Effects of media violence on children topic of bullying conference

The effects of media violence on children and what parents and teachers can do about it is the focus of this year’s annual conference sponsored by the Alberti Center for Bullying Abuse Prevention, to be held from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 2, at the Millennium Hotel, 2040 Walden Ave., Cheektowaga.

Keynote speaker for the annual conference is Douglas Gentile, who will present on the effects of media on aggression. Gentile, associate professor of developmental psychology at Iowa State University, will discuss psychological theory and research that has demonstrated short- and long-term effects of media violence on children, adolescents and adults.

Gentile will review the research and demonstrate how using a public health risk or resilience approach can allow us to cut through the rhetoric to achieve a deep understanding of the effects of media violence.

“Everyone seems to have an opinion about the media and violence,” says Amanda B. Nickerson, director of the Alberti Center for Bullying Abuse Prevention and associate professor in the Department of Counseling, School and Educational Psychology, Graduate School of Education.

Nickerson says Gentile, an award-winning researcher, educator and author, “develops and conducts research designed to give parents and other caregivers the kind of information they need and want to make informed media choices for their children. His presentation promises to be both engaging and enlightening.”

The conference also will feature poster and paper presentations on such topics as social media and bullying, aggression in young children, bullying and disabilities, humane education, relational aggression, creating safe spaces for LGBTQ youth, bullying in young children, social media and cyberbullying, and the Dignity for All Students Act legislation.

Presenters will include UB faculty and graduate students, as well as researchers and practitioners from across the state.

Those wishing to attend are asked to register online by Sept. 29. For more information, contact Brie Kishel at 716-645-1532 or alberticenter@buffalo.edu.