Premium
Is Television a Health and Safety Hazard? A Cross‐Sectional Analysis of At‐Risk Behavior on Primetime Television 1
Author(s) -
Will Kelli England,
Geller E. Scott,
Porter Bryan E.,
DePasquale Jason P.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
journal of applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1559-1816
pISSN - 0021-9029
DOI - 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2005.tb02100.x
Subject(s) - psychology , health hazard , hazard , social psychology , occupational safety and health , injury prevention , suicide prevention , relevance (law) , advertising , environmental health , poison control , demography , medicine , sociology , political science , organic chemistry , pathology , business , chemistry , law
Twenty‐four top‐rated primetime television shows were observed weekly during 1997 and 1998 (242 episodes). The study examined behaviors of vehicle occupants; violence and risky sex; and use of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. Findings were compared to studies conducted in the mid‐1980s and 1994. Characters in vehicles were unrestrained 74% of the time in 1998, compared to 73% and 78% in 1994 and 1986, respectively. Violence, risky sex, and substance use were shown in 47%, 29%, and 55%, respectively, of 30‐min intervals observed in 1998. Similar data were recorded in 1994, with some negligible improvements. Results indicated that risky behaviors were rarely followed by punishing consequences, and irresponsible behaviors were modeled on primetime television. The relevance to social modeling and public health is discussed.