Essay on Effects Of Video Games On Youth

In the more recent times it seems as if America’s youth is becoming more violent. Concern for those aspects in our society which influence violent acts has become an issue since the tragedy at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999. Many feel one aspect of today’s society affecting our nation’s youth in a negative manner is video games. Is this form of entertainment really a factor in teen violence? I think not. We should blame the parents for teen violence, not video games.

A ponderous medium of media is video games in co-relation to violence. Video games encourage violent behavior in children as they are at a crucial stage of adaptation.

Ever since the creation of the first video game, they have had a certain effect on the individuals who play them. As video games have become more advanced and elaborate, children’s interest is at an all time high. With the degree of violence that has been a part of video games since the early 1990’s, parents and activists have claimed that these games are affecting children negatively. This claim only seems to contradict other major factors that may have a part in the developing minds of youth. There are other mental, problems at home or school, as well as programs and movies shown by the media that could have an effect on children.

Children and in some cases adults enjoy playing videos games with their friends as a

Carlsbad, California Legoland is consists of video games, and Angry Birds Theme Park in China & Universal Studios in Hollywood, California both also involve video game entertainment, therefore everywhere you go videogames follow! Obviously, the better technology gets the more accessible video games are becoming. Over 90% of the young adults and young children population play video games in the United States play video games. Unfortunately, 90% of those games involve mature content that often includes violence (“Little By Little, Violent Video Games Make Us More Aggressive”). Many parents think nothing of supplying these video games for their kids because they want to see them as happy as possible. But little do they know as they grow, their minds and all the experiences they go through, stick with them forever. Although guardians can be the best parents, video games can raise some kids themselves. Video games make a huge impact on youth, who play them for an excessive amount of time; these video games are preventing them from having an open mind and flourishing in their lives.

Over the past 20 years, the entertainment industry has become one of the most successful industries around the world and changed the way we entertain ourselves from different aspects including watching TV and video gaming. However, the people who control the media have started implementing materials that show violence into all sources of digital entertainment, unaware of its serious psychological effects on youth. Youngsters are presently effortlessly presented to violence as diversions and consequently now have weapons and explosives comfortable fingertips, and this has prompted to some horrible results. It is likewise said that youngsters who are presented to violent video games might be at more grave danger. Nowadays, young teenagers spend more time playing video games and watching movies that show violence, and research on exposure to this type of entertainment shows that it is linked to positive and negative effects on psychological health.

A boy is sitting in front of his TV lost into screen playing Grand Theft Auto 5 with a controller in his hand. There’s a yell, “Chris! Come down for dinner.” The boy hears the voice but refrains from responding. The voice, his mother, calls for him multiple time, finally in anger the boy storms downstairs only to yell at his mother and rushes back to his room to get back to his game. Have you ever wondered how violent video games impact children? Or why kids love to play them? The link between violent video games and aggressive behavior is a topic that has received a lot of attention in the recent years. As technology is gradually progressing, video games are starting to become very lifelike and they consist of many complex qualities. However, with the high levels of realism, the influences of video games on society have begun to increase sufficiently. The creation of violent video games, or rated M games, have sparked constant disputes regarding whether or not these games promote violent behavior in their consumers. Each year, more varieties of violent games are being introduced, and most of us have this question in mind. Do violent video games influence young people to act aggressively or is it just a myth? Violent video games contribute a negative effect on society because of the intense violence and graphics shown that influence the younger generation. I believe that the correlations that have been found between video games and violence may be explained by violent

Although there are many valid arguments to why violent video games lead to aggression which can turn into potential violate behavior, our group has found research that proves that violate video games do not contribute to aggression as much as the opposing view perceives. We have also found several flaws concerning these results which further supports our position. In addition, although this may be shocking, according to our research, violent video games, when played in the right content, can be beneficial to its players. By looking at the positive effects and lack of correlation between violent video games and aggression, our group will prove and focus on why violent video games are an inadequate excuse to claim when concerning why some minors may become involved in illegal behaviors.

