THE IMPACT OF MEDIA VIOLENCE IN ACTION FILMS TOWARDS YOUTH’S PSYCHOLOGY AND BEHAVIOUR

Abstract

Malaysia is a melting pot of cultures and a country that consists of various ethnic groups and races that live
together in the similar surroundings. However, the similarity between every race is that most individuals
view action fi lms as merely a form of entertainment and get away from stress. Action fi lms have become
a popular genre among youngsters these days. The long hours of television viewing have contributed
to this fact. Youngsters of the current generation are exposed to the negative eff ects of media violence
in action movies due to their social activities in which they are consumed by the media itself. These
eff ects have a great impact on our society that regarding their perceptions and thoughts about the world.
Many researchers have studied similar social issues, and several theories have been picked to support
the central objective of the research. Thus, this research intends to study the impact of fi lms exhibiting
media violence towards potential viewers regarding their behaviour and personality and examine the
role of action fi lms depicting extensive violence and brutality in creating distorted perception among the
college youths regarding social reality. Additionally, the research focuses on examining the popularity and
preference of the movie KL Gangster, representing the action genre in the Malaysian cinema industry
among youths and the extent of imitation of violent actions portrayed in action fi lms among potential
viewers in their daily lifestyle. Furthermore, the research also intends to examine the relationship between
imitation, preference, behaviour and personality with the eff ects exerted by depictions of media violence
in action movies on the perception of youngsters.

Anak muda generasi sekarang terdedah kepada kesan negatif keganasan media dalam fi lem tindakan
disebabkan oleh aktiviti sosial mereka di mana mereka dikonsumsi oleh media itu sendiri. Kesan-kesan
ini mempunyai kesan yang besar kepada masyarakat kita dari segi persepsi dan pemikiran mereka
tentang dunia. Ramai penyelidik telah mengkaji isu sosial yang sama dan beberapa teori telah dipilih
untuk menyokong objektif utama penyelidikan. Oleh itu, kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji kesan
fi lem yang menunjukkan keganasan media ke arah penonton yang berpotensi dari segi tingkah laku
dan keperibadian mereka dan mengkaji peranan fi lem tindakan yang menggambarkan keganasan dan
kekejaman yang meluas dalam mewujudkan persepsi yang menyimpang di kalangan golongan muda dari
segi sosial realiti. Selain itu, kajian ini menumpukan perhatian untuk meneliti populariti dan keutamaan
fi lem KL Gangster, yang mewakili genre aksi di industri perfi leman Malaysia di kalangan belia dan sejauh
mana tiruan terhadap tindakan ganas yang digambarkan dalam fi lem tindakan di kalangan penonton
yang berpotensi dalam gaya hidup seharian mereka. Selain itu, kajian ini juga bertujuan untuk mengkaji
hubungan antara tiruan, keutamaan, tingkah laku dan keperibadian dengan kesan yang ditunjukkan oleh
gambaran keganasan media dalam fi lem tindakan mengenai persepsi golongan muda.