A Meta-Analysis on the Relationships Between Violent Song Lyrics and Aggressive Behavior, Aggressive Affect, Aggressive Cognitions, and Physiological Arousal

Objective: Our objective is to meta-analyze the relationship between exposure to violent song lyrics and aggressive thoughts, aggressive feelings, aggressive behavior, and physiological arousal. To date, no published meta-analysis has examined these relationships. Method: Our literature search uncovered 35 independent studies. We coded several moderators (e.g., tempo, study design, etc.) to examine the ubiquity of violent music lyrics on aggression findings. Results: Our meta-analysis showed that violent music exposure was related to aggression. Moderation tests showed that the construct influenced the overall results-violent music lyrics were related to aggressive behavior, aggressive cognitions, and aggressive affect, while the effect on physiological arousal was unclear. Moreover, neither study design (experimental vs. nonexperimental), publication status (published or not), the tempo of the music, nor publication year moderated the overall effect. Conclusions: In sum, results showed that violent song lyric exposure was positively correlated with aggression, which substantially adds to the body of literature focused on violent media effects.