We live in constant violence. It seems like every year there’s a domestic event highlighted by a bloody rampage by crazed individuals armed with weapons that are meant for such frenzies. The most recent that are still in people’s minds would be the Washington Sniper and the Columbine High School shootings. While it may be true that psychologically troubled individuals planned out and executed both events, later investigations pointed out one hauntingly similar coincidence. The killers practiced on simulated violence that comes with video games (http://www.answers.com/main/ntquery?method=4&dsid=2222&dekey=Eric+Harris+and+Dylan+Klebold&gwp=8&curtab=2222_1). And because of that, the gaming industry took massive repercussions, with lists such as the one Mothers Against Violence in America created, in which games such as Warcraft 3: The Frozen Throne, Doom 3, Half-Life 2, and Halo are supposed to be avoided by parents at all costs (Lottie). The Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility mentions the same games but takes it a step further stating that “violent interactive media indicates that it has a strong and more lasting effect on violent behavior…in children and adolescents.” (http://www.iccr.org/issues/violence/jointstatement020705.PDF) But is that the truth? Will everyone playing an Entertainment Software Rating Board rated Mature game become a crazed, violent individual who wants to commit mass murders? The mass populace of the United States may say so, but the rest of world seems to disagree (McDonald, 16). Gaming has minimal effects, if not any, on the mental health of its crowd. With legislation pushing for anti-gaming acts, the casual and professional gaming communities are starting to suffer because of a few crazed individuals. Whereas casual gamers will probably complain, American pros will take whatever action they can to slow down the barrage of acts and laws that will hinder their ability to compete at level with foreign professional gaming teams.
One of the ideas that hasn’t taken hold in the United States would be the idea of Electronic Sports or Professional Gaming (commonly known as E-Sports). The rest of the world, namely Europe and Asia, respects and accepts E-Sports, whereas the United States looks down on it. America tries to make attaining competitive games Counter-Strike, Counter-Strike:Source Halo, Warcraft 3 and others difficult for everybody. Europe and Asia on the other hand, have live media coverage at events broadcasted over national television. If a common middle-class mother in America mentions something about games, negative comments would follow suit. If the same case was to happen in Norway, then the responses would be neutral and would wind up with the mothers conversing about their sons/daughters placement in the last major event they were in.
In this essay, the author
- Argues that gaming has minimal effects, if not any, on the mental health of its crowd.
- Explains that europe and asia respect and accept e-sports, whereas the united states looks down on it. europeans view it as a cultural artifact.
- Explains that the cyberathlete professional league is a highly fabled league where high-caliber teams battle it out.
- Explains that e-sports is just like regular physical sports, with statistics being available for teams and players. it's especially serious in europe and asia where professional gaming can be a full-time job.
- Opines that if china does include a battery of computer games for the 2008 olympics, then computer gaming would become mainstream, including in the u.s.
- Argues that the american population sees young men as tough, unbreakable, and unproblematic. the media has this image of how a man is supposed to be.
- Explains how young boys learn to use their aggressiveness in physical sports, such as football and soccer, to defuse anger and lead to competitiveness and sportsmanship.
- Opines that competitive games are a way to release the anger and violence inside, and turn it into amazing shows of skill and strategy.
- Cites mcdonald, thomas, maximum pc, volume 10, no. 3, march 2005, future network usa publications.
- Explains mcdonald, thomas. maximum pc, volume 10, no. 2, february 2005.
- Explains kindlon's book, raising cain: protecting the emotional life of boys. ballantine books, 2000, new york.
- Describes the interfaith center on corporate responsibility's joint statement and signatories on violent video games.
Related
- explanatory
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- comparative
- opinionated
- Violent Video Games Do NOT Cause Violenceexplanatory essayPeople have always been looking for a reason why horrible things happen. The media is quick to blame video games as the target and cause of many shootings that have occurred, ever since Columbine and Quake. People have been blaming video games for violence for years now, ever since violent video games have been made. News reports blame video games more and more for each shooting, telling the public how this person played video games for x amount of hours a day, and that video games caused him or her to shoot people, and how video games encourage and reward violence. Anti-video game lobbyists have been campaigning to have violence removed from video games, citing resources that they themselves have created as reasons for such, poorly done studies where they confirm that kids are more aggressive through how much hot sauce they put on someone’s fries. While unbiased studies of video games and their links to violence are hard to come by, recent research has shown that video games do not in fact have a casual link to violence, and may even have the opposite effect. Violent video games have nearly no link to violence in teens or adults.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that video games have been around since 1958, when higinbotham created tennis for two to entertain guests for the brookhaven national laboratory.
