Violent Media Exposure and Its Effects on Overall Empathy in Pakistani Gen Z University Students

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to highlight the link between violent media consumption and overall empathy. With the rise of violent content in different forms of media like video games, movies, social media and TV shows, and the ease in accessibility of this content, concerns have started to rise about the potential impact of this type of content on our emotional sensitivity and emphatic responses. A sample of 30 Pakistani generation Z university students was selected through purposive sampling to fill a questionnaire through google forms. This study follows a quantitative, correlational and cross-sectional research design. Violent media exposure was measured through the Content-based Media Exposure scale (C-ME), and overall empathy was measured using the Interactive Reactivity Index (IRI), by measuring the scores of Perspective taking and Emphatic Concern, and then adding them together. Desensitization Theory (Bushman & Anderson, 2009) and Empathy Erosion Hypothesis (Bushman & Anderson, 2009) were used as the framework for this study since they clearly explain how repeated exposure to violence may reduce emphatic responses. A weak positive correlation between violent media consumption and overall empathy was found (r = .14) through Pearson correlation in this research which was not statistically significant (p = .45). To better understand this relationship, it is suggested that other researchers may be done focusing on different age groups and demographics in the Pakistani context.

Keywords: violent media exposures, empathy, Pakistani, generation Z university students, desensitization, empathy erosion.

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18393450