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February, 2025

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Does exposure to violence desensitizes people to violence?

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SmotSmoke
Posts: 599 - Karma: 2,728
I am wondering whether the exposure to violence(media or real world) causes people to be more desensitized to violence in the real world. I think it does, and the reason being is when first movies came out everyone who saw the first western movie thought they were being shot at and freaked out ducking, hiding or running out of the theater. Those were grown people. When I was 6 I used to be scared of violent movies. My parents would never let me watch them but occasionally I would see a a person get shot or killed.

Is the reason that children are scared of violent movies because they haven't been exposed to much violence? And as they grow up they slowly are exposed to violence through media so much so they are capable of seeing that movie that they once were incapable of watching?

What do you guys think? I am not saying the media makes people more violent, just that people become more used to the actions of violence around them because of the media.
12 years ago
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skiierman
Posts: 28699 - Karma: -5,563
Umm... yes? Why would you think otherwise? That's what people do, they adapt.
12 years ago
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SmotSmoke
Posts: 599 - Karma: 2,728
Yeah man, I am just wondering if thats the reason younger kids can't handle violent movies, or violence in general real. For example if you took a person and made them experience no forms of violence until age 21 would they react scared like todler, obviously they would have more control over their emotions.

If anyone has a good link or paper about this stuff I would like to read about it.
12 years ago
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SmotSmoke
Posts: 599 - Karma: 2,728
that is if the 21 year old is exposed to a violent act.
12 years ago
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Joebin
Posts: 1664 - Karma: 867
I think it just depends how impressionable the person is.
12 years ago
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Zimmerman
Posts: 6992 - Karma: 1,021
Yes of course. When something gruesome happens or is seen by people and they ask how I can handle it, I simply reply: "I'm from the internet."
12 years ago
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Charlie_Kelly
Posts: 11955 - Karma: 12,302
Does a bear shit in the woods?

Do I shit in the woods?
12 years ago
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987321654hgfd
Posts: 5133 - Karma: 5,447
Hahahaha so true.

Example I have is showing my friends the Budd Dwyer video. I personally think it's very mild when it comes to gore videos, but they seemed to disagree and couldn't watch the whole thing.
12 years ago
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gotti
Posts: 4269 - Karma: 4,552
Is the pope a child molester?
12 years ago
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Mr.Luke
Posts: 2441 - Karma: 166
Absolutely. But it's a good and bad thing...

In case of war and/or tragedy, people may be able to adapt more quickly to the violent circumstances they are put under. Possibly, just my insight
12 years ago
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SFB
Posts: 8895 - Karma: 26,358
no every year on your birthday you instantly become a little more desenstizied to it.
12 years ago
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Caspaaa
Posts: 4830 - Karma: 1,466
Violence and gore are two very different things.

Through exposure via the internet, news (not common), images, videos, etc... it is possible to be desensitized to gore; however, violence is a little bit different.

Yes, I have seen many videos of people dying on the internet or in history class or in the most random places. Regardless, I don't think I would be mentally prepared if I were to physically witness someone dying, let alone someone being killed by another person. I think the adrenaline would definitely factor in and therefore so would other things like shock. Maybe I would be able to watch longer than my friends because of the amount of gore I've seen on the internet, but I wouldn't know how to respond better than any of them.

On another front, just because kids play Call of Duty all day does NOT mean that they could take a human life in war. Not at all, don't even bother trying to tell someone that.
12 years ago
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SkiBladeHero
Posts: 41 - Karma: 36
I threw a man down a flight of stairs into the subway on Monday for stepping in my shoe as he passed me, does that make me insensitive? NO it makes me a god damn man who needs clean shoes for his meeting at 3:30.
12 years ago
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SmotSmoke
Posts: 599 - Karma: 2,728
I understand that there are differences between witnessing the real thing.

Movies are meant to draw you in, like you are there experiencing or witnessing a the content just a couple feet away. Movies are meant to make you experience the emotion of the characters. I think that this effects how we view violence. I saw a person when I was 15 shoot them self in the head. I was shocked when it happened but I wasn't going around screaming. There is probably more to it as in growing up and becoming more mature but I still feel that media affects how people react to violence. Every day on my local news they talk about a shooting, murder, rape. The news is so depressing. When the fact is rape and murder isn't all that is happening out in the world.
12 years ago
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Caspaaa
Posts: 4830 - Karma: 1,466
Movies =/= real thing. As for your witnessing a suicide, when shock sets in you don't say anything. The first thing to happen in a situation like that is the adrenaline kicks in, you feel jumpy, running around, wanting to get help.... then shock could take over and you become calm, shaky, and quiet. I'm not saying you went into shock but seeing someone shoot themselves in the head is not real violence in the way we've come to understand the word. Violence would be witnessing someone else shoot someone in the head, being placed in a situation in which multiple people are fighting, being placed in war, or being placed in a situation in which you need to defend yourself. That would be violence and I don't believe that anything except for being in those exact situations can prepare you for future situations like them.

Also I disagree with the age and maturity idea. Obviously it is more shocking to a child to be placed in a violent situation than it is for a person in his 20's to be placed in the same situation; however, it makes no difference if I am 20 or 40 if I have had no violent experiences in between those two ages.

Media does affect how people react to violence, but it does not prepare them at all. In fact, media never truly shows the violence despite the constant discussion about it. Media is there to assure the public that they are going to be O.K. while also reporting to the public what has happened.
12 years ago
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