The Effect of Violent Video Games on Adolescent Aggression Kenneth Bohall, Miracle Ehioghae, Kristen Lewey, and Dinin Mullins Texas Tech University Video games as a media have been around since the 1970s. According to Dai and Fry (2014), the video game industry is rapidly growing and went from having a market volume of $100 million in 1985 to $4 billion in 1990. In 2013, the worldwide market was totaled to be $93 billion. Exposure to violent video games, like exposure to violent television, can lead to aggressive behavior (Pellisier, 2016). There are different types of video games, from educational video games to aggressive blood pumping games, but to date violent video games still rank number one in the category. Children are likely responding more aggressively to normal stimuli after being exposed to aggressive or violent video games. In an article written by Dai and Fry (2014), an experiment was conducted in which they compare the differences between playing and observing violent video games. Studies found that students who had played a violent virtual reality game had a higher heart rate, reported more dizziness and nausea, and exhibited more aggressive thoughts in a posttest than those who had played a nonviolent game. The study also states that in America, 81% of youths 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
Another set of randomized experiments also examined the effects of violent video games on psychology. In these experiments, after two groups of participants played violent or nonviolent video games, they were required to list their thoughts on paper to assess their aggressive cognition. Unfortunately, the results tell us that violent video games appear to make people generate more aggressive thoughts than those who played nonviolent video games
Video games affect most kids and teens across the country. According to the American Psychological Association, 90% of children across United States play video games. That number rises to 97% for kids ages 12-17. But more important than how many kids play video games is what they are playing. 85% of video games on the market contain some form of violence (Scutti).
Video games have become very influential on children and adults (Stafford, 1999). With violent video games humans are more prone to act aggressively, to have aggressive thoughts and become numb towards violence (Harding, 2009). Apart from these they are
On the other hand, some people, although they already know some of the positive aspects of video games, still believe that the negative will overcome the positive ones. The connection between violent games and real violence is also fairly intuitive. In playing the games, kids are likely to become desensitized to gory images, which could make them less disturbing and perhaps easier to deal with in real life. When video games aren't about violence, their capacity to teach can be a good thing. For patients suffering from arachnophobia, fear of flying, or post-traumatic stress disorder, therapists are beginning to use virtual realities as a desensitization tool. Though this presents an evidence that violent games do in fact increase violent thoughts, this data still cannot serve as an evidence because the test is conducted in a controlled environment, without considering other aspects that might result in the change in behavior.
Technology is an important aspect of change in our world. As time goes on, we are introduced to more and more technology every year, which includes media such as video games. The increase of technology has also increased and improved the world including ways of communicating and distribution of information. More often used outlets of media are those used for entertainment purposes, like television, internet and video games. The ones who are most likely to engage in these media outlets are millennials and the most recent generation Z, because they have been introduced to these outlets from a young age. In fact, a study found that children spend around 9 hours a week playing video games (Polman, de Castro, & van Aken, 2008). It is evident that video games are progressively becoming more violent in nature, and with children spending as much time as they do playing video games, there are questions that must be asked, is the violent nature of video games effecting today’s youth? And if so in what ways?
Previous research has found a link between exposure to violent videogames and aggression. The current study investigated whether the endorsement of traditional masculinity ideology moderates this relationship in college men. The sample, 168 men, filled out a demographic questionnaire, the Male Role Norms Inventory-Revised, an adaptation of the Exposure to Violent Videogames Measure, and the Aggression Questionnaire. Exposure to violent videogames was, as expected, correlated with aggression. Endorsement of traditional masculinity ideology was also correlated with aggression. The endorsement of traditional masculinity ideology was found to moderate the relationship between exposure to violent videogames and aggression. High endorsement increased
For many years, there have been arguments over violent video games and their harmful effects. The standards for violence in today’s society are different than when video games were first introduced. A person’s personality plays into how they are effected by violence. In an article written for the American Psychological Association, Patrick Markey determined, “certain combinations of personality traits can help predict which young people will be more adversely affected by violent video games.” He also stated “those who are negatively affected have pre-existing dispositions, which make them susceptible to such violent media.” (APA).
