More Violence in PG-13 Movies

The Annenberg Public Policy Center recently reported that the Motion Picture Association of America's (MPAA) rating system has allowed more violent content into movies rated PG-13 but continues to limit sexual content more strictly.

In 1984 the PG-13 category was developed to warn parents about films with content that might be inappropriate for youth under age 13, but today those movies include more violence. In fact, they contain the same amount of violence that used to get rated "R" for adult only and violent movies are the top grossing films of the last decade!

There is a growing concern about the impact of repeated exposure of youth to potentially harmful content. Although there seems to be some debate about it, there is extensive research documenting that exposure to violence increases violent behavior. In fact, adolescents are the most likely to commit violent crimes and the biggest consumers of the violent movies!

On the other hand, research suggests that youth who are well informed about sexuality and its risks and have an adult they can talk to about anything, are less likely to become sexually active until they are adults. Go figure!

Photo credit: darkpatator

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