Violence and Its Impact upon Adolescents: An Inquiry into the Effects of Video Games - Research Paper Example

 Violence and Its Impact Upon Adolescents: An Inquiry into the Effects of Video Games Although violence has always been a discernable and visible part of the human experience, the proliferation of violence in video games has provided a paradigm shift in the way that the shareholder, namely adolescents engage with an understanding of this representation within the reality of culture and entertainment that such a medium represents. Ultimately, the scope and level of the violence that is represented along with the increased total viewing/playing hours that adolescents within society are engaging with means that the level and extent to which this violence is represented has increased exponentially over time (Gauthier et al., 2014). However, before delving further into the nature of violence and its effect as represented within video games, it is important to qualify that regardless of the effect that violence within media could have on the individual, it cannot and should not be blamed for all extant violence that exists due to the fact that violence and its representation within human society has far predated the first exhibition of television or video games in general (Gershenfeld, 2014). In short, this exponential growth creates a unique dynamic with regards to overall impact and demand that whatever theory which is used to define this is fully cognizant and aware of the exponential scale of violence which is under discussion. One of the most important aspects of the effects of the media on the adolescent mind is the way in which it causes a degree of exposure and acceptance of violent actions as a reasonable and expected means of conflict resolution. Many studies have looked into the explosion of anger and aggression issues that have been represented lately and made convincing links and parallels to the extent to which the representation of violence within media, and specifically video games, have contributed to the rise in the prevalence of these issues. However, regardless of the particular study that has been analyzed, most authors and researchers have agreed that children and adolescent exposure to violence plays an integral part in the ultimate expression of violent behavior; or at the very least integrates an understanding among the shareholder that violent expression is an acceptable means of conflict resolution within society and culture (Hartmann et al., 2014). One of the primal difficulties that has been enumerated upon by many researchers is the fact that it is difficult to engage appropriate research and measurement tools on the effected populations due to the fact that few parents want to admit that their children have the run of the house and play whatever types of games they wish. Due to such a constraint, seeking to gain reasonable inference on the amount of violent video game hours consumed each and every day makes it difficult to draw a link between the percentages of violence exhibited within this programming and the exhibition of violence, aggressive or behavioral issues within the individual becomes increasingly difficult. Moreover, one out of two children has a television with a video game console within their bedroom; this of course provides instant access to the adolescent to a wide array of violence in the form of violent video games. It should of course not be considered that all video games that the adolescent will engage with is violent in nature; however, the fact of the matter is that the average American adolescent will view approximately 200,000 acts of violence which includes over 16,000 murders prior to the age of 18 years. Due to the fact that the proliferation of violence within the current media is at such a high level, the extent and exposure that the adolescent is expected to realize will most likely only continue to grow over time. Moreover, studies have indicated that the average time spent playing video games for the adolescent will soon exceed 18 hours per week (Ferguson, 2014). As such, the researcher can readily note that the constant increase in the level of media proliferation into the lives of adolescents combined with the ever-increasing levels in which violence is exhibited within video game programming. Violence, as with sex, is something of a vicarious experience. Whereas it is obvious that it is illegal for an individual to venture out on the streets and engage in an argument with someone that they find offensive – eventually coming to blows and knocking out this individual – this vicarious experience can be had via the litany of different violent video games, television programs, and other representations about that exist within society. In such a manner, the angst and frustration that individuals feel at any given time is able to be vicariously experience through such representations of violence. Even though organized society has come a long way, and individuals are arguably more involved now than at any other point in the past, this basic desire to solve any and all confrontation with violent means is an innate facet of humanity that will not likely disappear anytime in the near future. The impacts of this permeation of violence is of course a society that continues to keep violence front and center within their own minds; sustaining it to a stature that it would otherwise not received. Whereas violence is a determinant aspect of human evolution and provide something of a historical recollection point through which confrontation can be solved, it must also be understood that different societies integrate with violence and different manners. It is arguable that the globalizing influence of Western media has gone a long way in negatively impacting the extent to which violence is represented within cultures throughout the world. From a range of Hollywood films, violent action stars such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Bruce Willis, and a litany of others are representative of individuals around the globe as indicative of the ideal and dynamic macho man. The repercussions of this representation reverberate within society as violence begets violence and individuals come to a realization and appreciation for the fact that disputes and disagreements can be solved in the same way that they are solved in film and within the media. This represents a further issue due to the fact that although movie ratings and restrictions in theaters can effectively reduce the overall number of theater attendees that are underage and unable to view the violent content of certain movies, the ability of the system to ensure that these violent video games do not fall into the wrong hands is necessarily constrained. As such, one can easily have a friend purchase the game for them or merely let them loan it. Due to the fact that the companies that produce this material are fully aware of the fact of who their consumer base is, they are further unwilling to take the necessary steps to remove much of this content from the direct availability of the consumer market due to the fact that it will ultimately hurt their profit margins. References Ferguson, C. J. (2014). Is video game violence bad?. Psychologist, 27(5), 324-327. Gauthier, J. M., Zuromski, K. L., Gitter, S. A., Witte, T. K., Cero, I. J., Gordon, K. H., & ... Joiner, T. (2014). The Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide and Exposure to Video Game Violence. Journal Of Social & Clinical Psychology, 33(6), 512-535. doi:10.1521/jscp.2014.33.6.512 Gershenfeld, A. (2014). MIND GAMES. Scientific American, 310(2), 54-59. Hartmann, T., Krakowiak, K., & Tsay-Vogel, M. (2014). How Violent Video Games Communicate Violence: A Literature Review and Content Analysis of Moral Disengagement Factors. Communication Monographs, 81(3), 310-332. doi:10.1080/03637751.2014.922206 Read More