The effects of violent media on adolescent inkblot responses: Implicationsfor clinical and forensic assessments

Two experiments were conducted to assess the degree to which violent media stimulate violent fantasy as depicted on inkblot responses. In Experiment 1 , 41 gifted high school students were exposed to a bucolic or violent film clip acid then were asked to produce inkblot responses. in Experiment II, a second sample of 43 additional students were exposed to a verbal descripti on of the bucolic or violent scene to assess whether the "hot" OF "cooler" media (McLuhan, 1964) had different effects on the inkblot responses. In bo th experiments, the media exposure led to increased levels of violent respo nses, and in both cases males produced more violent responses. There was no sex by media interaction effect. Implications for clinical and forensic as sessments are presented. (C) John Wiley & Sons, Inc.