Violence in Video Games
A report on the effects of violent video games on the average teen brain, and if they can really cause violence in teens.
Can a videogame kill? Executives at major health-care organizations all testified before Congress that there is direct link between violent video games and violence (Thompson). Media such as Grand Theft Auto, Doom, and other video games have been proven to cause violent behaviors in those who play them. They are also known to make teens more aggressive, they train teens to kill, and they desensitize teens to violence outside of the video games. Violent video games promote violence in teens.
Over aggressiveness in teens is just one of many negative side effects of violent video games. According to a recent Gallup Poll, “Seventy-one percent of all teen-age boys have played Grand Theft Auto games, and Gallup found that they are twice as likely to engage in acts of violence than those who have not played the game” (Thompson). In one case, a 15-year-old male shot two fellow students, murdering one and seriously injuring the other. According to his neighbors he obsessively played the game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (Thompson). This is stimulating evidence that there is a direct link between this particular game and aggression. Even though teens choose to play violent games, the aggression is forced upon them. Several medical researchers, including Harvard University, have found that violent images are processed differently in a teen’s brain than an adult’s; for a teen, the brain processes them in a part unable to differentiate from reality and fantasy (Thompson). Which means a teen may not be able to differentiate from the non-consequential killing of a videogame, and the horrors of killing in real life.
Another violent-video game side effect is that they train teens to be killers. If a game can train a surgeon, can it also train a killer? “ James Rosscrof Beth of Israel Medical Center in New York found that gaming experience is the best predictor of a surgeon’s skill at keyhole surgery; more so than the years spent training or the number of procedures carried out” (Phillips). Video games are a type of learning tool that can teach or give someone experience for things they have always dreamed of. Believe it or not a video game can teach an inexperienced teen to use a gun. A 14-year-old boy who killed three people in Kentucky was an avid videogame player who had never fired a gun until he shot eight classmates in 1997 (Hatch). Video games enable teens to become another person and experience things they never could have before, which can actually be a terrible experience. Kids learn best by imitating what they see, and then receiving positive sanctions for being correct (Phillips). The developmental psychologist John Murray said, “That’s exactly what video games do” (Phillips). In some violent video games there are rewards for the amount of people or other life form killed. This is teaching teens that killing is acceptable.
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Post Commentguy123
On January 5, 2009 at 8:12 pm
i dont think video games can cause violence
viewer
On March 19, 2009 at 9:32 am
This article is extremely biased. There is no evidence made to disprove the claims. Jack Thompson is repeatedly quoted throughout this article. Every person who follows video game violence knows that everything Thompson says is very biased against games. In fact, mere hours after the Virgina Tech tragedy, Thompson claimed that the shooter was an obsesive video gamer. He used this as a way to try and rally people to his cause. To bad it ended up that the shooter was NOT even a gamer. The shooters room-mate ended this claim by Thompson because the room mate had never seen his former roomate playing games.
As much proof as this article claims to show it is very biased. It does not even mention the lab studies where the opposite occured. There have been many studies showing that gaming does not result in any increase in aggresiveness or violent tendancies.
So please, before taking this article as fact, read up from other sources.
awesomeo
On December 22, 2009 at 1:32 pm
What do you have against video games have you ever thought that hmmm idk they were already a little pyschopathic before they played the video game. once i see proof then ill believe you but until then remember this when someone goes to court because of a crime they commited and they use the uhhh…. it was because of a video game.. its total bologna there just trying to getting out of the big charges so once they get out they will kill more people… your not pyschopathic because of video games… you are pyschopathic because of your childhood. videogames just help you loosen up its been actually proven playing games like grand theft auto dont give someone that like hmmm…. i think this is fun im gonna do it in real life and sry about the lengthyness doing a project about violence in video games so ya remember that before you go and say violent videogames are bad!!!