- Explains that research on violent video games is elusive because everyone has their own definition of violence or aggression. video game companies would prefer results that point away from them and towards other factors.
- Explains that violence in video games does not cause real-life violence. violent games have been shown to relieve stress and increase cooperation in kids and teens.
- Explains that while violence in video games does affect children, the news, tv, movies, and songs, are much worse and show that kids take from them better.
- Opines that peckham, matt. linking video games to gun violence is a ‘classic illusory correlation’.
- Explains that the esrb rating system was created in 1994 in response to violent video games like doom, mortal kombat, and night trap.
- Explains that violent video games are not the cause of violence, it may be the other way around that is more prevalent.
- States kulling, matthew, and nauret, rick, that video games are not tied to violence in youth.
1839 wordsRead More - Video Games and Violenceanalytical essayThe day was April 20th, 1999. During an otherwise peaceful day at Columbine High in Columbine, CO, two seniors—Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold—finally committed an atrocious act. That act had been in the planning for a long time, perhaps even since Harris designed a website for popular, controversial, extremely violent video game Doom in 1996. The Columbine High School shooting is known as the deadliest high school shooting ever, with its death toll of twelve students and one teacher, as well as twenty-four people injured. But little known for some is the fact that the Columbine shooting was what kick started the nationwide controversy over violent video games. Harris, for one, was an avid player of Doom, and some believe that’s what caused him and Klebold to even think of murdering all the people who had, according to Harris’ diaries, simply ‘annoyed’ him. The fallout of this incident was massive, but one of the long-lasting effects has been the worry in people’s minds that there is a connection between video games and violent acts performed by teenagers. Those who do believe that may claim that before the digital age, violent acts—at least those performed by teenagers—were few and far between. (This is an obvious rumor, not a fact.) If that were the case, it’s understandable why some believe that games are causing more violence in today’s youth. Teachers are worried about the issue, as are parents and government officials, and teenagers and game producers are involved in it as well. The issue itself raises many questions: are teenagers so easily affected by images on a screen? Is the world merely a product of its pastimes? If video games really do cause increased aggression in youth, what are people supposed to do about it? Despit...
In this essay, the author
- Opines that the columbine high school shooting is the deadliest high school shooting ever. some believe that video games are causing more violence in today's youth.
- Analyzes how matt peckham's article, "researcher says linking video games to gun violence is a classic illusory correlation," illustrates the assumption of games causing violent acts in teens has never been proven.
- Analyzes how justin peters extrapolates on the idea that violent games are a result of violence, rather than an cause.
- Argues that the arguments of people who are of the opinion that games can cause violence are as justified as the ones illustrated above.
- Explains that some people believe that violent games are causers of aggression because they simulate actual situations that require violence, causing stress and aggression.
- Analyzes how linda bernstein explains the possible effects of video games on teens in an article for current health teens.
- Opines that the way to solve this issue could be to better educate teenagers and children about the effects of their anger if they don't talk about it or let it out.
1348 wordsRead More - Violence in Video Gamescomparative essayRecently though, due to horrific school shootings and record sales of violent video games such as the Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty series, video games as a whole have been put under a microscope. The question now is: Are violent video games really such a significant factor when it comes to youth violence? The current research and information points to no. Although some research reveals that violent video games may cause temporary aggression, there has been no evidence that it causes violent crimes such as assault or murder. Christopher Ferguson, an associate professor at Stetson University and researcher into the effect media has on young children wrote an article titles“ Video Games: The Latest Scapegoat for Violence”. In his article, he states:
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the negative impact of video games on youth has been a hotly debated topic since before pac-man ate his first pac-dot.
- Concludes that there was no evidence to support either acausal or correlation relationship between video games and aggressive behavior.
