Soon to be published research into media influences on antisocial behaviour claims to show that even after controlling for factors such as academic skills, encounters with community violence, or emotional problems, preferences for violent media in childhood and adolescence is a significant predictor of violence and aggression. The research by the aptly named Paul Boxer and his colleagues will be published next February (2009) in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence.

How do minor behavior problems and experiences early in life lead to serious acts of violence in teenagers? A group of researchers has found that the answer may lie in a cascading effect in which early life experiences lead to behaviors and new experiences that lead to yet other experiences that culminate in serious violent behavior.

A new study has added to the growing body of evidence that exposure to media, such as TV affects people's behaviour. Albert Bandura's Social Learning Theory suggests that behaviour is learned by observing role-models either through media or in real life. Whether the behaviour is imitated depends on several factors, including the observed outcome for the model. Many TV programmes only depict the positive consequences of sexual behaviour, so it is not surprising that this new research commisioned by the RAND corporation found that American adolescents who have high levels of exposure to television programs that contain sexual content are twice as likely to be involved in a pregnancy over the following three years as their peers who watch few such shows.

According to Henri Tajfel, the mere existence of groups is enough to cause prejudice. Tajfel's Social Identity Theory proposes that being a member of a group and comparing your group more favourably than others (even if this is not justified) increases the self-esteem of group members. This means that individuals who are personally unsuccessful can maintain a positive self-image by allying themselves with a successful group. But what about members of unsuccessful groups? New research from psychologists from the University of California, Davis, groups that engage in pompous displays of collective pride may be trying to mask insecurity and a low social status.