Research: The Effects Model

I did some research on the Hypodermic Model also known as the Effects Model.

Experiment:
- Children watched a video where an adult violently attacked a clown toy called a Bobo doll
- The children were then taken to a room with attractive toys that they were not permitted to touch
- The children were then led to another room with Bobo dolls
- 88% of the children imitated the violent behaviour that they had earlier viewed. 8 months later 40% of the children produced the same violent behaviour
- The conclusion reached was that children will imitate violent media texts

Key examples sited as causing or being contributory factors are:
- The film 'Childs Play 3' in the murder of James Bulger in 1993
- The game 'Man Hunt' in the murder of Stefan Pakeerah in 2004 by his friend Warren LeBlane
- The film 'A Clockwork Orange' (1971) in a number of rapes and violent attacks
- The film 'Severance' (2006) in the murder of Simon Everitt

People are clearly influenced by media texts, however because you watch violent texts doesn’t mean that you’re going to act out violent acts.

This is a very controversial experiment, which depicted that children who viewed violent media texts would then go and act violent behaviour but because there were many flaws in this experiment the conclusion is still just a theory.

- In each case there was a media and political outery for the texts to be banned
- In some cases laws were changed, films banned and newspapers demanded the buring of films
- Subsequently in each case it was found that no case could be proven to demonstrate a link between the text and the violent acts

The effects model contributes to moral panics whereby:
- The media produces inactivity, makes us into students who want to pass their exams or 'couch potatoes' that make no effort to get a job
- The media produces violent 'copycat' behaviour or mindless shopping in response to the advertisements

- It is still unclear that there is any link between the consumption of violent media texts and violent imitative behaviour
- It is also clear the theory is flawed in that many people do watch violent texts and appear not to be influenced
- Therefore a new theory is necessary
- This is called: The Uses and Gratifications Model