- Explains that the esrb reports that in 2010, the video games industry generated 10.5 billions dollars in sales. call of duty: black ops and red dead redemption sold millions of units.
- Explains that the united states secret service and the u.s. department of education launched a collaborated report called the safe school initiative to investigate past school violence that ended with at least one death.
- Explains that a recently published study conducted by christopher ferguson showed how violent video games affect children with mental disorders.
- Compares the ethnic makeup of students in an urban and suburban school.
- Explains ferguson's study may have debunked this long held claim that children with mental disorders are particularly vulnerable to the effects of media, particularly violent video games.
- Concludes that the association between violent video games and aggression related outcomes in children, even those with elevated mental health symptoms, may be minimal.
- Opines that as the nintendo generation matures, video games will become normalized and part of this generation’s culture in the same way television, movies, and radio have. the esrb has established a simple but effective rating system.
- Cites brad j. and craig a. anderson's article, "video games and hostileexpectations: a testof the general aggression model."
- Summarizes the final report and findings of the safe school initiative: implications for the prevention of school attacks in the united states.
1088 wordsRead More - The shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Coloradoanalytical essayThe shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado killing thirteen students and teachers shocked the world. “They were video gamers who seemed to be acting out some dark digital fantasy. It was as if all that exposure to computerized violence gave them the idea to go on a rampage – or at least fueled their urges” (Carey 1). The shooters of this incident learned their deadly skills from video games. Seventy percent of children ages eight to eighteen have access to violent video games at their home. “Boys who play Teen or Mature-rated games for a minimum of 40 minutes a day may witness over 180 incidents of aggression per day, or 5,400 incidents per month”(Smith, S.L., Lachlan, K.A., & Tamborini, R). Children that play violent video games at such a young age and experiencing such violent actions will start to increase in aggressive thoughts, feelings, and aggressive behavior.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the shooting at columbine high school in littleton, colorado shocked the world. seventy percent of children ages eight to eighteen have access to violent video games.
- Explains that violent games cause children's minds to alter, causing them to act rudely. teenage brains are in the middle of growing, so it is very penetrable for video games to have a major impact on their mind.
- Explains the negative effects of playing violent video games on the mind and behavior of a child.
- Explains that violent video games prepare kids to kill and even teach them to enjoy the experience. there have been many major disasters where somebody is trying to live their digital fantasy.
- Opines that children who play violent video games at such a young age will have bad effects on them.
664 wordsRead More - Video Games and Violenceanalytical essayParents and other adults have begun to become more concerned about violent video games due to the increased reality in the games. However, society may not realize how children and teens are affected by these games. In modern times, children and young adults are affected by violent games in a negative way by causing changes in their behavior. The average American child watches 28 hours of television a week and by the age of eighteen will have seen 16,000 murders and 200,000 violent acts (Gallagher). People who defend violent games like to point out that playing the games does not mean all players will go out and commit acts of violence, and that millions of people who play do not demonstrate violent behavior(Hicks). Although that is true, the games that are the most popular happen to show the most violence.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that society may not realize how children and teens are affected by violent video games. the average american child watches 28 hours of television a week and by the age of 18 will have seen 16,000 murders and 200,000 violent acts.
- Analyzes how assassin's creed 4: black flag, deadpool, grand theft auto v, ryse: son of rome, saints row iv, and the last of us were among the most popular games in the united states.
- Explains that video games are harmless and don't lead to aggression, and that dr. daphne bavelier and her team try to make games that help medical needs.
- Explains that violent games can and do cause hostile urges and mildly aggressive behavior as a short term effect. hostile expectations are not the only reason players become more aggressive.
- Explains that the correlations between video games and violence may be explained by violent children and teens being attracted to violent games.
- Explains that playing video games can reduce the stress-related hormone cortisol, which can help people change their perception about social threats and boost their self-confidence.
- Explains that violent video games reduce cardiac coherence which could be the cause for aggression due to the stress. high levels of stress can lead to more problems at home and bullying in school.
- Explains that in a 2010 survey of about 40,000 teenagers, the josephson institute asked teens about their experiences with bullying.
