A new study suggests that superheroes are not good influences on children as they can boost aggressive behavior among them.

The study involved 240 children who were asked questions about their level of exposure and engagement with superheroes. One of the questions was the amount of time they spend on watching superhero media materials. The interview also revealed the kids' favorite superheroes and why they like them.

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The study, which was conducted by the researchers from the Brigham Young University, suggests that children who are exposed to superheroes have higher chances of having their aggressive behaviors magnified. The researchers elaborated that one year following exposure to superheroes such as Iron Man, Batman, Superman and Captain America, children will likely develop aggressive behaviors.

Further, 10 percent of the participants were noticed to have defensive behaviors while 20 percent said that they admired superheroes' violent skills. The researchers noted that some of the aggressive answers include "he smashes and gets angry," "he can smash and destroy everything, and he doesn't care because he's a big bully" and "he's big and can punch."

The study also found out that children are most fascinated by superpowers including their ability to fly, their unparalleled strength, and size.

Despite these findings, the researchers clarified that parents do not have to stop their children from enjoying toys or watching materials of superheroes and dressing up like them. Further, it was recommended that parents should provide a wide variety of activities for their kids.

The research, which was published in the Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, is from the same team who studied how female stereotypes arise from young girls' exposure to Disney princesses. Dr. Sarah Coyne revealed that too much fascination with the princess culture may lead to development of unrealistic body expectations and low self confidence.