THE EFFECTS OF PORNOGRAPHIC MATERIALS ON YOUTHS

CHAPTER ONE

1.0       INTRODUCTION

• BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

This study “The effects of pornographic materials on youths” aims at identifying the influence of pornographic materials on the youths, with particular emphasis on the on the youths, with particular emphasis on the youths in two Nigerian Tertiary institutions. The study will be able to ascertain whether the widely hole view that pornographic materials do have adverse effects on the morals and behavior of youth is true or not.

 

However, this study will be narrowed down to pornographic films only. In view of the foregoing films began in the minds of people who came long before the film pioneers themselves. In attempt to capture and recreate motion can be traced to when civilization began, then cave drawings, which showed a horse with eight legs, the fleeting arrow from a hunter’s bow and even carefully detailed drawing of kings with on foot outstretched to suggest a walking motion.

 

Bitner J. R. (1989) said that history is somewhat  not clear as who deserved glory of inventing still motion pictures, but that Willias Dickson and Thomas Edison, were associated with the effects to move. George Eastmans contribution in photography beyond the world of still pictures from still cameras. He further said that it was from Edison laboratories that workable motion picture were realized and by 1891, Edison had constructed a crude motion picture studio workshop with headquarters in West Orange, New Jersey. The studio started the commercial motions picture industry in America. The studio was a Tarpaper shack dubbed “Black Maria” a series of very short films on such a Chinese Laundry followed the Black maria.

 

The films were shown in large contraption called a kinetoscope parlors became popular viewing area housed in everything from building to store fronts which were converted into rooms, where dozen of machines were wired up for paying patrons. Thomas Edison (1897), the inventor, was interested in improving on his devices and moving any produce from the shelf to the market place. He later introduced a new projector and took patent on the camera. His oversight, however allowed two brothers “The Lumiere” from France to develop their own system of motion pictures.

 

The earliest forms of pornographic film were seen in France during the 1920s. the development in France brought about furore and all sorts of condemnation from the public. For instance Louis Delluc cinema practitioner and also a French man said that the exhibition of such pornographic films contributed to melancholy, fatal condition, social and other negative attitude among the people.

Down here in Nigeria, pornographic films started pervading our country in the late sixities and become more rampant in the early seventies. Today pornographic films have become so prevalent, have access to them with reckless abandon.

 

Most of these pornographic films if not all are smuggled into Nigeria irrespective of the laws that are meant to check such excesses.

 

Nigeria, having a population of some one hundred million inhabitants and considerably greater economic cultural and human resources than most other African countries are often considered to be one of the foremost black nations. The  film industry in Nigeria, has come a long way and tends to be chocked up by the old structure of the colonial period. On one hand and carried forward by independent energetic and innovative producers/directors/distributors on the other hand. The production of films in Nigeria is comparatively very limited and the commercial careers of most of these films are often limited, although the Nigeria audience, like the African audience in general loves watching films.

 

There is no doubt that television and video films have reduced cinema theatre attendance for security reasons and also because it is more comfortable. Nigeria now prefer to stay at home  in front of their screen sets than to face the discomfort of most cinema houses and the risk of being robbed in the street and parking lots at night, only mainly tough guy’s go to cinema houses in Nigeria.

 

“Film” according to Black African’s greatest film producer Ousmance Senibene to stress that “A film is but a drawing belt, a vehicle that conveys an idea and by this, we will see that communicating knowledge and ideas, help people make their own decisions about the environment they live in. most times people send a variety of message with more than one meaning or trying to convey a meaning, but are understood the other way.

 

Moreso, film is categorized under mass media. Therefore, associated with the enormous influence and overwhelming effects of the mass media. To buttress this, Walter Lippman (1922) also said that the media do not only tell the people what to think but also what to think about. He went further to say that the media shape the picture in our heads.

 

Invariably, the force behind the influence of the media in any society lies essentially in the structure of their message system, that is, the range of values. Attitudes, taste views and perspectives which are routinely emphasized, projected and extolled through the media as desirable notions of what is important and right features of human social existence. But the critical issue here is that the mass media especially audio – visual, which constitute the main stream of this research, are accused of carelessly allowing some measure of their products to have negative impact on their various audience in the course of discharging their primary and secondary responsibilities to their mass user.

