Do Video Games Cause Violent Behavior?
Certainly, the modern era of technology has completely changed the video game entertainment. Video games normally comprise of human interaction with electronic devices and an outstanding fact with a video game is that a player or gamer cannot surrender to a predefined story line instead, they are designed for gamers to actively engage with their devices which also react to player moves. Video games can be played physically or in an online platform. Video gaming has mainly fascinated children, for instance today, in US, 91% of children aged 2-17 play video games. However, a controversy arises in video games have incorporated tendency of violence acts in its games which has been subject of discussion in the intellectual realm as compared to gamer behaviors. I believe that video games will not cause violent behavior without other risk factors being involved.
Video games are meant to be relaxing and a mode of entertainment; however, there has been controversy on the effects of video games with actual violence contents. The proponents are adamant that video games content with violence acts have direct negative consequences on the gamer character. Thus, while noting that explanations related to violent video game is learnt objectively, because of certain elements of violent video game playing such as interaction, repetition and the actual playing of the role of aggressor, the effects may be stronger and patterns of behavior can be observed (Warburton, 2010). In dealing with the psychology of violent video game effects on gamers, an element, which stands out, is imitation or mimicking acts learnt and observed while gaming. Although Imitation facilitates fast learning of behaviors, and in human bonding, imitation of violence has a negative consequence (Warburton, 2010).
Therefore, mimicking violent acts does have any cross relation with the video games, this can be illustrated by looking at a scenario. In 2003, Devin Moore, an 18-year-old male from Alabama, murdered three police officers after being arrested for carjacking. It is alleged that he had indicated to the police in his statement “Life is like a video game. Everybody’s got to die sometime”. Clearly form this scenario; some acts observed or learnt in a video game can lead to real casualty when a gamer imitates or mimics the act. Apart from, mimicking other factors that may lead a gamer to violent act include, identifying with a character in a video game, repeating and re-enacting the entire behavior or act and the high interactivity of video games (Warburton, 2010).
On the other hand, the antagonists are adamant that no single evidence that has been laid forward to collectively agree that video games with violent acts have direct negative impact on gamers behavior, instead, when analyzed from children’s and adolescent’s perspective it is the length of time consumed in playing video games rather than game genre that affect behavior. Instead, spending more time playing video games has a direct relation with a child’s school performance and gamers’ social ability (Granic et al., 2014). Supervision and limited control will significantly reduce the instances of violence in gaming especially on the adolescents (Granic et al., 2014). Furthermore, in absence of content that portray villains as powerful, less sympathetic or even powerful (such traits induces a gamer character), video games would have zero violent consequences on the gamer.
In a conclusion, video games with violent acts does not influence behaviors in a negative way, only when a gamer mimic the actual scenes in a game to a real case, however, no solid report indicate a direct relationship of the same (Granic et al., 2014). Therefore, parents and guardians should monitor, proscribe a game, or attend to initial tendency of violent behavior and hardly would there be any relation between violent video games and actual acts of violence. Therefore, this essay asserts that there is minimal connection between violent video games and the actual violence acts.
References
Granic, I. Lobel, A. Rutger C. M. E. (2014). The Benefits of Playing Video Games. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/amp-a0034857.pdf
Warburton, W. & Braunstein, D. (2010). Growing Up Fast and Furious: Reviewing the Impacts of Violent and Sexualized Media on Children, (pp. 56-84) Chapter 3. Annandale, NSW, Australia: The Federation Pres. http://public.psych.iastate.edu/caa/abstracts/2010-2014/12aw.pdf