Defending The Morality Of Violent Video Games

Video games are prevalent among impressionable children and teenagers. There has been a great deal of controversy surrounding the violent themes used in video games. Teenage shootings in schools have led society to question the relationship between video violence and criminal activity. After considerable research, expert opinions, and research findings, the American Psychological Association found that there is no link between gaming and criminal behavior (Casey). With this, the pursuit of video violent games continues to grow in our society. With games that show execution style murders, blood oozing from gunshot wounds, and victims moaning from wounds, it certainly is gratifying for the indulgent player. The ongoing concern about aggression and violence has once again been proven to be non-existent (Alert). My thoughts are that this cartoon like violence is appeals to the need for violence in an artificially designed environment. In this manner, violence is contained within the boundaries of fantasy. This is unlike “The Crucible” which occurs in with real people, events, and situations. Thus, directing violence in the realm of societal dysfunction that has endured with

The story line behind some violent video games includes games in which players earn points by carjacking taxis, scoring drugs from cursing thugs, and mowing down pedestrians.(see http://www.feedmag.com/vgs/duncan.html>) Some cartoonish tag lines in some sadistic video games include : -- "As easy as killing babies with axes" and "More fun than killing your neighbour's cats". This kind of themes definitely influence the players, especially the younger ones, and inflict violent tendencies on them. It is no wonder, that this killing mania in violent games was seen to seep out into the actual world when a high school junior opened fire in his school cafetaria in Littleton, Colorado, killing two of his classmates. The gunman was reported to be an ardent fan of Quake and Doom, some rather violent video games. More proof of the relationship between video games and violence is revealed by a study which clearly reveals how this kind of entertainment affects our lives. Greater details of the history of how high school students turned gunmen in Columbine High School are given, which shows that the effect of video games in their lives was a major source of influence in doing what they did best.

Prolonged scenes of massive violence, graphic sexual content, and animated blood are examples of statements that the Entertainment Software Rating Board uses to depict the content in over fifty- five percent of the video games rated yearly. The debate of whether the aggressive nature of these video games influences youth violence in our country has been heatedly battled for decades. Since the mid 1980’s, it has been suggested that high profile cases of violence are due to an aggressor’s excessive video game use. However, much like a cold case the type of connection between video game use and youth violence remains without a definite answer. Most believe that video game use negatively influences child aggression acts in our country. Others firmly declare that video games provide a realm of opportunity for child development. Ultimately, it is impossible to say that video game use affects every child the same way. New studies suggest that video games do not affect every child that plays a game. Although violent video games are innocuous for the majority of adolescents between the ages of twelve and eighteen, the effects of these games are aggravated in those with pre- existing antisocial or depressive traits.

“Approximately 90 percent of kids in the U.S. play video games, and more than 90 percent of those games involve mature content that includes violence.”-(Time Health). The link between violent media and aggression in video games has also created a spawn of research studies that has gone back and forth on the issue of whether

Throughout a number of recent studies, participants playing violent video games have consistently shown increases in their aggressive behavior, both during and after the gameplay. A study that linked violent video games to child aggression found that in every group they tested, “Children who were exposed to more video game violence did become more aggressive over time than their peers who had less exposure” (Harding 1). An increase in aggressive behavior after playing violent video games is quite common in most cases, although many gamers would argue that other factors, such as people’s emotions, cause this negative change in behavior. This reveals numerous questions surrounding the effects that video game violence might have on

In today’s society there has been an ongoing debate regarding the effects of violent video games and the development of today’s youth. Many people believe that the violence in video games promotes aggression. According to Doctor Brad Bushman’s article, "Do Violent Video Games Increase Aggression?" he claims that violent video games leads to aggression because it is interactive process that teaches and rewards violent behavior. Yet others believe that this not the case. Gregg Toppo of the Scientific American, writes in his article, “Do Video Games Inspire Violent Behavior?” that video games are not a significant issue because teenagers know how differentiate between reality and fantasy. Because of the controversy surrounding this topic, I decided to research the question, “Does exposure to violent video games cause aggressive behavior among teenagers between the ages of 13 and 18?” Initially before performing any extensive research on this subject, I hypothesized that violent video games do cause aggressive behavior. I then proceeded to study different scholarly works that both supported and opposed my hypothesis. What I learned from those works eventually gave me a more complete understanding of the topic and allowed me to take a more educated stance.

In recent years, we have seen many video games criticized and bashed in the public eye for their disputable content. However, the game industry has been subjected to controversy since the creation of its first adult themed games such as Death Race 1976 or Custer 's Revenge 1982. These two graphics limited games have introduced video game violence to the public and since then debate about morals and ethics of video games evolved over the years together with the game experience thanks to modern technologies. Violence is one aspect of many that can cause great controversy that’s why it is important to create a suitable ethical, cultural and legal context as it can determine its failure or its success. In this paper, I will present an example

A significantly large portion of the video games created within the past 5 to 10 years contain some form of violence. On top of that, some of the most popular video games out in the market today are extremely violent and warrant an “M” rating for mature. Video game developers are well aware of this trend and continue to produce more graphic, interactive, and realistic content. Therefore, there is a concern that the vast amount of violence in video games is changing how youth develop and what they perceive as normal. Many researchers believe that there is a link between video games and increased aggression in the people who play them.

