2. • Thedefinition of thiseffect isthat “the
copycat effect refersto thetendency of
sensational publicity about violent murdersor
suicidesto result in moreof thesamethrough
imitation”.
• Thisreflectstowardsthe“copycat crime”
theory (how peopleareeffected through
imitation).
3. • Whilst theideaof watching afilm is
often linked to negativebehaviour
very littleresearch hasbeen doneto
test thisassertion.
• It isatheory that ismaintained by
thepressrather than research
• Examples: Power Rangersmight
makekidscopy thekicks
4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_alleged_Natural_Born_Killers_copycat_crimes
In December 1992 four peoplewho tortured and killed a16 year old girl, SuzanneCaper, were
said to beinfluenced by oneof theChild'sPlay movies. Furthermoreduring thetorturing of the
girl theperpetratorstaunted her with quotesfrom themovies.
In 1993 Jon Venablesand Robert Thompson, who abducted and murdered atoddler named
JamesBulger, weresaid to havebeen influenced by thefilm Child'sPlay 3.
Thesupposed link between themurder and thefilm wasdenied by film censor James
Ferman.Thiswasalso denied by thetwo boys. According to arelativeof two boysaged 10 and
12 who brutally attacked anine-year-old and 11-year-old boy in Edlington, South Yorkshirein
April 2009, theattackerswatched horror movies, including Chucky films, from theageof about
six or seven
5. • Oneof thereasonstheideaof copycat behaviour hassuch
power isthat parentsdo report anxietiesabout their
children’sbehaviour
• Of all thestrategiesavailableto parentsto teach their
children good habits, theadviceto limit television seems
oneof themost achievable.
• Short term behavioural changesareeasy to observebut if
achild copies, for example, power rangerskicksat six
yearsold, doesthismean they will do thisall their lives?
6. • According to theresearch based on copycat crimes, it is
stated that most of thepeoplewho commit crimesmimic
what they haveseen in themedia(especially from news
and violent movies)
• In most cases, thesepeoplehavehad previouscriminal
records, previousseveremental health problemsor
historiesof violencewhich suggeststhat theeffect of the
mediaisindirect (moreaffecting criminal behaviour)
rather than direct (directly affecting thenumber of
criminals)
7. TheBritish Board of Film Classification (BBFC), originally British
Board of Film Censors, isanon-governmental organisation, funded by
thefilm industry and responsiblefor thenational classification of films
within theUnited Kingdom
Video gameswith specific themesor content (such astheGrand Theft
Auto series) must also besubmitted to theBBFC
All filmsand video gamesrated by theBBFC receiveacertificate,
along with "consumer advice" detailing referencesto sex, violenceand
coarselanguage.
