Understanding Psychology (10th Ed)

Study Alert
The concept that “correlation 
does not imply causation” is 
a key principle.
FIGURE 1
If we fi nd that frequent 
viewing of television programs with 
aggressive content is associated with high 
levels of aggressive behavior, we might 
cite several plausible causes, as suggested 
in this fi gure. For example, (a) choosing to 
watch shows with aggressive content 
could produce aggression; or (b) being a 
highly aggressive person might cause one 
to choose to watch televised aggression; 
or (c) having a high energy level might 
cause a person to both choose to watch 
aggressive shows and to act aggressively. 
Correlational fi ndings, then, do not permit 
us to determine causality. Can you think 
of a way to study the eff ects of televised 
aggression on aggressive behavior that is 
not correlational?
Possible Cause 
Potential Result 
High viewer aggression 
High viewer aggression 
High viewer aggression 
Choosing to watch 
television programs with
high aggressive content 
Choosing to watch 
television programs with
high aggressive content 
Choosing to watch 
television programs with
high aggressive content 
Unusually high 
energy level 
(a)
(b)
(c)
Many studies show that the observation 
of violence in the media is associated 
with aggression in viewers. Can we 
conclude that the observation of 
violence causes aggression?
feL82795_ch02_030-057.indd Page 40 21/07/10 1:29 AM user-f463
feL82795_ch02_030-057.indd Page 40 21/07/10 1:29 AM user-f463
/Volumes/202/MH00543_r1/hin73516_disk1of1/0073373516/Access_Archive/hin73516_...
/Volumes/202/MH00543_r1/hin73516_disk1of1/0073373516/Access_Archive/hin73516_

---