IntroductionThe researcher has chosen to investigate the topic music and violence. The reason for this is simply to gather information necessary in allowing him to cross another social bridge in his life. Music has always played an integral role in his development as when in times of confusion he has always been able to find the answer in music. It is his belief that music has also played an important role in the life of others in particular the persons in his community. The task however is evaluating whether the role is positive or negative.

Problem StatementThe influence of Dancehall musicians and their lyrical content is a contributory factor to the high crime rate in a particular underdeveloped community (Ghetto) in Kingston Central.Statement of ProblemIt is believed that a prevalent practice of crime doers in this particular community to listen to violent music before embarking on acts of mayhem. The lyrical content of the music they listen convince them it is not necessarily morally wrong to commit violence but a part of the natural cycle for the continuation of life. Value of ResearchThe impact of Dancehall music on gang members is an evident issue in the community so this research is of great importance as it aids to provide ways to help persons who partake in these violent acts understand what these effects have on their lives. It also seeks to raise the awareness about the issue and recommendations for the possible solutions. This study is also a requirement in fulfilling Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (C.A.P.E.), as it contributes to the final grade of the researcher.

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Definition of Key Terms Dancehall Music- Thisis a genre ofJamaicanpopular musicthat originated in the late 1970s. Integral- Necessary to make a whole complete. Lyrical- expressing the writers emotion in an imaginative or beautiful way. Violence- the intentional use of power against someone with a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death or Psychological harm. Murder- Killing of another person without justification or valid excuse. Gully Side- this is a group linked with the artiste Movado. Gaza- a group linked with the artiste vybze kartel. Garrison- A body of troops stationed in a particular location. Interdisciplinary- combining or involving two or more academic disciplines.

Literature ReviewMusic, as defined by the Oxford dictionary, is vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) combined in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony, and expression of emotion. Violence according to the Oxford dictionary is behaviour involving physical force intended to hurt, damage or kill someone or something. Therefore it can be concluded that violent music refers to any vocal or instrumental sound which encourages or causes harmful reactions.The main focus will be on dancehall music which appears to have the most significant impact on social behaviour in Parade Gardens. The majority of artistes who are glorified in dancehall history sing lyrics that exalt violence and violent behaviour. Prime examples in dancehall music include the incarcerated Adidja Vybz Kartel Palmer, Sheldon Aidonia Lawrence, Earlan Alkaline Bartley and Rodney Price more popularly known as Bounty Killer.According to the Jamaica Observer (Feb 8, 2010 pg. 6) the upsurge in crime during 2009 is attributable to the lyrical feud between dancehall camps the Portmore based Gaza and the Cassava Piece based Gully. The lyrical feud was made physical after a Canadian couple was brutally beaten by Gaza supporters after they were seen glorifying music signifying an allegiance with the Gully side at a Gaza event. Other incidents of fighting, stabbing and shooting were also reported in garrison communities such as Waterhouse, Waterford, Parade Gardens, Waltham, Cassava Piece and Tivoli Gardens (West Kingston).It should be noted that the persons who brought the physical aspect of the feud into play are from volatile garrison communities. Why is this? Anthropologist of social violence, Dr. Herbert Gayle believes the majority of persons who use violence to show their allegiance are victims of inadequate social development. All human beings have a need to belong. The poorer your socio-economic background the greater this need to belong is manifested. Pledging and proving their allegiance to the side gives them the identity as a member of a unified body Dr. Gayle stated in The Sunday Gleaner (Oct 25, 2009). Music is an expression of ones emotions. When naive, under socialized members of society are exposed to violent music and the opportunity to formulate identities from gangs they grasp these opportunities. The end result is often disastrous (Dr. Laehcim Semaj).Psychologist Dr. Laehcim Semaj (2009) attests to the fact that music can influence behaviour and believes society is now bearing the fruit of the seeds sown by Mavado and Vybz Kartel. He was quoted in the Gleaner as saying Music has the power to influence social behaviour. It is a tool that should not be taken lightly. In more recent situations we have seen persons being influenced by the homophobic lyrics sung by dancehall artist, have taken it upon themselves to act upon them. In an article posted in Urban Islanz May24, 2014 The author states the reports of increase in gay murders in recent years and contrastingly relating these reports to dancehall.

