Have South Africans become desensitised towards violence?
One could argue that because the media portrays it, we as citizens somewhat become used to witnessing violence. But should something like this be the norm in society?
Listen as KZN shares their view on the topic in the podcast, then read more below:
Have you ever sat up and noticed how overly keen kids seem to be to watch movies or play games that involve killing animated people with animated machine guns? If you watch them, it’s almost as though they get so engrossed that their faces come within inches of the screen. However it seems that it's not just kids, but adults too.
It’s not just in South Africa, but all across the world, people are constantly bombarded with gruesome images on a daily basis. So often than not, we see violence being depicted in newspaper, movies, social media and even on television. It would appear that we cannot avoid it.
I bring this up because the other day, I was chatting to a work colleague and she brought up a really good point about how we are gradually desensitising toward violence.
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She asked me: 'Are we turning a blind eye to violence? Have we become numb to violence, abuse, and emotional trauma?'
It really got me thinking. While violence is something that we simply cannot ignore, the media bombarding us with gruesome images does not make it any better.
According to a report published by National Institute of Mental Health, psychologists have said that children may become less sensitive to pain and could even become more aggressive if they are exposed to violence at a young age.
Read: Schools – are they becoming places of violence and weeping?
So if those are the reported effects on children, can you begin to imagine what it's doing to adults who find themselves on social media being exposed to violence and trauma almost on a daily basis?
Do you think we've become desensitised toward violence? I'd love to know what your thoughts are.