A paper-and-pencil measure of aggressive resonse was developed to study the effects on children of exposure to television-mediated violence. Using this measure, a series of experiments was conducted using actural television programs as stimulus material. The results of these studies suggest: 1) Although the majority of children understand the motivation and consequences of aggressive acts as they are presented on television, subsequent aggression is more affected by the amount of violence per se in the program than by the way in which the violence is presented; 2) aggression presented as being performed with good motivations may lead to greater subsequent aggression on the part of the viewer than aggression presented as being performed with bad motivation; 3) justification manipulations are effectively transmitted to all viewers, but these manipulations fail to influence the viewer's later level of aggression; 4) temporal separation between event and consequence may make it difficult for young children to see the relationship between aggression and the motivation for and consequences of aggressive acts. A general conclusion from these studies is that children, as they grow up, understand more about the television programs they view, but this understanding doesn't influence their aggressive tendencies. (JY)