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WEDNESDAY, May 19 (HealthDayNews) -- Graphic photos of gunshot victims' wounds may help change youths' attitudes about aggressive behavior, says a Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions study.
The study included 97 boys and girls, aged 7 to 17, in East Baltimore. During an initial survey, researchers assessed the youths' attitudes about conflict, including their likelihood to act violently.
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The children were then shown explicit images of patients treated for gunshot wounds. The photos included one of a man whose abdomen was ripped open by a bullet and another of a woman whose 8-month-old fetus was killed when she was shot in the abdomen.
In a follow-up survey of 48 of the children, researchers found a significant reduction in the youths' beliefs supporting aggression and also found some evidence the youths would be less likely to use violence to settle conflicts.
"Our study suggests that the kind of romanticized version of violence shown on television can be countered by more frank and open discussions and displays of what violence really does to the body," study co-author David C. Chang said in a prepared statement.
"If you give at-risk youth a true picture of violence, it does change their attitudes, beliefs and intentions regarding aggressive behavior," Chang said.
The study was presented recently at the annual meeting of the Black Academic Surgeons in Washington, D.C.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about teen gun violence (www.safeyouth.org ).
--Robert Preidt
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