What does this mean for young people? In America, 81% of youth play at least once a month, 8.5% of them are addicted and “the average 8 to 12 year old now plays 13 hours of video games per week, while the average 13 to 18 year old plays 14 hours of video games per week” (Metrics 2.0, 2007). Because video games are such a huge part of children’s lives, it is difficult to prevent them from playing video games entirely but, is that even necessary? With such a

Ninety-seven percent of US children play a minimum of one hour of video games a day (Granic et al. ¶7). Children play video games for a variety of reasons; a survey conducted by Cheryl Olson, an internationally known researcher on the effects of video games, of 1,254 middle schoolers found teens play video games ¨for emotional regulation: as an antidote to boredom and loneliness, to relax, and to vent angry feelings¨(Olson ¶7). Despite the popularity of video games and the emotional benefits they provide, they are believed to be detrimental to teenage development. This is due to studies like the one conducted by Jay Hull, an associate dean of psychology at Dartmouth University, which claim certain video games can cause an increase in ¨alcohol consumption, smoking, aggression, delinquency, and risky sex¨ (¶102). However, those problems can easily be reduced or negated, and playing video games is actually beneficial to teenager´s development when played in moderation.

The growth and expansion of the video games market in the United States highlight the importance of digital entertainment in the society. According to Lenhart, almost 72% of teens play video games on cellphones, tabs, computers, and game consoles. However, there are various concerns on the impact of video games on the high rate of violence in the society. Some studies argue that video games have positive effects on children as they boost creativity, improve cognitive and emotional development. Nevertheless, opponents of video games argue that they are highly addictive and promote social isolation which undermines social development among children. Therefore, overdependence and addiction to video games are the main factors that contribute to negative effects including violent and aggressive behavior, poor eating habits, and poor mental development.

Today it is very common to have video games in the household. In fact, it is so common that it is difficult to imagine a house without them. This shows how important video games are. Many children have access to video games that might not be appropriate for their age group. The need for children to stay connected has lessened. Unfortunately, these violent games are the most attractive to young people, and that can have a negative impact on youth. The question arises? Is there any link between violent video games and violence in society? There might be a negative impact on the player of violent video games.

Video games have always been the subject of some type of controversy. Debates exist over whether or not playing them for too long is detrimental to your health, or if they have any positive aspects at all. Research indicates that gaming for long periods of time is not healthy, whereas light or occasional gaming yields benefits to reactions and skills when working under pressure. However, one aspect of video games always rears its head whenever some empathy-depraved soul commits an atrocity upon innocent people using guns. Namely, whether or not violent video games cause people to commit acts of violence. Despite the continuing controversy, evidence has proven that the people negatively affected by video game violence are those who learn from mimicking others; children and, to a lesser degree, adolescents; specifically, boys. However, violent video games do not warp children’s minds due to their content. Video games with crude content are not to blame for public massacres because they do not increase personal hostility, instead harmlessly releasing aggression akin to sports, and even if violent video games did raise hostility, they are marked on an age-dictated scale to inform those who may be concerned. The average human being has a moral compass strong enough to understand that violence for the sake of violence is wrong. If a human being has the capacity to kill innocent people or animals without any remorse, then video games will not likely make them much worse.

One of the common forms of indoor recreational activities is playing video games. Over the years, there has been mixed viewpoints regarding its wide-ranging effects especially among the youth. Much of the controversy focuses on violence and aggression coming from various sources like the media, researchers, and more intensely, parents who are greatly concerned with the negative impact of video games to their children. Amplifying the adverse side of this debate is the occurrences of a number of crimes associated with playing violent video games as their common denominator along with its booming popularity. Since then, avid video gamers were viewed in a negative light, portrayed as potential killers, and the undesirable outcomes in engaging with video games have been greatly emphasized in the ongoing debate such as, exposure to its violent content causes children to become violent, linking mental disorders and behavioral problems in the long run. Nonetheless, not all are in favor of these perpetuating arguments about video games. More recent studies found that it does not predict violent behaviors (Decamp, 2015) regardless of its content (Etchells, Gage, Rutherford, & Munafò, 2016) while some have discussed the positive impact of playing video games (Mafesty et al., 2016; Clemenson & Stark, 2015).

“Video games are a ubiquitous part of almost all children’s and adolescents’ lives, with 97% playing for at least one hour per day in the United States” (Granic, Lobel and Engels 66). Video games are a big part of life in America and around the world. Technological advances allow for many different devices where video games can be played, so it is not hard for children to get their hands on video games. There is also a wide variety of games, from building games to board games to war games. There is a game out there for everyone. Video games have become a very common activity for children, but at a price. Playing video games is harmful because it can create addiction, desensitize players to violence, and cause depression.