Video Games Leading to more Violence?
In this day and age, technology most certainly has become an integral part of our life. Modern day technology has undoubtedly made our daily lives much more efficient while bringing us more convenience and flexibility along the way. The evolution of technology has also changed the way we socialize, entertain ourselves, and now quite possibly the way we behave.
The existence of video games began approximately 65 years ago. What began as a simple “Cathode Ray Tube Amusement Device” has now transformed itself into modern day video game platforms. These platforms consist of using a personal computer, video game consoles, arcade games, and smartphones as a fundamental requirement to run the video game software. Video games along with modern day technology have now joined forces to create high definition video with high end graphics to deliver a realistic virtual gaming experience.
The ultimate gaming experience however, comes with consequence and is now finding itself in the midst of a controversial issue. The controversial issue suggests that video games are encouraging violent behaviours amongst youth. Video game violence was a subject heavily debated in the past. The primary concern was whether such exposure poses significant risk factors for aggressive and violent behaviours. On the contrary side many believed that the competitiveness in games caused such behaviours, not the game itself. Results back then were inconclusive, but more or less, violence in video games became more acceptable. However, improvements to modern day technology and the development of new generation video games reinvigorated the debate.
Two features of video games fuel renewed interest by researchers, public policy makers, and the general public. The active role required by playing video games is a double-edged sword. Firstly, for the positive side, educational video games are excellent teaching tools for motivational
Bibliography: Marko M. Skoric, Grace Kwan. Do Facebook and Video Games Promote Political. 2011. 3 Mar 2012.