A video game is “an electronic game in which players control images on a television or computer screen” (Merriam-Webster). Video games have been entertaining and challenging gamers since the Game Boy to modern console games. Despite the simplicity of the definition of video games, a video game, especially ones containing violence can have a large effect on the gamer. Because of the realism and advancements in the video game industry, video games can influence the player, and can make the gamer more aggressive, even if the game is not a violent video game. Even though video games have grown in popularity over the past decade, some have not been too popular with parents, for the reason that they are too violent. Violent video games affect
The arrival of violent video games and the media covering recent mass killings, an emotional debate has developed about the impact of video games on aggressive, violent, and criminal behavior. Findings from certain research are contradictory: some studies show an increase in aggressiveness, while others suggest a decrease in criminality. The increase in the diversity of game platforms makes playing violent video games easier to play, which is a source of concern. Video games are not solidly anchored in the popular culture, while in the past an eccentric pastime no longer exists (Fournis 1). In 1971, the First Amendment was adopted to primarily protect speech critical to the government; in contrast to the English seditious libel laws, which allowed punishment for true speech derogatory. The Supreme Court decided that violent video games cause aggression in children solely based on the First Amendment instead of scientific evidence (Bushman 306). Both sides of violent video games have valid points, but they are missing the one key and most important point, which is the psychology within the household.
In this age of technology, it's very safe to say that a large majority of the world's population has played at least one video game. This can vary from playing games on console, like Xbox-One, Playstation 4, and for the older generation, the NES to playing mobile games like Tetris. There are many consoles that span from the creation of video games. This has opened opportunities to make several kind of games. These can vary from side-scrollers like Super Mario Bros. on the NES, to Role-playing games (RPG) like Final Fantasy IX on the Playstation 1. While this has caused some great games to surface, it has also allowed intense violence to be let into games. Parents and anti-gaming communities state that this is why kids can become violent. This is false, because violent games can be avoided to prevent this issue, and the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has even made various precautions to make sure parents know what they're purchasing. Comprehensible symbols, detailed lists, and age restrictions prevents children from "becoming violent".
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In 2008, 97% of twelve to seventeen year olds in America played video games, thus fueling the domestic video games by $11.7 million. Ten out of the top twenty best-selling video games contain violence. Many of these violent video games have been accused of incidents that include crime, bullying, and behavior problems. As the popularity of violent video games increase, more people become victims of behavior problems such as depression, aggressiveness, and addiction. Although video games were intentionally created for entertainment purposes, through studies and experiments it has been established that they are factors of behavior problems because of the active interaction people demonstrate while playing video
The article on medical daily "With Violent Video Games, It 's Quantity Not Quality That Has a Negative Effect on Teen Behaviour" (S Castillo 2015) states that British researchers looked at two hundred and seventeen teens with an almost even amount of both sexes, their playing habits and their individual personalities. This study showed that half of the females had never played video games compared to 13 percent of the males who had. While sixteen percent of the males in this study spent three or more hours playing whilst just three percent of females in the study did the same. This showed that the kids who played for the most length of time where the ones likely to develop behavioural problems and struggle in school.
“High-school students who report spending more time playing video games or who report spending more money on video games had poorer grades in English classes” (Gentile, Lynch, Linder, Walsh 2). All young minds that play video games longer than the average time start to show a poor performance in school. These children start to think more about the video games they are watching and playing every day, rather than doing their homework and studying for tests.
For years gaming industries have been aiming towards entertaining people of all ages, especially children and adolescents. However, the definition of entertainment has changed drastically, from playing dodge ball outside to watching and playing video games in which people pretend to annihilate each other. Video game violence attracts and addicts young players, by affecting their behavior, and their development of social skills, to even affect their ability to differentiate fantasy from reality. The short and long term effects of violent video games affect not only the ones playing them, but also the ones viewing the violence.