Data Collection SourcesThe aim of this research is to find out the influence of Dancehall musicians and their lyrical content is a contributory factor to the high crime rate in Parade Gardens.In order to obtain the information, twenty (20) questionnaires were issued to the community members. In this research, non-probability sampling was used. Whereas, the sample was not chosen randomly, and no assumption was made as to which the average of the sampling distribution was equal to the average of the sample chosen. In the case of questionnaires, Purposive Sampling was used in order to obtain the accurate information needed to complete the research. In this case, the sample was drawn purposively.Primary and Secondary sources were used to gather information regarding this study. The information gathered from the primary source provides the researcher with first-hand evidence concerning the crime rate within Parade Gardens. It also gives the researcher a clear view of each individuals opinion of the reason for the crime rate.Questionnaires provided a quick and efficient way to collect data, it guarantees anonymity and can be used to research a large number of persons. It allows data to be sorted and summarized quickly for reporting and analysis. However, this method is difficult to assess the motives of the respondent, they may respond in a way that they think would please the researcher and so may not be truthful. They are limited in the kind of responses received and ambiguous statements cannot be clarified.The material gathered from the secondary source such as The Caribbean Studies: An Interdisciplinary Approach, along with others, helps the researcher to support and develop ones own ideas and to collect data for the literature review and the discussion of findings. The different articles reviewed help the researcher to obtain wider view points of the content of the study, and guides one in the literature review and the discussion of findings. It also helps one to look for insightful comments from other writers. Internet source also helps the researcher to obtain factual statements or incidents of violence attributable to music.

Presentation of Data

Fig. 1

Figure 1 above shows the gender of the persons that took part in the survey. Fourteen (14 or 70%) of the respondents were male. Six (6 or 30%) of the respondents were females.

Fig. 2

Figure 2 above shows the music preference of the respondents. Seventeen of the respondents prefer dancehall music. Two of the respondents prefer Hip-hop/Rap music while one person prefers R&B/ Souls music.

Fig. 3 Artiste Preference of RespondentsArtisteNumber of Respondents

Vybz Kartel6

Mavado3

Alkaline4

Aidonia4

Bounty Killer2

None1

The table above shows the artiste preference of the respondents. Six persons prefer Vybz Kartel. Three persons prefer Mavado. Four persons each prefer Alkaline and Aidonia. Bounty Killer is the favourite artiste of two of the respondents while one person indicated that he did not have a favourite dancehall artiste.

Fig. 4

Figure 4 above shows what the respondents believe artiste can do to reduce crime in Jamaica. One person believes that artistes can campaign against crime. Three persons believe artistes can stop glorifying violence. Five persons believe if artistes release cleaner songs the can help to reduce crime. Eleven of the respondents think artistes can do nothing to reduce crime because they cannot be blamed for crime.

Fig. 5

The respondents were asked if they think music has the ability to influence actions. Fourteen persons responded that yes music is powerful enough to influence actions. Six persons believe there is a possibility that music can influence peoples action. No one responded that music cannot under any circumstance influence actions.

Analysis of Data

Figure 1 shows the gender of the persons that took part in the survey. Fourteen (14 or 70%) of the respondents were male. Six (6 or 30%) of the respondents were females. This is because males in the community are more interested in dancehall music, to be exact the Gully and the Gaza feud.Figure 2 shows the music preference of the respondents. Seventeen of the respondents prefer dancehall music. Two of the respondents prefer Hip-hop/Rap music while one person prefers R&B/ Souls music. This means that the majority of respondents prefer dancehall music. Figure 3 shows the artiste preference of the respondents. Six persons prefer Vybz Kartel. Three persons prefer Mavado. Four persons each prefer Alkaline and Aidonia. Bounty Killer is the favourite artiste of two of the respondents while one person indicated that he did not have a favourite dancehall artiste. It is important to note that all of these artistes glorify violence in their music. Figure 4 shows what the respondents believe artistes can do to reduce crime in Jamaica. One person believes that artistes can campaign against crime. Three persons believe artistes can stop glorifying violence. Five persons believe if artistes release cleaner songs the can help to reduce crime. Eleven of the respondents think artistes can do nothing to reduce crime because they cannot be blamed for crime. This means majority of the respondents do not believe artistes should be blamed for the violence in the community and by extension Jamaica.Figure 5 shows how influential respondents believe music is on violence. Fourteen persons believe music is influential on violence in the community. Four persons believe there is a possibility that music may influence the cause of violence in the community. No respondents felt like music was influential on violence in the community.The respondents were asked if they think music has the ability to influence actions. Fourteen persons responded that yes music is powerful enough to influence actions. Six persons believe there is a possibility that music can influence peoples action. No one responded that music cannot under any circumstance influence actions. Clearly all the respondents believe music is influential.

Fig. 6

Fig. 6 shows what respondents believe causes physical altercations in their community. Seven (7) persons believe political violence causes altercations. Eight (8) persons believe music causes more altercations while four (4) persons believe personal conflict causes more physical altercations. One person left the question blank.

