How Are Violent Video Games Affecting Young People?

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“YOU SUCK!” “I killed him!” “Head shot!” These are just a few examples of dialogue spoken by children while they are playing violent video games. These video games might seem like harmless fun, but what if the violence in these games is affecting the behavior of young players interacting with others?
In a society driven by technology, video games are becoming more popular each and everyday. People of all ages enjoy video games in their free time; these games allow the player to become an athlete, a soldier, or a professional fighter at the tip of their fingers. The hugest problem with these video games is they are becoming too violent. In today’s society, kids often brag about the new video game they brought, and the number of people they’ve managed to kill while playing these games. Video games have become more and more realistic, causing them to intrigue more and more children. Many of these violent video games encourage killing and fighting of enemies, or strangers in the game. Each year a new game system, and hundreds of video games are released, and millions of kids go out and buy them.
The question is do violent video games influence children to act aggressively? And can repetitive killing train a person to be violent himself? Statistics have shown that the violence amongst young people has been increasing every year, conversely, so has the number of violent video games. Although the violence in these video games is fictional, research has proven the violence to lead to more aggressive behavior in children. Violent acts depicted in these games allow young children to believe that killing and fighting is acceptable and fun.
Violence in Video Games
As technology evolves the violence in video games has grown. Video games h...

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... Games on Players' Hostile Expectations, Aggressive Thoughts and Feelings, and Other Responses. Journal Of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 57(2), 224-241. doi:10.1080/08838151.2013.787078

Saleem, M., Anderson, C. A., & Gentile, D. A. (2012). Effects of Prosocial, Neutral, and Violent Video Games on Children's Helpful and Hurtful Behaviors. Aggressive Behavior, 38(4), 281-287. doi:10.1002/ab.21428

Teng, S., Chong, G., Siew, A., & Skoric, M. M. (2011). Grand Theft Auto IV Comes to Singapore: Effects of Repeated Exposure to Violent Video Games on Aggression. Cyberpsychology, Behavior & Social Networking, 14(10), 597-602. doi:10.1089/cyber.2010.0115

Willoughby, T., Adachi, P. C., & Good, M. (2012). A longitudinal study of the association between violent video game play and aggression among adolescents. Developmental Psychology, 48(4), 1044-1057. doi:10.1037/a0026046

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