura’s experiment, which performed the disturbing act of violence (Fikkers
et al. 2016). As observed in Livingstone’s study, the research involving conductance of a survey
also aimed to assess key characteristics of internet content which children found to be disturbing
(Livingstone et al. 2014). The studies were also similar in their adherence of a ‘child centered
approach’. The experimen by Bandura focused on the observation of the effects of media
violence on children, by providing them the freedom to play as per their wish with available toys
(Anderson and Bushman 2018). As observed in Livingstone’s experiment, a child centered
approach was evident in which the responses written by the child subjects were hidden from
researchers and parents, without the presence of any adult influence (Livingstone et al. 2014).
Another similarity was the type of populations studied, which included children. Another
similarity observed is the presence of participant blinding. Blinding is an essential technique of
avoiding participant exposure and awareness of the rationale behind an experiment for the

2EFFECT OF MEDIA VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN
removal of participant bias and errors (Redaelli et al. 2018). In the experiment performed by
Bandura, the children were kept unaware that their actions were being observed, evident by the
usage of a one way mirror by the researchers for the purpose of observation (Anderson and
Bushman 2018). In the survey performed by Livingstone, the children were asked to hide their
responses in an envelope, which were also kept hidden from adults such as parents and
researches (Livingstone et al. 2014).
Differences
One of key differences in the nature of research design utilized in both the studies. The
conductance of Bandura’s experiment involved an experimental study, as evident from the
observation of violence and aggression in children as a response to three distinct experimental
setups outlining projection of violent behavior (Fickers et al. 2016). The experiment conducted
by Livingstone was qualitative and observational in nature, as evident from the usage of a survey
assessing children’s views on what they view as ‘disturbing content’ in the internet (Livingstone
et al. 2014). The type of variables assessed also form a key distinction between the two assessed.
Bandura’s experiment focused specifically on the effect of media violence on children.
Livingstone on the other hand, focused broadly on the perceptions of disturbing content over the
internet, of which, media violence was evaluated as one of the any coded outcomes of the survey
(Livingstone et al. 2014). Both the experiments were distinct in the age group of the children
involved. Bandura studied mainly preschool and primary school children within the age group of
3 to 6 years (Fitzpatrick et al. 2016). The experiment by Livingstone, surveyed older children as
well as adolescents within the age group of 9 to 16 years (Livingstone et al. 2014). While both
the experiments outlined a similarity of effects of disturbing content such as media violence in
children, differences in characteristics of the subject groups suggest the lack of similarity in

3EFFECT OF MEDIA VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN
practical application of the results obtained, since children and adolescents posses varied needs
and interest as per their age distinctions. The sample size was also a major distinguishing feature
of both the experiments. Bandura’s experiment utilized a total of 96 children whereas
Livingstone’s research involved a total of 10, 000 children as the chosen subject group
(Livingstone et al. 2014). This is a major distinguishing factor since large sample size reflects
greater validity of results obtained, due to its similarity to the population, hence adding a major
advantage to Livingstone’s experiment. However, a large sample size increases susceptibility of
heterogeneity, greater generalization and increase presence of experimental error due to the lack
of control over confounding variables (Emerson 2015). This is a major difference observed
between the two studies, since the smaller sample size by Bandura led to successful management
of confounding variables of aggression and gender of the children as well as the model, whereas
Livingstone’s experiment yielded a wide variation of responses, based on the gender as well as
the racial profile of the children (Livingstone et al. 2014). Lastly, an additional distinction
between the two studies is the time span associated with the outcomes. While Bandura assessed
the immediate short term effects of media violence on children, Livingstone’s survey assessed
long term children’s perceptions of disturbing content such as violence, which had accumulated
overtime (Livingstone et al. 2014). While Bandura’s experiment was one of the first of its kind
evaluating the effect of media violence during a time when television viewing was gaining
popularity, Livingstone’s survey assessed internet content, and hence, was reflective of the
today’s technological scenario of increased virtual media exposure (Livingstone et al. 2014). In
order to produce conclusive and valid findings, a research must not only focus on short term as
well as long term evaluation, but must also produce a thesis statement relative to the current
situation or scenario (Leung 2015). While both experiments successfully adhered to research

4EFFECT OF MEDIA VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN
methodologies relevant to the question, there were key distinctions in the nature of time
commencing from the evaluation of the results.
Conclusion
It can be concluded that, despite the presence of similarities, the studies performed by
Bandura and Livingstone also possess key differences. We must consider results obtained from
both due to the varied scenarios evaluated. Parents as well as early childhood and educational
policy makers must consider results from both studies in their attempts to reduce harmful effects
of media violence during formulation of new frameworks or programs.

5EFFECT OF MEDIA VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN
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