The Effects of Mediated Exposure to Ethnic-Political Violence on Middle East Youth’s Subsequent Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms and Aggressive Behavior

Abstract

This study introduces the concept of chronic (i.e., repeated and cumulative) mediated exposure to political violence and investigates its effects on aggressive behavior and post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms in young viewers. Embracing the risk-matrix approach, these effects are studied alongside other childhood risk factors that influence maladjustment. A longitudinal study was conducted on a sample of youth who experience the Israeli-Palestinian conflict firsthand (N = 1,207). As hypothesized, higher levels of chronic mediated exposure were longitudinally related to higher levels of PTS symptoms and aggression at peers independently of exposure to violence in other contexts. In the case of aggressive behavior, structural equation analysis (SEM) analyses suggest that, while it is likely there are causal effects in both directions, the bigger effect is probably for exposure to violence stimulating aggression than for aggression stimulating exposure to violence. Both the longitudinal effects on aggression and PTS symptoms were especially strong among youth who demonstrated initially higher levels of the same type of maladjustment. These results support the conceptualization of the relation between media violence and behaviors as “reciprocally determined” or “downward spirals” and highlight the contribution of the risk-matrix approach to the analysis of childhood maladjustment.

Longitudinal relations between trauma‐related psychological distress and physical aggression among urban early adolescents

“…The small effect sizes for the cross‐lagged paths may also be due to potential moderators that warrant further examination. For example, among youth exposed to political violence, initial levels of aggressive behavior moderated the relations between exposure to violence and later trauma‐related distress and aggression (Gvirsman et al, ). This suggests that youth who are highly aggressive may be particularly at risk for increased aggressive behavior after experiencing trauma‐related distress.…”

Children's exposure to violent political conflict stimulates aggression at peers by increasing emotional distress, aggressive script rehearsal, and normative beliefs favoring aggression

“…Previous analyses also showed that greater exposure to political violence in the media was longitudinally related to higher levels of aggression at peers independently of exposure to violence in other contexts (Dvir Gvirsman et al, 2014). In this paper, we elaborate on the psychological processes that account for this relation over time between exposure to political violence and subsequent aggression against peers.…”

Reinforcing Spirals Model: Conceptualizing the Relationship Between Media Content Exposure and the Development and Maintenance of Attitudes

“…A recent study combines adolescent socialization and political conflict issues, examining the impact of repeated and cumulative exposure to political violence in the media on aggressive behavior and post-traumatic stress symptoms in Palestinian and Israeli youth (Dvir-Gvirsman et al, in press). Using longitudinal data ( N = 1207), the authors found that the effect of mediated exposure after controlling for other exposures to violence predicted these negative outcomes, and that the effect from aggressiveness and stress symptomology to selective exposure to violent media content was also present though the weaker of the two relationships.…”

“…Such research might require approaches such as web tracking and unobtrusive measurement. However, as noted, it is possible for ambitious and skilled research teams to collect data in challenging environments exploring these issues (e.g., Dvir-Gvirsman et al, in press). …”