From Spiderman to Batman, children everywhere look up to superheroes and their special powers to save the world from evil.
But research suggests ‘the good guys’ may be setting youngsters a worse example than villains like Batman’s Harley Quinn and Joker.
Superheroes perform on average 23 acts of violence an hour compared to just 18 every 60 minutes for their bad guy counterparts, a study found today.
And the researchers worry this may make children think brutal acts like murder are acceptable, as they urge youngsters not to ’emulate these perceived heroes’.
‘Children and adolescents see the superheroes as “good guys”, and may be influenced by their portrayal of risk-taking behaviors and acts of violence,’ lead author Dr Robert Olympia, from Pennsylvania State University, said.
Spiderman is among many superheros admired by children the world over. But research released today suggests they may be more violent than their evil villain counterparts
Margot Robbie played villain Harley Quinn in the 2016 film Suicide Squad. Quinn first appeared in Batman comics as the accomplice and occasional lover of the bad guy Joker
The researchers analysed ten superhero films released in 2015 or 2016.
Lead characters were classed as either ‘good guys’ or ‘bad guys’. The study’s authors did not name the superheroes and villains they looked at.
The scientists then assessed the different type of violent acts the characters did in the movies.
Although hailed as the good guys, results found superheroes can be seen fighting a total of 1,021 times across the ten films.
Their next biggest acts of violence are the use of a lethal weapon and the destruction of property, which they did 659 and 199 times, respectively.
And superheroes even committed murder 168 times and torture 144.
In contrast, the bad guys used a lethal weapon 604 times, fought 599, inflicted torture 237, destroyed property 191 and murdered 93 times.
The results also found male characters are nearly five times more likely to be violent than female ones with 34 aggressive acts an hour versus just seven.
The study will be presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics 2018 National Conference & Exhibition in Orlando.
Lynda Carter famously played a bombshell version of the superhero Wonder Woman in a 1970s TV series of the same name. The character is a founding member of the Justice League
The late Heath Ledger played Joker in the 2008 Batman movie The Dark Knight and described the character as a ‘psychopathic, mass murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy’
To balance the negative influence superhero films may have on impressionable children, study author Professor John Muller recommends families watch them together and discuss what happens.
‘Co-viewing these movies as a family can be an effective antidote to increased violence in superhero-based films,’ he said.
‘In passively co-viewing violent media, there is an implicit message that parents approve of what their children are seeing.
‘And previous studies show a corresponding increase in aggressive behavior.’
And Dr Olympia even thinks medics should play a role.
‘Pediatric healthcare providers should educate families about the violence depicted in this genre of film and the potential dangers that may occur when children attempt to emulate these perceived heroes,’ he said.
This comes after research released by Duke University last year suggested children’s movies may be fueling the obesity crisis as nearly all films aimed at youngsters feature unhealthy food.
The 2015 SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water features several scenes in the American-style restaurant Krusty Krab, with overweight diners feasting on burgers, which causes their chairs to collapse beneath them.
In the Pixar movie Inside Out from the same year, a father is trying to feed a toddler broccoli for the first time, which she knocks off the table. When he threatens her with no dessert, she throws a tantrum.