 

Consequently, audio – visuals or films have received greater share of this accusation because of their intriguing uniqueness as media, which employ both sights and sounds, furthermore, many media experts have emphasized on the capability of films in communications.

 

However, the social psychologist refused to help blames on mass media or films for high incidence of violence crime, rape and sexual pervasion among others in our society, instead they blamed it on what they described as social process. They counted that in this process, the most important influence on our values, attitudes and behavior are the small primary group to which we all belong, they list such primary group as family, peer group, church among other as having greater and more lasting impact on our lives and attitudes and behavior than the influence of films or media. In other words, they insist that media should not carry the entire blame for social vices like crime, sexual abuse, violence etc, which we witness and experience in our daily lives, they hold the view that they are anifestation of what the society itself constitutes and not on expression of what the people have seen, heard or read in the media.

From above, one can then argue and perhaps strongly, that exposure to a number of youths particularly of these attitude of youths are already relatively deep seated. The main thrust of the argument is that existing predisposition are at work before the during the youths exposure to media or films and that they in fact, largely determines the communication  to which the individual is exposed to what he/she remembers of such communications, how to interpret their contents and the effects which the media messages will have on him/her.

 

Many researcher conducted by some scholar however still refuse the above notion. For instance  Mac bride Etal observed;

 

“Modern communication, which disseminates unfamiliar, vivid, absorbing information and entertainment originating in urban centers and more accompanied by negative influence which can dramatically disturb established orders.”

 

Undoubtedly, these mixed feelings prompted this researchers to embark on this academic odyssey in order to ascertain the effects of pornographic films on youths.

 

Inferentially, there is no consensus of opinion on the power and capabilities of pornographic films or media to propagate sexual abuse, crime, violence etc., among youths by ways of projecting such message to them. The stand which one takes on this issue depends on individual perception and indeed, preposition towards the controversial topic. But the air of this research is to investigate this issue scientifically keeping emotion aloof.

 

That is to find out if there is any relationship between youths exposure to media portrayals of pornographic films and sexual pervasion/abuse among the youths.

• STATEMENTS OF RESEARCH PROBLEM

 

Undoubtedly, social scientist who are interested in the study of mass media particularly films effects have been involved in the efforts to find out the relationship between media and anti – social behavior like crime, violence, sexual pervasion, abuse and rape, among others. There has been series of other researches and counter researchers which show that audio – visual media can be described as an all powerful, all pervasive and all manipulative medium capable of producing the most vociferous outburst through the portrayal of pornographic, violence, and other immoral alts.

 

Therefore, this project is geared towards ascertaining if sexual crimes pervasion and abused among the youth could be attributed to their exposure to pornographic film.

 

 

 

• OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

 

The study in question is very important to the Nigerian society especially now that we witness,

 

1. To find out the various reasons why youths responds or practice.
2. To determine the extent to which the youth responds or practice behavior acquired from viewing pornographic films.
3. To proffer useful suggestions and recommendation in this area of study.

 

1.4       SIGNIFICANT OF THE STUDY

The study in question is very important to the society especially now that we witness all sorts of negativistic tendencies among our youths. Therefore, the researcher holds the view that there do exist significant effects of pornographic films on youth.

Moreover, the youth constitute an essential fragment of every family and society. Consequently, the society and government in particular should pay a lot of attention to all issues affecting the welfare of the youth. The effects, which pornographic films have on youth, constitute one of such issue if not checked, such effect of pornographic film are likely to influence the youth to be along negative line, for instance indulging in sex abuse and pervasion.

 

The significance of this study therefore is as follows:

 

1. to examine how pornographic films negatively affect the youth so that the government and society at large can control and eradicate them.
2. To ascertain how effective the various existing laws aimed at controlling pornographic film have been faring in the responsibility assigned to them.
3. To find out if the sexual pervasion among the youths could be attributed to their exposure to pornographic films.
4. To contribute to the knowledge already existing in this area of study.

