By Lesego Masemola
It is far too simplistic to blame the media alone for violent behaviour of pupils at schools, a number of behavioural experts said on Wednesday.
They say parents are the first line of defence to combat violent crimes on school grounds. But continued exposure to violence on TV, in video games and in the media was not good for children.
This was in responce to this week's incident when a sword-wielding, masked youth killed a fellow pupil at the Nic Diederichs Technical High school in Krugersdorp.
"One must never forget the role that personality, parents, friends and teachers play in the development of violent behaviour. This situation is usually much more complex and cannot be placed at the feet of the media alone," said Lynne Granwell, a psychologist at the Tshwane University of Technology in Pretoria.
Dr Christiaan Bezuidenhout, a lecturer at the department of social work and criminology at the University of Pretoria, said the media helped to contribute to factors which could lead to violence in schools. But other elements, including emotional and psychological factors, played a much bigger role.
He added that parents were not sufficiently involved in their children's lives, which left children isolated and led to them seeking role models in the wrong places.
"Too many parents are spending time at work and less time with their kids," he said.
He said this left the youth feeling out of place with no direction and guidance.
In many cases youngsters felt angry and isolated and turned to music, playstations and movie characters, looking for role models there in an attempt to fit in.
"Many children in our country come from broken homes where there is violence, abuse and no structure of support. The moral values are compromised. Children tend to reach out to get a type of identity they feel comfortable with, something they cannot find at home.
"Musicians and movie stars, for example, become their role models and they will copy and express what they stand for," he said.
Elise Fourie, a counselling psychologist in Pretoria, said parents should be concerned if their children wanted to spend many hours at shopping malls. "What kind of a responsible parent allows their children to be at a mall for the whole day without supervision?
"Why are we not spending time with our children, taking an interest in what they like? Why are we neglecting them instead of guiding them, teaching them the difference between right and wrong."
She said the media could help to address the insecurities of emotionally vulnerable teenagers.
"Our youth are emotionally needy; they are afraid and very angry.
"We have a sick society that is creating fear in our children - such as the violent crime we see in our country.
"There is a lot of anger across all races which creates a deep sense of intolerance towards people."
She said the youth were not optimistic about the future and tended to blame others.
This was why violent attacks occurred at school. "It has come to a point where teenagers are so disgruntled that they lack respect for human life."