Discussion of FindingsComment by rbailey: REMEMBER that in this section you are COMPARING YOUR results with the literature Review. You should also compare your findings with your starting point i.e. Your research questions.Then you can have a discussion.You cannot introduce new material in this section.After the questionnaires were collect and the data was put together there were some interesting finding from the responses. One of the major findings is that the respondents believe artistes through their music cannot be blamed for the violence being experienced in Parade Gardens. Minister of Security Peter Bunting recently spoke at a forum in New York City where he claimed that Vybz Kartels music is responsible for 50% of the crime being committed in the parish of St. James including scamming. He also stated at a conference in Liguanea that there are four essential factors causing the deterioration of Jamaica and Vybz Kartel is one of them. The result from the questionnaire however contradicts these statements. Eleven of the respondents (55%) believe artistes are not the reason for crime in the area. This belief is also shared by University of the West Indies lecturer Dr Donna Hope-Marquis who conducted a study in December of 2009 which showed that students believe there is no link between violence in society and music.Comment by rbailey: This information is not in your Lit. Review so you cannot reference it here.Another of the major findings of the researcher while understudying the crime rate in Parade Gardens and the correlation of music to it was that fourteen persons (70%) believed music is powerful enough to influence actions. Six persons (30%) believe the possibility lies that music can influence a persons action. This means that though persons believe violence cannot be blamed on the artiste they are of the belief that music can influence. If music can influence behaviour it is safe to state that the music of these artistes should be able to influence persons and as such be a contributory factor to the crime in the community. Songs with violent lyrics causes an increase in aggressive thoughts and feelings have implications for real world violence, according to lead researcher Craig A. Anderson, Ph.D. of Iowa State University. It was also recognized that persons believe the majority of physical altercations which take place in their community is as a result of musical difference. "Aggressive thoughts from music can influence perceptions of on-going social interactions, colouring them with an aggressive tint. Such aggression-biased interpretations can, in turn, instigate a more aggressive response -verbal or physical - than would have been emitted in a nonbiased state, thus provoking an aggressive escalatory spiral of antisocial exchanges," said Dr. Anderson (2003).

ConclusionIn essence the data showed that music influences, dancehall artistes cannot be blamed for the violence in the community but musical differences account for the majority of physical altercations when dancehall is the major genre listened to by residents. This is clearly contradictory and leads the researcher to conclude that the respondents did not understand the questionnaire, did not think to analyse their answers or because of the influence of music were exercising loyalty towards their favourite artiste. It also leads the researcher to conclude that the influence of musicians is a contributory factor to the high crime rate in Parade Gardens.Comment by rbailey: What are these?Comment by rbailey: Good points.LimitationsComment by rbailey: This section should be placed with the Conclusion/Recommendation/Limitations.The researcher experienced many limitations while trying to complete this research. A limitation was the cost to print the questionnaires. Parade Gardens is a volatile community and as such the researcher had to be careful where he went trying to conduct the research. In addition, the research proved time consuming as the time to construct, analyse the data and collect the questionnaire posed some challenges to the researcher.

RecommendationsIn the long term effective policies to reduce the total level of crime in Parade Gardens is necessary. To reduce the level of crime in Parade Gardens the research believes the following can be implemented1. Building more Training Centres, such as H.E.A.R.T., The National Youth Service Programme or Community Centres and trained persons to achieve the necessary skills and qualification that are needed within the society. Thus, this will increase the labour force and allow the persons in the community who are committing acts of violence to start contributing positively to the community. 2. Integrating the role of the social institutions present in the community to align with the basic goal of lowering crime. If social institutions are doing their part in advancing the welfare of the residents then the influence of music is likely to dilute.3. The person with responsibility for the constituency should try to implement programs for the mental and emotional development of the members of the Parade Gardens community. With the implementation of these programs the members will learn how to express themselves through mediums other than violence.4. The government of the country through the Media Association of Jamaica can also pass laws banning the recording of music that can lead to the demoralizing of the countrys citizens via derogatory lyrics.Comment by rbailey: Wouldnt this be in conflict with the Constitutional guarantees of Freedom of expression.

Appendix

Questionnaire1. Please tick your gender FemaleMale1. What is your age range? 12 19 20 29 30 39Over 391. How long have you been a resident of Parade Gardens? Approximate if necessary 0- 5 years5-10 years10 years and over1. How often do you listen to music? Rarely Monthly Weekly Daily1. Please indicate your favourite genre of music Dancehall Hip-hop/ Rap GospelOther _______________1. Do you have a favourite dancehall artiste? YesNo1. Who is your favourite dancehall artiste?Vybez Kartel Movado Bounty Killer Beenieman1. Do you consider your favourite artiste to be a role model? Yes No1. In 2009 Jamaica recorded one of its highest crime rates. Do you believe this is as a result of the gully/Gaza feud? Yes Possibly No

1. What do you believe dancehall artistes can do to aid in crime eradication?________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. In your opinion does music have the power to affect your actions? Yes Possibly No1. Are you apart of any of these social institutions present in your community? Rise Learning Inst ChurchGang1. How effective do you believe social institutions are in the reduction of crime?Not so effective Effective Very Effective

1. What do you believe can be done to curb the influence of violent dancehall music on persons in Parade Gardens?________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________1. What do you believe causes physical altercations in your community? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

21 | Adrian Caribbean Studies