1.5       RESEARCH QUESTION

 

• Do audience exposure to pornographic films have effects on them?
• Do pornographic films tends to prompt to youth to replicate what they have viewed.
• Can sexual pervasion/abuse that are prevalent in our society today, among the youth be related to their exposure to pornographic films?
• Do youth exposure to pornographic films have negative or positive effect on them?

 

 

 

 

• RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

 

H_I :      Audience exposure to pornographic films has some effects on them.

H₀ :      Audience exposure to pornographic films does not have effects on them.

 

H₂ :      Pornographic films prompt the youth to replicate what they have viewed.

H₀ :      Pornographic films do not prompt the youth to replicate what they have

viewed.

 

H₃ :      Sexual pervasion and abuse among the youth  are related to their exposure

to pornographic films.

H₀ :      Sexual pervasion and abuse among the youth are not related to their

exposure to pornographic films.

 

H₄ :      Audience exposure to pornographic films have negative effects on them.

H₀ :      Audience exposure to pornographic films do not have negative effect on

them.

 

 

 

1.7       CONCEPTUAL AND OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS

 

The variables for this study “The effects of pornographic material on youth are conceptually defined as follows.

 

EFFECTS CONCEPTUAL DEFINED

The conceptual definition of effect is the impression produced on the mind of a spectator, bearer, reader, viewer etc.

 

EFFECT OPERATIONAL DEFINED

The operational definition of effects is as follows positive effects;

• Neutral effects
• Negative effects
• Positive effects : This refers to those effects which are in line with the accepted societal standard and values or which tend to encourage the development of the youth along this line
• Negative effects : This refers to those effect which discourage the youth from developing along  accepted societal standard and values. Several types of behavioral and emotional responses of a relative or anti – social nature of youth may be associated with exposure to pornographic films.
• Neutral Effects : This refers those effects which are neither positive nor negative. It is a condition whereby exposure to pornographic films do not have any effects on youth.

 

PORNOGRAPHIC MATERIALS CONCEPTUALLY DEFINED

The conceptual definition of pornographic materials are the representation of erotic behavior in books, pictures, statues motion pictures etc. That is intended to cause sexual excitement.

 

 

PORNOGRAPHIC MATERIAL OPERATIONALLY DEFINED

The operational definition of pornographic material are films that are made solely for sexual arousement and featuring and explicit sexual acts.

 

YOUTH CONCEPTUALLY DEFINED

A person who has the quality or characteristics of the young e.g. youthful freshness or vigour, youthful wantonness, folly or rashness, youthful appearance or aspect.

 1.8      LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

This research basically will focus on the effect of pornographic films on youth. The study will be restricted within two Nigeria tertiary institution, due to time constraints, lack of logistics and financial problem.

The study will dwell exclusively on pornographic films alone. Under this dispensation, pornographic film are the explicit portrayal or exhibition of sexual acts on television films, cinema films and film that have such orientation. On other words, the media that will be involved in this research are audio/ visual only.

• ASSUMPTIONS

In determining the effect of pornographic materials on youth, this research makes the following assumptions;

 

• That the youth in question are normal and are not mentally retarded and can also reason properly
• That the youth are expected to and do not view pornographic films.
• That the pornographic films on media and to which the youth are exposed to either, directly or indirectly affect them.
• That the youth are not isolated in that they live in any environment and at the same time be exposed to other stimuli that can effect them.

NOTES

1. Opubor E. A. amd Nwaneli E. Onuora : “The Development and Growth of the film Industry in Nigeria, Lagos, third press international (1995).
2. Wimmere D. Rofer and Dominick r. Joseph, mass media

Research United state of American, A Division of wardsworth         incorporation (1983)

1. Ebo J. Stella  Mass media and society, Enugu ACENA Publisher (1996)
2. Muller H. Gilbert, The Mc Graw – Hill Reader, United State Chicago, AC

NELSON Company (1996)

1. Segun Olusola (1995)    The Indigenous Film maker

Anartical  January 16, 1984

1. Usman Jimada (1990) Documentary film as a medium of Nigeria film

industry.A paper presented at the national film festival seminar, University of Jos, 1986.

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