In 1982, the National Institute of Mental Health (1982) issued a report entitled Television and Behavior which reviewed the over 2,500 available studies on television viewing and its effects on human development and behavior. Among many other issues, the report looked at the influences of television on attitudes, values, and beliefs, and found substantial evidence that people's attitudes and behaviors concerning violence, race, and gender, sexuality, consumerism, and many other things could be significantly influenced by how much and what they watched on television. Its authors also conclueded that television had become a major socializing agent in this country.
Available from Hampton Press, Social Learning from Broadcast Television is an edited book which explores issues surrounding the effects of broadcast television on socialization.
