A Child's Aggressive Behaviour and Thoughts due to Games - Research Paper Example

How Violent Video Games Have a Negative Effect on Child Development Numerous studies have demonstratedplaying violent video games such as Manhunt, Grand Theft Auto, or Thrill Kill can increase a child’s aggressive behavior and thoughts in both a laboratory setting and in the home. Additionally, playing violent video games could be more harmful than viewing violent television movies or shows because these games are especially engrossing, interactive, and necessitate the player to relate in a personal way with the violent characters within the game. Infamous events have produced broad debate regarding the negative effects of video game violence. For example, a national conversation ensued regarding what relationship video games had to the Columbine High School massacre in 1999 when two students massacred 13 and wounded 23 before committing suicide. Though many motivations were probably involved, it is not practically feasible to identify exactly what provoked these teenagers to gun down their schoolmates and teachers but violent video games were and continue to be mentioned as a contributing factor. These two students had frequently played Doom, a bloody and brutal firearms game which is used by the U.S. military to instruct the armed forces how to kill with more effectiveness. To what extent this particular video game influenced the actions of these two high school students has been debated since this tragic incident. The entertainment medium, it is generally accepted, is an enormously influential dynamic in everyone’s lives. “What behaviors children and adults consider appropriate comes, in part, from the lessons we learn from television and the movies” (Huesmann & Miller, 1994). It is logical to expect video games, especially those that depict violence, will have similar and perhaps a more extensive effect on violent behavior. Currently, few studies exist which have comprehensively examines the connection between violent video games and violent actions by children. As video games are increasingly becoming more explicit and brutal as well as more widespread, additional research is needed concerning the effects on the easily influenced minds of the children who play them and a clearer explanation to parents of the risks associated with these violent games. Not everyone agrees that video games lead to violent behavior. For example, according to James Potter, the Bugs Bunny and Roadrunner shows alone exhibited more instances of explicit violence than kid’s witness today during an afternoon of playing video games. Watching violent acts, particularly those in the realm of make-believe, do not automatically translate to violent acts. “When certain motives or cues occur in a child’s real-life environment, the child will not be able to make the association between those cues and the image he or she saw in the media. Thus children seem to be protected from an imitation effect because they do not understand the significance of violence as a tool for solving problems and do not see the utility in imitating it” (Potter, 2002, P. 75). Children today as yesterday fully recognize the difference between reality and what they are seeing or experiencing on the television screen whether it’s a cartoon or game they are playing. There is currently no scientific data to conclusively tell whether or not playing a violent video game heightens a child’s susceptibility for aggressive thought. When video games initially appeared about 35 years ago, they were basic and seemingly harmless. With the introduction of the game Pong, Atari pioneered the video game during the 1970’s. Pong was the video game version of table tennis. In the 1980’s arcade games such as Pac-Man and Asteroids were popular. The seemingly innocuous nature of video games markedly turned from cartoon-like ghost munching to brazen violence in the 1990’s. The most popular game of 1993, Mortal Kombat, featured accurate depictions of human-like characters engaged in bloody battles. The objective of the player in the game, as the name implies, was to kill the enemy competitor. Violent games even more so than Mortal Kombat dominate today’s video game market. Near the end of that decade, a study tested 33 of the most popular Sega and Nintendo video games and determined nearly 80 percent were violent. (Dietz, 1998). The study also discovered that a troubling 21 percent of the games depicted violence towards women. It has also been revealed that playing a violent video game encourages the inclination of experiencing aggressive thought patterns by the ‘semantic priming process.’ “We know from related research that merely seeing a picture of a gun or other weapon can increase the accessibility of aggressive thoughts” (Anderson et al, 1996). Current research reveals that aggressive behaviors occur both in everyday life circumstances and during controlled studies using independent, scientific methods; the playing of violent video games undeniably correlated to an increase of violent behavior. Other research was conducted which studied the video game patterns of college students during their four year career which showed that when playing in ordinary, dorm-room surroundings, playing violent video games for a period of four years was the instigating factor in more incidences of aggressive behavior. This increase took place, not just during the playing of the game but in other aspects of the student’s lives too. Both studies showed that violent video games negatively affected a person’s present emotional condition increasing feelings of anger and hostility. The comparable findings of these different studies give additional credibility to the assertion that exposure to violent video games encourages aggressive behavior. Though the tendency for increased violent behaviors by playing violent video games cannot be unquestionably or scientifically determined on the basis of two studies, this evidence corroborates the results of similar research. (Calvert & Tan, 1994). When playing a video game that utilizes ‘first person’ interaction, the player