Video game violence and aggression in American youth

Video Games and Violence

The level of integration of video games into the culture of the youth in the United States could not be clearer. One estimate stated that ninety-seven percent of twelve to seventeen-year-olds played a video game in 2008 (ESA, 2009). These figures suggest that virtually everyone in that specific demographic play video games. The economic result of the demand for video gaming has resulted in over an eleven billion dollar industry (2008) which is continually expanding (ProCon, N.d.). However, many of these games contain graphic violence and sexual content that deemed in appropriate for this demographic.

It is argued that this violence in the digital world can cause a host of negative implications in real life as well. When children are exposed to violence then this can work to desensitize them to the use of violence and violence can even be perceived as an acceptable way to resolve conflicts. The debate then revolves around the protection of children from this content and the role of first amendment rights to free speech and artistic expression. This analysis will look at the debate from both sides before making recommendations as to how the future of the industry should evolve.

Video Game Violence Contributes to Youth Violence

There are many factors that can be cited to illustrate how video gaming can have a detrimental effect on children and adolescents. One is simply the time dedicated to playing the games that can contribute to the obesity epidemic and isolation between friends and family members. Adolescents have been estimated to play video games for 50 hours a week, a 2010 survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation reports: "It's a full-time job plus 10 hours of overtime, and that's the average," said Douglas Gentile, a psychologist and director of the Media Research Lab at Iowa State University (Oskin, 2012). In an extreme example, a Columbus, OH, teen was rushed to the hospital with severe dehydration after playing "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" for up to five days straight (Oskin, 2012).

Therefore it is clear that the youth in general is devoting an enormous amount of time on gaming. However, beyond the sum of the time the youth devotes to gaming, the content of many of the games is equally as troubling. Many of these games contain violence, obscenities, and sexual content that can be detrimental to a developing mind. Several studies in both the United States and Japan have shown that, controlling for prior aggression, children who played more violent video games during the beginning of the school year showed more aggression than their peers later in the school year (Anderson, et al., 2008). Spending so much time playing violent video games can work to train the mind to develop scripts about violence that can create a predisposition to violent behaviors in the real world.

Conclusion

The evidence for the negative effects that violence in gaming can impart on an adolescent is not quite clear and is heavily debated. The video game could potentially desensitize some individuals to violence while at the same time allow others a place to vent their aggressive behaviors in a safe place that does not cause any bodily harm to others. There have even been some positive effects of this trend with children that are present in the literature such as it allows for children to build a sense of control that can reduce emotional and stressful responses to some events which actually could represent a positive aspect to desensitization.

The overall fall in the crime rates in these demographics also provides some evidence that the overall levels of violence in this demographic are rising and in fact they are falling rapidly. There seems to be enough evidence available that suggests that parents should approach violence in gaming cautiously and monitor what their children are doing. However, there is not enough evidence available to regulate violence in gaming from a legal perspective. Thus in this environment the role of the parent is paramount and they should monitor their child's gaming in general, even if it is without violence. If there is violence the parents should also talk openly with their children about the potential effects of this violence so that the risks are clear to everyone.