- Explains that bullying has become a standard behavior that about half of all children have grown to expect and engage in. violent games cause players to associate pleasure and happiness with the ability to cause pain in others.
- Analyzes how evan ramsey, adam lanza, jared lee loughner, and anders breivik were all violent video game players.
- Explains that violent games are used in military training to help soldiers become used to the process of harming others. however, exposure to violence does not show whether or not players will commit a crime.
- Explains that violent crime, mostly among the young, has decreased dramatically since the early 1990s while video games increased in popularity and use. children and teens can express aggression without causing physical or mental harm towards others.
- Explains that people become addicted to playing video games because they want to beat their high score or even their friend's high. they can use the game as a way to escape their own life and reality.
- Explains that players aren't aware of the physical consequences video games can bring if excessively used. children and teens can lose their social skills because there is no real interaction between the players.
- Explains that addicted video game players have preoccupation and downplaying use, lack of control in things or lose track of time, mixed emotions or feel uncomfortable sharing their feelings. an addiction can be avoided if video games are used right
- Argues that playing video games should be compared to smoking cigarettes, since one cigarette will not cause lung cancer, but smoking over months or years increases the risk. children who have violent thoughts or behaviors are most likely to be negatively affected by the exposure.
- Opines that children and teens should only be allowed to play violent games for about 1-2 hours and no more than three days a week. limiting their exposure to violence can help reduce the amount of aggression while still allowing them to enjoy the games.
- Concludes that violent video games can cause stress and aggression, which are negative behavior changes.
- Describes the six horrifyingly violent video games to keep your kids away from.
- Opines that violent video games could reduce rather than increase violence.
- Explains that mass killers often share obsession with violentvideo games. korte, travis, and nauert, rick, blame violent video games for promoting violence.
- Opines that video games lower stress hormones and make people aggressive.
1996 wordsRead More - Violence in Videogamesanalytical essayDespite the accusations from the media, video game violence does not lead to aggressive behavior in the teens of today. The youth with pre-existing conditions show no increase in aggression as well as the healthy teens in the results from Journal of Youth and Adolescence (Springer). The Journal of Youth and Adolescence disproves what the media believes the games actually cause. There are specifically 33 independent tests that researched the effects of aggression and the relation of violence in video games. The group tested 3,033 volunteers for increased aggression, but the tests came back with a significantly positive effect of these violent games (Weller 5). With the effect of causing it's players to have their aggression lowered and calming them greatly, it is a big blow to the media's point of view of these games. Sadly, there are a few teens who commit mass murders and violent video games seem like an easy target to blame as to the motivation behind their actions. Those teens are not healthy, they have a psychological problem that messes with their head and makes them think differently about the world and where they belong (Twemlow 41).
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the journal of youth and adolescence disproves what the media believes the games actually cause.
- Explains how ferguson and olson studied 377 american children who had clinically elevated attention deficit or depressive symptoms. selecting different ethnic groups and ages broadens the types of outcomes the testing receives.
- Explains that violent video games are a positive affect on teens. expert action gamers played first-person shooting games, whereas non-experienced players played "the sims 2.
- Opines that there is no evidence that playing a violent video game leads to aggressive behavior.
- Argues that violent video games are not the cause of violence and aggression among teens. the media will not stop wrongly accusing the violent games.
952 wordsRead More - Effect of Video Game Violence on Children and Teensanalytical essayToday’s youth is heavily influenced by the media. Video games, television, and movies make up a large part of the lives of children in America. These easily accessible forms of entertainment are lightly regulated by parents and the government; children and adolescents are exposed to extremely violent media everyday. “By the time the average American child reaches seventh grade, he or she will have witnessed 8,000 murders and 100,000 acts of violence on television. Some people say so much violence on television makes American society- including its children- more violent” (“Causes of School Violence” 1). Among the violent media, video games are the current trend. Although video games are rated by ESRB (the entertainment sof...
In this essay, the author
- Explains that violent video games can lead to aggressive behavior, desensitization, and an increase in crimes committed by children and teens in our society.
- Explains that today's youth is heavily influenced by the media. video games, television, and movies make up a large part of the lives of children in america.
- Explains that many parents overlook the ratings, and allow their children to play games intended for mature audiences. a survey of teens conducted in 2000 reveled that their parents never limited time spent playing video games.
