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Could nursery rhymes cause violent behaviour? A comparison with television viewing
1Emergency Department, Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, Bristol, UK. daviespatrick@hotmail.com.
Archives of Disease in Childhood
|November 24, 2004
Summary
Nursery rhymes contain significantly more violent scenes per hour than pre-watershed television. This suggests childhood violence is complex and not solely attributable to media exposure.
Area of Science:
- Child Psychology
- Media Studies
- Sociology
Background:
- Concerns exist regarding the portrayal of violence in children's media.
- Pre-watershed television programming and traditional nursery rhymes are common sources of early childhood exposure to content.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively compare the rates and nature of violence in nursery rhymes versus pre-watershed television.
- To provide data for understanding children's exposure to violence from different media sources.
Main Methods:
- Data on British television violence were obtained from Ofcom.
- Three researchers analyzed 25 nursery rhymes for violent episodes, categorizing type and occurrence.
- A fourth researcher's reactions to recited rhymes were observed, though findings were inconclusive.
Main Results:
- Pre-watershed television had 4.8 violent scenes per hour, with 51% of programs containing violence.
- Nursery rhymes exhibited a higher rate of 52.2 violent scenes per hour.
- Violence in rhymes included acts, consequences, law-breaking, and animal abuse, with 41% containing some form of violence.
Conclusions:
- Childhood violence is a long-standing issue, not solely a modern phenomenon.
- The impact of visualized versus imagined violence depends on child's age and storytelling.
- Attributing childhood violence solely to television is an oversimplification, potentially diverting focus from broader societal issues.