A study in the August issue of Pediatrics ties viewing of pro wrestling to violent behavior in kids.
According to a story in SLAM! Wrestling, the study “found that 63% of the boys and 35% of the girls watched wrestling during the survey periods, and 25% of the boys and 9% of the girls watched six or more times. The study found that for both sexes, a greater frequency of watching wrestling was associated with higher rates of problem behaviour … [Also] girls who watched wrestling six or more times over the two-week period had a 170% higher chance of starting a date fight than those who didn’t watch wrestling. For boys, there was a 77% higher rate.”
WWE issued the following response here:
World Wrestling Entertainment® (NYSE: WWE – News) issued the following statement today in response to a study documented in the August issue of “Pediatrics”:
“We find the study flawed and ridiculous and we are contemplating legal action.”
Additionally, WWE posted a more detailed response from Vince McMahon on WWE.com’s main page:
“We regret that this seven year old junk science was re-issued. It was junk science then, and is junk science now. It took them seven years to get someone to actually read it and it hasn’t even been subjected to a peer review. There is nothing new in the study, and we think it is recycled garbage put forward by some obscure professor who finally got someone to read his paper and is trying to get his name in the media.”
Also on WWE.com are links to the study and to this Media Life Magazine article that quotes a Syracuse University professor’s “debunking” opinion.