- Explains that video games provide an interactive, accessible way for children to commit virtual crimes and experience violence. they can also be extremely addictive leading to prolonged negative exposure.
- Analyzes gallup poll's 2003 survey to determine the habits of adolescent video game players. the grand theft auto series was also brought under fire.
- Explains that children and adolescents are exposed to violent games more than any other type. video games provide them with visual stimulants that could influence their attitude about a subject, the way they behave, and their moral compass.
- Explains that children are naturally sensitive and caring, but become desensitized when repeatedly exposed to violence. violent video games reprogram a child's innocent conscience to become violent and aggressive.
- Explains that violent video games are an interactive simulator showing young people how to commit acts of violence.
- Analyzes how video games such as grand theft auto and saint's row encourage children and teens to perform acts of hostility by glorifying crime and rewarding players with in-game currency.
- Analyzes how the growing popularity of video games in america is causing a wider group of america's youth to become exposed to extreme violence.
- Cites anderson, craig a., and brad j. bushman, "effects of violent video games on aggressivebehavior, aggression, psychological arousal and prosocial behavior: a meta- analytic review of the scientific literature."
- Cites the washington post, reuters, crf-usa constitutional rightsfoundation, jenkins, henry, and nccev.
1699 wordsRead More - Video Game Violenceanalytical essayOne of the reasons for the concern is the popularity of video games, as is noted by Gale (2003), who cites both the widespread dissemination of violent video games and research showing that violent video games contribute to violent behavior. He states first that video games have become “one of the most popular and profitable types o...
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the issue of media violence on children extends back to the beginning of the mass media, with reference to films, radio, television, comic books, etc. popular sources and scholarly address this issue, asking how violent video games change children's behavior and make them more violent.
- Argues that violent video games have a detrimental effect because they require direct participation and involvement on the part of the young player, which affects behavior outside the game itself.
- Explains that gale (2003) cites video games as one of the most popular and profitable types of entertainment, and that 80 percent of u.s. households have rented or owned a video or computer game.
- Concludes that television violence and aggression among children are linked by the american psychological association, american academy of pediatrics, and american medical association.
- Analyzes how provenzo (1992) shows that concerns about this are not new, though the spread of such games has increased greatly over the past decade.
- Opines that video games are a means by which children can activate the "passive" medium of television.
- Explains that children acting out violent actions as television heroes may transfer this behavior to other situations. television heroes influence children's behavior, and the lesson learned can be even stronger.
- Cites kanellos' analysis that violent games may put the human brain in a fighting state, based on the study in which thirteen males played violent video games and were subjected to brain scans showing that eleven of the subjects showed effects "characteristic of aggressive thoughts."
- Explains that a research study from russia determines that most video games contain scenes of violence, killing, fighting, disasters, simple shooting games, and more complex games of strategy. grossman links this idea directly with the spate of school shootings.
- Explains that sheese and graziano conducted an experiment to examine the effect of video game violence on the specific issue of cooperative decision making.
- Analyzes van horn's view that games are training young people to be killers, and this idea has been accepted by many without a critical examination.
- Analyzes how van horn cites observers who do not see these games as being as harmful as they are made out, such as costikyan.
- Concludes that violent video games can contribute to violent behavior for some players, notably for young males who play for hours at a time. the degree of effect will vary greatly from person to person.
- Cites costikyan, g., federov, a.v. and funk, j.b.
- Cites gale, d., rosenman, and kanellos, m. (2005, october 12). violence in games stimulates brain for aggression.
1274 wordsRead More - Video Games: A Contemporary Scapegoatanalytical essayGames have miniscule, possibly even absent, scientific evidence for causing violence. Even though games do cause some aggression in laboratory studies, it is the same aggression that comes with any other competition, such as sports (Jayson). Whether the game in question is a frustrating Mario level or a difficult Grand Theft Auto mission, the aggression is not caused by the content. This is also a case of causation vs. correlation – do violent games cause violent people, or do violent people just choose violent games? Certainly, it’s the latter. If an individual is already obsessed with, say, rape, he or she will pursue media on that subject. In reality, the rate of school shootings has actually dropped since 1994, while the popularity of video games has exploded (Gerdes). Also, the results inside a laboratory do not alwa...
