THE EFFECTS OF MEDIA VIOLENCE ON AFFECTIV E, COGNITIVE, AND PHYSIOLOGICAL REACTIONS OF VIEWERS

The present study investigated the effects of media violence on affect ive, cognitive, and physiological reactions of viewers. Eighty undergr aduate students (male=40, female=40) participated in the experiment. F irst, subjects were exposed to one of four violent films whose levels of violence and entertainment were based on ratings taken in a previou s study (Yoshida & Yukawa, 1996). Immediately after viewing the film, subjects described their thoughts which occurred during watching the f ilm and rated thier affective reactions toward the film. Heart rate an d eyeblink rate as indicators of physiological arousal were measured c ontinuously before, during, and after the film. Results showed that th e film high in violence elicited more negative and empty-powerless aff ects, while the film high in entertainment evoked more positive affect s.