Violence in Video Games
The Correlation Between Playing Violent Video Games and Physical Aggression in Adolescents
Anna Phelps
Chatham University
The Correlation Between Playing Violent Video Games and Physical Aggression in Adolescents
A critical analysis of violence and aggression in the United States is an issue commonly debated by psychologists, government agency officials, and many university researchers. This topic has also been separated into many specific categories in the general media such as violence in movies, schools, and video games. Specifically there has been a great deal of focus on the relationship between violent video games and violent behavior in the United States. Our society is concerned with the increase of public awareness in regard to school shootings and other local acts of violence. However, these acts of violence are known in the media to be caused by young males, which could allude to why some think that violent video games have a correlation with acts of violence. However, research shows no direct correlation between violent video games and physical violence in adolescents.
These acts also threaten people’s sense of humanity. Recently Columbine (Colorado High school shooting), and Newtown (Connecticut Elementary shooting) became target areas of violence where the perpetrators were young males. Both of these instances of violence brought a new heaviness to the hearts of all Americans. From that fear, many people seemed to lose a little more faith in society, a fact which brought up the thought, ‘Who, if anyone, is trustworthy when it comes to the safety of their children as well as themselves?’ This notion progressed into minimal, or sometimes primary, blame on the media. Video games, a genre of this media, were a target, but research has proven no connection between physical acts of violence and the playing of violent video games. In the New York Times article, Shooting in the Dark, Benedict Carey states, “The issue [video games] is
Anna Phelps
Chatham University
The Correlation Between Playing Violent Video Games and Physical Aggression in Adolescents
A critical analysis of violence and aggression in the United States is an issue commonly debated by psychologists, government agency officials, and many university researchers. This topic has also been separated into many specific categories in the general media such as violence in movies, schools, and video games. Specifically there has been a great deal of focus on the relationship between violent video games and violent behavior in the United States. Our society is concerned with the increase of public awareness in regard to school shootings and other local acts of violence. However, these acts of violence are known in the media to be caused by young males, which could allude to why some think that violent video games have a correlation with acts of violence. However, research shows no direct correlation between violent video games and physical violence in adolescents.
These acts also threaten people’s sense of humanity. Recently Columbine (Colorado High school shooting), and Newtown (Connecticut Elementary shooting) became target areas of violence where the perpetrators were young males. Both of these instances of violence brought a new heaviness to the hearts of all Americans. From that fear, many people seemed to lose a little more faith in society, a fact which brought up the thought, ‘Who, if anyone, is trustworthy when it comes to the safety of their children as well as themselves?’ This notion progressed into minimal, or sometimes primary, blame on the media. Video games, a genre of this media, were a target, but research has proven no connection between physical acts of violence and the playing of violent video games. In the New York Times article, Shooting in the Dark, Benedict Carey states, “The issue [video games] is
Cited: Carey, Benedict. 12 Feb. 2013. "Shooting in the Dark." The New York Times. The New York Times. <http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/science/studying-the-effects-of-playing-violent-video-games.html?pagewanted=1>. Straub, Richard O., David G. Myers, and Cornelius Rea. 2013. Study Guide to Accompany David G. Myers Psychology Tenth Edition in Modules. New York: Worth.