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how mortal kombat, one of the most popular fighting game franchises ever created, was hit with controversy for its heavy use of gore and the general fear it would influence children to reenact these so-called "fatalities."
- Explains that games cause aggression in laboratory studies, but it is the same aggression that comes with any other competition, such as sports. the rate of school shootings has dropped since 1994, while video games have exploded.
- Argues that violence in games is not worse than that found in other forms of media such as movies, music, and television.
- Explains that grand theft auto 5, call of duty: ghosts, and assassin's creed 4: black flag are among the best-selling video games of all time.
- Argues that video games cause violence because they are "death simulators". call of duty recreates the visual experience of a military mission, but they don't teach children how to kill.
- Explains that the esrb catalogues games by sexual content, violence and gore, language, controlled substances, and gambling. it has the highest compliancy rating of any media ratings system at 87%.
- Explains that while the esrb content ratings system is not perfect, it has proven effective enough to gain the approval of the government.
- Opines that video games are not just a shadow force to be fought; they have saturated themselves into our daily lives, with over 97% of teens playing violent games in 2008.
- Explains fisher, marc, and sirs issues researcher, "video-game creators in the crossfire."
- Narrates gonzalez, lauren, "when two tribes go to war: a history of video game controversy." gamespot.
- Argues that the media has taken a different approach to video games as an all-in-one reason for violence.
- Analyzes how politicians use the campaign against video games to promote their supposed involvement and care for the children.
- Analyzes benedetti, winda, bleeker, eric, and chalk, andy. "inappropriate content: a brief history of videogame ratings and the esrb."
- Describes the faqs about the entertainment software ratings board and friedman, emily.
- Analyzes guarini, drew, jayson, sharon, newton, david e., and prensky, marc. "don't bother me mom, i'm learning!"
- Explains that simpson, kevin, and jason blevins, "did harris preview massacre on 'doom? ", the denver post online, 4 may 1999.
2367 wordsRead More - Are Violent Video Games a Cause of the Bad Behavior in Children?opinionated essayThe allegation that videogames cause violent behavior in children has been present as long as videogames themselves. Some researchers said that the Sandy Hook shooter, Adam Lanza, was one intense gamer. “Seung-Hui Cho, the Virginia Tech Shooter was seen by his roomates as odd because he never joined them in video games.”(Beresin) This debate will continue to go on in this country as long as there are horrific crimes that occur. There is much written in the research regarding this issue, and many differing views. The research that is presented in the next few paragraphs supports the theory that it is not the graphic video games that produce aggressive behavior, but other factors in a child’s life that create violent actions.
In this essay, the author
- Opines that videogames intensify aggression in children, while others say it can be a safe getaway for children to express their aggression. a child's behavior can't be determined by violent video games.
- Opines that videogames cause violent behavior in children as long as they are played. the sandy hook shooter, adam lanza, was an intense gamer.
- Argues that there is not enough evidence that points to video games alone as the cause of delinquent activity.
- Explains that television and media may be an outside force that contributes to the delinquent behavior in children. dr. allison park's et al found television, but not electronic video games, showed a small increase in conduct problems.
- Explains that violent behavior comes from a lack of good parenting and other factors. in the supreme court case brown versus entertainment merchants association, parents were encouraged to look, play, limit, and control their children's activities during their play time.
- Explains that a three-year study in singapore found that children who played violent video games generally believed hitting someone was acceptable and had more aggressive tendencies than those who did not play the games.
- Opines that there is more research to be done regarding the topic of bad behavior related to video games.
- Opines that the sale of video games is a billion dollar industry, with millions of people playing them, especially young children. the positive effects are rarely mentioned, but when they are, they include an increase in cognitive ability, hand eye coordination, concentration and visual attention.
- Cites beresin, eugene, m.d.'s "inside out, outside in" and schwarzenegger v. entertainment merchants association.
- Explains that schwarzenegger v. ema. parks, allison, hele sweeting, danil wight, and et al. do television and electronic games predict children's psychosocial adjustment?
984 wordsRead More