There are indicators that links playing violent video games to increasing aggression in young people. Teenagers who are expose to violent games are more supposable to increase the likelihood of experiencing aggressive thoughts, in which turns into the likelihood of engaging in physical aggression against another person. Furthermore, violent video games produce an emotional desensitization to aggression and violence to the youth (Anderson). Based on the observation teenagers are exposed to when they are playing violent video games, they will reenact almost immediately in real life if the situational contact is sufficiently similar to the ones in the games. Therefore, consumption of violent video games produces negative behaviors that are controlled by negative

Video games have been in existence for over two decades. Much research has been done on the effects that video games have on aggression in males. Aggression in females is an aspect that has not been studied nearly as much. Video games lead to more aggression (Gabbiadini, 2014). Non-violent video games do not show as high levels of aggression as violent video games (Farrar, Krcmar, & Nowak, 2006). Aggression is defined as hostile or violent behavior or attitudes toward another (Merrian-Webster, 2015). Violence in video games has become an ever increasing issue as more studies are being conducted that report high levels of aggression. Over forty percent of the gaming market is now estimated to be female (Sydell, 2013). Fifteen percent of the Grand Theft Auto franchise players are estimated to be female (Sydell, 2013). Repeated exposure to violent video games is linked to serious forms of aggression and violence (Farrar, Krcmar, & Nowak, 2006). Violent game play provides a learning environment for real-word behavior, including aggressive acts. (Farrar, Krcmar, & Nowak, 2006). The focus of the current study is to show that aggression in females tends be the same as aggression in males and that brief exposure to violent video games should increase physiological arousal and aggressiveness.

Since several video games contain some sort of violent content, it has been hypothesized that gamers nowadays tend to be more aggressive. Gentile also states that “playing violent games increases aggressive behaviors, increases aggressive cognitions, [and] increases aggressive emotions.” This is an intense list of negative consequences, but what makes violent games instill such hostility? Many video games today include multiplayer in addition to classical single player modes. With real life opponents, gamers are much more competitive and inclined to demonstrate dominance over friends and real life opponents. Whereas facing a computer can be competitive, there may be a stronger feeling of satisfaction after defeating a nonvirtual enemy which could translate into real life aggression towards real people. Though correlation does not mean causation, the fear that violent video games may increase problematic antagonism is clearly not misplaced.

A huge development in media that spans over the last 25 years has been the exponential growth of the video game industry. From the earliest arcade- based console games, video games have been promptly and extremely popular. Especially among younger audiences. According to Gentile, “Additionally, the introduction of video games to the home market only served to further elevate their prevalence” [Gentile, 2009]. Because of their widespread popularity, social scientists, parents, and politicians have been distressed with the possible effects of violent video games. Focusing primarily on games with violent content and their detrimental effects on children. Despite there being an wide-ranging base of scientific literature on the unfavorable effects of violent video games, studies on prosocial games is much more narrow. Few factual studies have tested the development of prosocial video game content on harmful and helpful demeanors and outcomes from these studies suggest that prosocial content in games can increase prosocial behavior in brief and protracted terms. Additionally, new studies have started to examine the causal instruments responsible for the effects of prosocial video games on harmful and helpful behaviors. Conclusions from some studies advise that these effects may be expected to changes in cognitive judgement, whereas other studies advocate these effects are due to changes in affect. Both types of results are consistent with social-cognitive models of social behavior, along with the General Learning Model. Furthermore, the social-cognitive learning theory predicts that repeated practice with prosocial or antisocial behavioral scripts can postpone many long-term effects, including the advancement. Changes in precognitive and cognitive constructs perception and expectation composition, beliefs, scripts, cognitive-emotional constructs attitudes and stereotypes and affective traits conditioned emotional responses, empathy, trait hostility. It has been discovered that “Indeed, recent longitudinal studies (some as short as 3 months, others as long as 30 months) have found that children and adolescents who play a lot of violent video games become more aggressive over time, even after controlling for earlier

“Recent contents analyses of video games show that many as 89% of games contain some violent contents” (Gentile, Lynch, Linder, Walsh 3). More than half of video games being sold around the world contain some form of violence. All of the violence involved in the video games being played by children is a pattern leading to aggression. Aggression can be caused by many things; however, violent video games are the main cause of aggression in young adults. “If a child began playing violent video games at a young age, then he might think that violence in real life is the same as the game violence and that it doesn’t have a real impact on others” (Gilad, Alto 1). Thinking that violence in the virtual world is the same as in the real world is the first step to showing aggression. Aggression in children caused by video games is the biggest effect parents and researchers worry about. Violent video games teach children that shooting and killing people are

Some research reports support the idea that violent games have harmful impacts on the user behaviors. (Boxer et al. 671) contend that even if violent video games do not increase the number of killers in society, they affect users in subtler ways. With this concern, if a person is often exposed to aggressive thinking and feeling, he or she “will get better at them" (Boxer et al. 672). Recent surveys illustrate that teenagers are increasingly engaging in violent games, which are exemplary "teachers" of violence. Teenagers playing these types of games are more likely than non-participants to exhibit “aggressive cognitions and behaviors” (Boxer et al. 672). The survey further concluded that seventh and eighth graders exposed to violent gaming often illustrated hostile attribution bias, and they engaged in arguments with instructors more than learners unexposed to the same. From these findings, it is clear that fierce video games could harm user behaviors.

The rapid advance in technology influences the creation of various entertainment sources. According to a U.S Study by Rideout Et Al (As Cited in Anderson & Bushman 2001.a), the popularity of video games specially is rapidly increasing. Nonetheless, ferocious electronic games are an attraction of attention to children, teenagers, and even adults. In fact, in another U.S study by Butchman & Funk (As Cited in Anderson & Bushman 2001.b) on 4th grade students, three of every four boys and six out of every ten girls favour violent computer games. This essay will argue that violence in video games should be censored. For the purpose of this essay, violence can be defined as the physical force proposed to hurt, damage, or kill either someone or something, and censor may relate to the act of supressing unwanted material (Oxford Dictionaries). Furthermore, the three main points of this essay are: exposure to violent video games leads to aggressive behaviour, computer games negative impacts on the society, and how ferocity in video games collaborates with affecting the psychology of individuals negatively.