Although I typically write about bullying and cyber bullying with this blog, the psychological factors of causation with individuals who are committing more heinous crimes are eerily similar to those who perpetrate forms of aggression through both types of bullying. Therefore, I would like to share what I have learned.
I just finished reading Stop Teaching Our Kids To Kill: A Call To Action Against TV, Movie &Video Game Violence by Lt. Col. Dave Grossman
and Gloria DeGaetano. Parents,
Guardians, and those entrusted with the well-being of our children, if you
don’t read any other book in 2015, I implore you to read this one!
After hearing Lt. Col. Dave Grossman speak at the California
Association of Marriage & Family Therapists Annual Conference in May 2014, I couldn't wait to get my hands on the second edition of this book (available August 2014). Supported by the latest research as well as by six prestigious organizations – the American
Psychological Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American
Academy of Family Physicians, the American Psychiatric Association, the
American Medical Association, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent
Psychiatry - Grossman and DeGaetano
clearly make the case for “causal
connection between media violence and aggressive behavior in some children”. However, the alarming and deleterious effects
on the psychological, social, cognitive, and physical development of millions of children
who are pervasively exposed to violent movies and TV, and/or who are engaging
in violent video games are thoroughly defined and discussed. What I learned is horrifying. This book is
not an easy read – but it is a MUST read.
Although every chapter of Stop Teaching Our Kids To Kill is incredibly important, I recommend jumping right into Chapter Three – Murder,
Torture, Brutality: Dangerous “Games”, and Chapter Four – The Story I Tell
Myself About Myself. Even with my
background in psychology and my professional experience in the areas if trauma
and abuse, I was blown away by the depth of Grossman’s and DeGaetano’s compelling understanding of the human mind and
how the processes of reconditioning and
re-scripting by exposure to violent
media affect children differently at these developmental stages– ages 3-5; ages
6-10; ages 11- 14; ages 15-18. Parents
or guardians, when it comes to violent media and how it influences and impacts
a child’s psycho-social development and self-identity, the authors explain step
by step how a child’s brain is harmfully “wired and fired”. Just a few of the
terms that are part of the “wiring” include the following:
- Mastery and control
- Operant conditioning
- Desensitization
- Downward spiral
- Wishful identification
- Imitation to identification
Enough is enough! It is time to step it up! It is time to Stop Teaching Our Kids to Kill! Grossman and DeGaetano are ready to
help. Along with a wide range of
resources, the authors provide readers with a plethora of age appropriate
guidelines and practices to incorporate into their parenting.
Get this book! Get it
today!
Let’s all get to work helping our kids live healthier lives!
Lt.Col. Dave Grossman (USA., RET) is an internationally recognized scholar, author, soldier, and speaker who is one of the world's foremost experts in the field of human aggression and the roots of violence and violent crime, As a West Point Psychology professor and professor of military science, Grossman trains medical and health professionals in how to deal with and prevent killing. He is one of our nation's leading trainers of elite military, law-enforcement, and school-safety organizations.
Gloria DeGaetano is an acclaimed media-literacy educator and the author of the award-winning book Parenting Well in a Media Age: Keeping Our Kids Human.As a consultant and university instructor, DeGaetano has trained thousands of teachers, family-support professionals, and parents in media-related issues since 1987.
