Children and video games - Essay Example

Reducing Video Games Frutoz-deHarneC English 101 M3 A3 Argosy I. Introduction Video games are a product of the present advancement in technology, and these are popular among children today. However, their addictive nature and focus on violence result in risks and negative influence in children. It is essential to research the negative effects, which are realized in children who play video games, and develops possible strategies, which might be used to address the negative effects. Overall, this also assesses the impact of video games on children.

Video games would have been a good form of entertainment for children, however, the violent content they have has a negative influence in society, as this paper will show. The given paper will prove that Video Games expose children to a number of risks. II. Supporting Points A. The violent content of video games is the cause of the negative influence they have on children. i) This makes children to develop aggressive behavior, including vengeance. ii) Repetitive watching of violent video games with reward systems, such as Death Race, Mortal Combat, and Doom teaches violence, since they control the games. iii) This influence makes children to commit crime in future (Ferguson, 2010). B. Violent games provoke social exclusion of children, as they will not spare time for homework and interaction with friends.

This also affects their health negatively. i) Children spend more time at home. ii) Children have sedentary life. C. Video games do not inculcate positive social values in children i) Video games do not encourage negotiations and nonviolent solutions in children. ii) Video games portray women as weaker sex and sexually provocative. D. Video games make children live in a fantasy world and they do not think about their future. i) Children might fail to do their assignments, thus become lazy, and develop issues with teachers in school. ii) Video games result in poor academic performance, due to their addictive nature. iii) Video games might lead to impulsive behavior and concentration challenges (Sweeney, 2008).

III. Counter-arguments A. Video games have a positive effect on children’s brains i) Video games require skills and tactics to play, thus develops child’s brain. ii) Mental skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, fine motor, and spatial skills are acquired. B. Video games increase bonding between parents and children i) If a parent plays with the child, they bond more. ii) Video games increases interactivity and creativity in children. iii) Video games enhance self-esteem and confidence. iv) Playing as a group boosts coordination in children (Kooijmans, 2004). IV) Response to Counter-arguments i) Since video games have considerable benefits, if allowed they should be controlled. ii) Provide a variety of entertainment to children to avoid addiction to video games. iii) Regulate the amount of time children play video games. iv) Observe children’s behavior to ascertain effects of video games on them. V. Conclusion We can see that violence in video games make children to be vulnerable in future.

Children might become bullies. Influence from video games could have contributed to recent school shooting in the U.S.Sexual content in some video games might make children to engage in sexual immorality  References  Ferguson, Christopher; John Kilburn. (2010). "Much Ado About Nothing: The Misestimation and Overinterpretation of Violent Video Game Effects in Eastern and Western Nations: Comment on Anderson et al. (2010)". Psychological Bulletin 136 (2); Sweeney, James. (2008)."Home - Entertainment: Grand Theft Auto IV expected to delight fans and outrage critics".

Cleveland Plain Dealer; Kooijmans, Thomas A. (2004). .Effects of Video Games on Aggressive Thoughts and Behaviors During Development Rochester Institute of Technology.