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Video games effects essay
Effects of video games on children and teenagers
Violent video game effects on children and adolescents
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Do you play video games? Or maybe your friend, your sibling, your child plays video games? From the earliest games, Pong and Pac-Man, to the most recent games, Star Craft II and Halo Reach, it has been about 40 years. Evolving with our technology, video games originally played on big arcade machines have moved to small consoles we see today, making it available to all those that can afford it. With the wide variety of old and new video games, it has become one of the most popular entertainment in the world, especially with the recent rise of social gaming made available by social website like “Facebook”, allowing video games to reach a much more broad audience from the very young to the very old. With so many people playing video games, video games, like television, soon became the topic of many controversies. Such as video game addiction, gender stereotypes, age of people playing video games, and video games in relation to aggressive behavior. After hearing all the controversies claiming that video games are a bad influence to the children, many parents started to prohibit or completely ban their kids from playing video games. But do video games really as bad an influence on the children as they say it does? No they don’t. Parent should not try to stop their children from playing video games based on the fact that they believe video games are an absolute bad influence on their children without actual research and proof. Let first discuss video game violence, does it really have an aggressive influence over the people that plays violent video games? On December 1, 1997, in Paducah, Kentucky, Michael Carneal, a fourteen-year-old boy, open fired on a prayer group at Heath High School with a stolen pistol. He manages to kill three... ... middle of paper ... ... Games May Violate Children's Health. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2003. Elisa, Hae-Jung Song and Jane E. Anderson. Violence in Video Games May Harm Children. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2003. Gutierrez, Karen Samples. "Michael Carneal." 14 9 2002. The Enquirer. 23 7 2010 . Hanson, Gayle M.B. "Insight on the News." 28 June 1999. FindArticles.com. 23 July 2010 . Mike Z. Yao, Chad Mahood, Daniel Linz. "Sex Roles." 22 9 2009. Springer.com. 23 7 2010 . NowChildren. Many Video Games Reinforce Gender Stereotypes. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2003. Walsh, David. Video Game Violence and Public Policy. 7 1 2007. 23 7 2010 .
Dill, Karen E. and Dill, Jody C. “Video Game Violence: A Review of the Empirical
Paulson, Ken. “How obscene is video game violence?” USA Today. USA Today, 2 November 2010. Web. 24 October 2011.
Children that play violent video games at such a young age will have a bad effect on them. “Not everybody who plays these games will become murderers, just as not everybody who smoke gets cancer” (Quittner, J). Every day people play with these games will have an effect on the way they look at things, they will begin to have aggressive thoughts, and they will begin to have a change in behavior. On average boys spend thirteen hours per week and girls spend five hours on video games. This amount of time a week will have a major effect of these children minds. “Violent video games effect people. They increase aggressive thoughts, angry feelings, and physical arousal symptoms.”(Rollins 1)
Ulanoff, Lance. “Violent Video Games: Our Responsibility, Not the Courts.” PC Magazine 29.12 (2010): 1. Academic Search Complete. Web. 9 Apr. 2014.
People 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.
FORD, WILLIAM K.1. "The Law And Science Of Video Game Violence: What Was Lost In Translation?." Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal 31.2 (2013): 297-356. OmniFile Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson). Web. 27 Nov. 2013.
The 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.
One of the fastest growing sectors in the United States economy, with sales over six billion dollars in 2012 is the video gaming industry ("Games: Improving the Economy’). Technical innovation has given the video industry power to create exciting realistic worlds, turning video games into the vast entertainment business that it is today. Setting sales records, Violent Video Games (VVG) are now a common staple in many households. One of the most argued topics in media studies, investigation on the impact violence has on society from mass media continues to rage on. Parents look to the media for reliable studies to confirm or distinguish the effects VVG has on children. Even more menacing than violence on television or in movie theaters, VVG have created enticing graphic worlds created to slaughter fellow players. Modern video games allow players to take an active role within the game. Enticing players to engage in realistic assault scenes that are meant to be entertaining. Worthy playing is then rewarded with: trophies, bonus points and extra lives.
In recent years, technology has developed very rapidly. This has led to many arguably both positive and negative changes in our everyday lives. One such change was the increased accessibility of personal computers and gaming consoles as well as the introduction of numerous video games. Due to their entertainment value, these games gained popularity among children and teenagers. Although many concerns have been voiced related to playing video games, especially those that are violent, [e.g., increases in aggressive behavior in children (Anderson & Bushman, 2001)], this paper will argue that certain video games also have beneficial effects. They should thus be played by children, teenagers and adults alike albeit with caution.
By far the largest concern of technology today is video games. There have been so many experiments and studies to try and figure out if video games have a negative or positive effect on our children. A growing body of research is linking violent video game play to aggressive cognitive, attitudes and behaviors (D.A. Gentile, 2004). Video games can obviously be dangerous for our children causing aggression, bad performances in school and obesity. Although we cant blame all of these problems on the use of video game...
One article points out that video games have a big impact on children’s lives and that many of the games played are violent. Researchers have found that “nearly all children spend time playing video games” and studies have found that “8th graders spent an average of 17 hours per week playing video games” (Tamborini 336). Moreover, 68% of the most popular video games contain violence (Tamborini 336). So it is clear that many children have access to violent video games and they have a big impact on their lives simply because of the amount of time spent playing them.
“Contrary to the claims that violent video games are linked to aggressive assaults and homicides, no evidence was found to suggest that this medium was a major (or minor) contributing cause of violence in the United States.” (Markey, 290)
Over the past 30 years, playing video games has become one of the most popular hobbies worldwide. Not only has the video game industry become a multi-billion dollar industry, but it has attracted people from all age types. While video games today are played by both kids and adults, there are many issues being raised regarding the effects of video games. More particular, is the effect that violent video games may be having on children. Some critics argue that video games are direct indicators of child aggression while video game supporters argue that there is no direct link between child aggression and violent video games. While many people have their own personal stances, this issue is unique because it is unfolding everyday. Scientists and researchers all over the world are continuously doing research regarding the effects of video games on children. Even though this remains a field of uncertainty for researchers, parents should definitely be involved in being aware of what it is that they’re children are playing when they play video games.
One of the greatest inventions of all time is video games. Video games have been around for many years, and throughout the years, it has been getting better and better. With technology, video games have been getting better and more. Video games also have become more and more violent, and have bought up much concern. Do video games have an impact on children and young teens? There have been many research that led to controversy. Video games have an impact on children and young teens it causes aggressive behavior. Research states that video games can help with team work and patient. Video games have been around for many years and it has been getting better with technology, but there are concerns if the violent video games have an impact on
The question is, “Do violent video games influence children to act aggressively?” and “Can repetitive killing train a person to be violent himself?” 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.