The Influence of Watching News on Depression and Anxiety Issues

Information about the world can be gathered in a variety of ways today, from browsing the Internet to reading the newspaper. Many people however watch the news on television. Research shows that fear and other negative emotions are associated with watching news broadcasting. Furthermore, it has been proven that media creates depression and anxiety in its viewers. Several recent studies have attempted to answer the question of to what extent the news creates a sense of fear.

As noted by Fisher, Allen, and Allen (2004), a broad range of people watch the news.

The researches aimed to find contributing factors to fear. However, no significant difference of fear between groups was found, such as those who live alone compared to those who do not. The study was constructed through a variety of surveys, which were then used to compare gender, age, and frequency of viewing. However, the results of gender found no notable differences. Several studies have addressed the effects that different news stations have had on individuals.

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For example, Morris (2007) confronted the question of is there slanted aim in news and politics. In his study, participants were grouped by the networks which they watched to gain news. In order to gain information in Morris' study, surveys were given through telephone. Individuals were asked how news was obtained, and if it were through television, how frequently those stations were watched. Additionally, the participants were asked about their outtakes on the world after watching the news. The findings showed how different stations effected viewers differently.

For instance, those who watched Fox news showed a higher percentage of fear and pessimism in world view.

Another article by Unz, Schwab, and Winterhoff-Spurk (2008) found similar findings. It was hypothesized that TV viewers would feel more negative feelings and anger when watching intentionally violent news and more sadness and fear would be felt when watching unintentionally violent news (p 143). Two studies were conducted: facial expressions were documented as participants watched a news segment and personal surveys were administered after the completion of viewing. Through this research, the researchers learned that more negative feelings were expressed due to watching the news. The main behaviors expressed were anger and contempt, but fear was not a major feeling expressed. In other words, the authors discovered that news viewing was positively correlated to negative emotion, but not fear specifically.

Similarly, Smolei and Kivivouri (2006) looked into the fear of crime expressed in individuals who read the news/tabloids and watch news on the TV. The authors hypothesized that different stations had different effects on fear. In the study the researchers learned that those exposed to a variety of media showcasing recent crimes were more likely to gain a fear of violence. It was also learned that those who are unemployed show a stronger fear. Information was gathered by taking a sample of 163 individuals aged 15 or older in Finland. They were given the Finnish National Crime Victimization Survey. They found that those who watch the news are more likely to be worried about crime happening outside their homes. Concluding their study, Smolei and Kivivouri found that reading tabloids is “connected both with avoidance behavior and with high levels of worry about becoming a victim of violence” (p 220).

Comparably, McNaughton-Cassill (2001) conducted research to explore the anxiety and depression caused by negative news media. He predicted that greater news media would directly relate to higher levels of anxiety and depression and that irrational beliefs and pessimism would contribute. 74 men and 165 women participated, in which they were asked a variety of questions: how much television they watched, how frequently they listened to the radio, and read the newspaper. They were then administered a questionnaire assessing life stress. In this study, it was found that news media exposure, as well as irrational beliefs greatly contributed to anxiety. The study also found that negative stress in life combined with watching the news was the most significant effector of depression.

While illustrative, the studies reviewed above fail to answer the question of whether or not exposure to news broadcasting has more of a negative effect on females compared to males in college. To address this gap in the literature, the purpose of the current study will be to determine whether or not gender differences in the extent of fear caused by watching the news. If so, this study will describe those differences: whether it is anxiety or depression that is induced from the news, and how extensive they are in males and females. In order to find the answers, college-aged participants will fill out a survey to determine their current state of mind, as well as fear, anxiety, and depression caused by the news. The hypothesis for this research is that female college students who watch the news will report higher levels of negative emotion than men.

Method

Participants

Participants were male and female college students aged between 19 and 22 who were attending University. The sample consisted of 7 men (26%) and 16 women (74%) for a total sample size of 23. They were not discriminated by major, year in school, income level, or their racial backgrounds. Nor were they discriminated by current depression, anxiety, or fear.

Measures

Participants were given a self-report questionnaire and were required to answer a variety of inquiries for the study. There was an ordinal base to determine answers to questions presented in rank order with a scale from zero to five. Questions presented were voluntarily answered to disclose how the news was obtained by participants, as well as how fearful, anxious, and depressed the news made them. For the questions themselves, see below in the Appendix.

Procedure

Students were recruited through fliers and through the Psychology department Sona system. Incentive to complete the questionnaire was given through extra credit if participants completed the questions through the Sona system. Additionally, participants were selected based on meeting participant requirements. Questionnaires were filled out and individuals remained anonymous. All participants were treated in accordance with APA ethical guidelines.

Results

Descriptive statistics for all study variables are shown in Table 1 and Table 2 below in the tables and figures. Correlational analyses showed that fear and anxiety scores were not correlated to how many hours participants watched the news on average per week. However, the analyses showed that there is in fact a correlation between depression scores and how many hours of the news were watched, r=1.66, p= .497.

An independent samples t test showed no significant difference from depression (M=2.636, SD=1.50), fear (M=1.50, SD=1.22), and anxiety (M=1.86, SD=1.32) from hours watched either.

Discussion

The purpose of this study was to examine the gender differences in anxiety, fear, and depression caused by watched the news. The first hypothesis was that women would report higher levels than men and the second hypothesis was that those who watched more news would rate higher in the three categories. The data collected showed that there was no significant difference between men and women's scores, nor was there any significant correlation between how much a participant watched the news and anxiety or fear. Yet there was a significant correlation between how many hours the news was watched and depression. Interestingly enough, the study done by Fischer, Allen, and Allen (2004) found similar results: that there were no significant difference in fear from those who live alone and those who do not. Past research has been able to consistently find significant correlations and differences from participants' news watching habits and negative emotions, so my research differs from those studies. For example, a study by Morris (2007) found that which news station participants watched did contribute to the level of fear and pessimism. My study was strong in the fact that it was naturalistic and required little interference because it was quasi-experimental. The questionnaire itself was also strong and reliable because it did not have the risk of observer drift. There wasn't a pre and post questionnaire either, just one straight up questionnaire for participants to answer.

However, there were limitations to my study. My results are not generalizable to the population as a whole. Those who participated were all Salem State students, the majority of which specifically being sophomores. Massachusetts is also a fairly liberal state and the outlook on news is much difference here in New England than it would be somewhere else like the Midwest. Additionally, since my study was done with a very specific set of groups and with a relatively small amount of participants overall. Because of this, there is a good chance that my results may be curvilinear correlations and I just did not have enough results to truly show anything significant.