Violence

Violence

Violence is part of our daily lives and always has been. Every day when we watch TV, listen to the radio or read the papers, we learn about acts of violence. When we look at the explanations that have been thought up to explain violence, we find three main types.

Violence is an instinct which we all have. Violence is necessary for survival. Some psychologits say that energy will and courage are forms of violence. If violence is an instinct it will always be with us. The only thing we can do is to find harmless ways of acting out our violence, such as sports competitions.

Violence is something that we learn. We hear about violence, see it, experience it and imitate it. If violence is the result of a learning process, this means, of course, that we can get rid of violence if we want to.

Another theory says that violence is the result of frustration. When we do not get what we want we become frustrated, and this frustration leads to aggressive behaviour. Because people will always experience frustration, aggression will always exist. However people often learn not to hurt others but to take it out on things, for example to slam a door. Unfortunately, some also pass on their frustration.

I think in the family and in schools is the biggest influence on attitudes to violence. And i recommends tighter controls on early evening television, and better labelling on videos to enable parents to have better control of their children´s viewing.

The key to a non-violent society is in family life. Childrens brought up in a safer way are likely to grow into non-violent adults. Also there is a link between the increase in violence on the screen and violence on the streets. This is because it 'de-sensitizes' people to violence, and children in particular are no longer shocked or horrified by it.