usually chooses a virtual character whose personality that player identifies with. By controlling the action of their character the player typically tries to see the game from their character’s point of view. The player ‘becomes’ the character, which increases the players enjoyment of the game. Anyone who has witnessed two teen boys playing video games has seen them imagining they are the character they are controlling. The second rationale involves the enthusiastic participation while playing these games. Studies suggest that regularly behaving in an aggressive manner as a youth usually predicts future aggressive behaviors. “The active role of the video game player includes choosing to act in an aggressive manner. This choice and action component of video games may well lead to the construction of a more complete aggressive script than would occur in the more passive role assumed in watching violent movies or TV shows” (Geen, Stonner & Shope, 1975). A third rationale concerns violent video games’ addictive quality and the harmful mental consequences that result from repetitiveness. The reinforcement features of violent video games enhance the learning and therefore performing of aggressive scripts. Video games are “the perfect paradigm for the induction of addictive behavior” (Braun & Girioux, 1989, p. 101). Instead of taking responsibility for their kids’ action or their own poor parenting skills, parents often look for the easiest target to place blame. “We are a country full of finger pointers. When tragedy occurs, we blame the media, the movie industry, the video game industry; the list goes on and on. However, no one bothers to look in the most obvious place, the mirror” (Potter, 2002 P. 3). Most often, it is the parents who buy violent video games for their children then allow the game and the television to baby-sit their children. If they were concerned about a connection between video violence and real-life violence, then why did they make the purchase to begin with and why do they allow violent cartoons to be watched over and over again or own a television, video game or computer at all? Truth is most parents find the idea ridiculous that a game could cause their children to act inappropriately but when they do, they place blame on an inanimate object to reflect the blame away from themselves, where it rightfully belongs. Of course, images on television to play some part in the development of a child but it are hardly the main influence. “The media should not be regarded as blameless merely because there are other sources of blame. This is an example of partial understanding” (Potter, 2002 P. 3). Many factors play a role in child development, some more so than others. To make the blanket statement that ‘video games cause violent outcomes in kids not already predisposed to violence acts at least to some degree’ is a simplistic and lazy assessment of the situation. Parents teach their children to think critically, to examine several points of view and possibilities before making a determination but do not employ these tactics when blaming video games for violent behavior. “We need to get the past the limitation of searching for single causes, life is more complicated than that. There are many factors that shape who we are, and the media are in important, but not the sole factor in that shaping” (Potter, 2002 P. 3). Violent video games provide a convincing and additive vehicle that conditions children’s minds to use aggressive means to resolve conflicts. Evidence indicates that the effects of violent video games appear to be cognitive. The short-term playing of violent video games appears to influence aggression by prompting violent thoughts. Long-term effects are likely to have longer lasting effects. The player is first trained by the game then practices similar aggressive deeds which become progressively easier for the brain to recapture on a sub-conscious level. This added aggression is tapped consciously when the person is confronted in real-life situations by aggravating circumstances in the short and long-term future. Repeated use of violent video games has been revealed to, in effect, modify the player’s fundamental personality makeup. The effect of the interactive learning setting video game presents is more influential than the more broadly studied television and movie media. With improved realism and the increasing trend to include greater amounts of graphic violence in games, persons that play in addition to persons who buy violent video games should be educated to the potential consequences. (Yorke, (Kelly) 2009)Works Cited Anderson, C. A.; Anderson, K. B.; & Deuser, W. E. “Examining an Affective Aggression Framework: Weapon and Temperature Effects on Aggressive Thoughts, Affect, and Attitudes.” Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. Vol. 22, pp. 366-76. (1996). Braun, C. & Giroux, J. “Arcade Video Games: Proxemic, Cognitive and Content Analyses.” Journal of Leisure Research. Vol. 22, pp. 92-105. (1989). Calvert, S. L. & Tan, S. “Impact of Virtual Reality on Young Adults’ Physiological Arousal and Aggressive Thoughts: Interaction Versus Observation.” Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology. Vol. 15, pp. 125-39. (1994). Dietz, T. L. “An Examination of Violence and Gender Role Portrayals in Video Games: Implications for Gender Socialization and Aggressive Behavior.” Sex Roles. Vol. 38, pp. 425-42. (1998). Geen, R. G.; Stonner, D.; & Shope, G. L “The Facilitation of Aggression by Aggression: Evidence Against the Catharsis Hypothesis.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Vol. 31, pp. 721-26. (1975). Huesmann, L.R. & Miller, L.S. “Long-Term Effects of Repeated Exposure to Media Violence in Childhood.” Aggressive Behavior: Current Perspectives. L.R. Huesmann (Ed.). New York: Plenum Press. (1994). Potter, W. James. (2002) “The 11 Myths of Media Violence” Sage Publications, Inc York, Aaron (July 18, 2009) “Videogames are sometimes good for you according to science” April 9, 2011 < http://www.thatvideogameblog.com/2009/06/18/videogames-are-sometimes-good-for-you-according-to-science/> Read More