Video link in violence chain

Violent videos do not make young people violent, it is violence that makes them enjoy watching violent videos, a Home Office Study has revealed.

As reported in The Independent last week, a study by Birmingham University commissioned in the aftermath of the Jamie Bulger case has found no simplistic pattern of behaviour where young men watch violent videos and then carry out aggressive or violent acts.

Instead the study suggests that the link between poor social background and delinquent behaviour extends to a taste for violent films. The report concluded: "The research points to a pathway from having a violent home background, to being an offender, to being more likely to prefer violent films and violent actors."