Violent video games and child aggression

Survey finds 75 percent of parents think violent video games contribute to actual violence.

By Charyn Pfeuffer - MSN Living Editor Jan 16, 2013 9:40PM

Little more than one month has passed since the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut and the world still grieves for the 26 lives lost.

As the community of Newtown and the nation struggle to make sense of the devastation, gun control, mental health issues and violent video games have all been called into question. Groups like Sandy Hook Promise call for a ‘national conversation’ and President Obama is rolling out plans to curb gun violence, but the search for solutions on how to avoid a repeat incident remains.

In the days following the shooting, details unfolded surrounding Adam Lanza, the 20-year-old Newtown shooter, his “strange” behavior and “obsession” with violent video games kept surfacing. Lanza lived at his mother's colonial-style mansion, where he had two of the house's four bedrooms – one for himself and the other for the computer where he played violent video games, reports the The Telegraph.
According to express.co.uk, Lanza's favorite video game was said to be a shockingly violent fantasy war game called Dynasty Warriors. Was it a game or easy access to a deadly arsenal of guns – he reportedly learned how to shoot after his mother took him to local ranges - that inspired Lanza to carry out the deadly massacre?

The topic of virtual violence resulting in real life aggression has long been controversial. Are these games simply a fun hobby, or for children who may already be mentally or emotionally unstable, do these games have the ability to push someone over the edge?

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A new survey from Common Sense Media found that 75 percent of parents think violent video games contribute to actual violence. 1,050 people were surveyed, and 89 percent of them say violence in video games is a problem. (45 percent say it's a major problem; 44 percent say it's a minor problem.)

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"There is a real harm in children having exposure to violence, such as playing violent video games," says Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Debra Kissen, Ph.D., M.H.S.A. of Chicago, IL. "By playing violent video games, children (and adults) become desensitized to this content and therefore experience less of an emotional reaction to violence," says Kissen. "Therefore, violent behavior becomes normalized and becomes a more reasonable alternative when experiencing a conflict."

News: Gun group: Our industry didn't cause Newtown

Jason Schreier, Editor of Kotaku, the Gamer's Guide challenges the Common Sense Media survey findings and the association between violent video game use and violence.

Bing: How to tell if your child is emotionally disturbed

“There have been no scientific studies that connect violent video games to violence,” he wrote on the site. “There have been studies that connect violent video games to aggression (more on that in the near future), but there is absolutely zero evidence, according to leading researchers in this field, that links violent video games to violent crime in any way.”

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803Comments

Newest

Jan 17, 2013 7:00PM

Another point that I think should be incorporated is that there are plenty of things that can cause desensitization, including our media. While I still have empathy for the families, there are several factors that make it of no real issue for me. First is the reality that while none of these experiences have happened to me or near me, I may find the story disturbing and wish the best for the victims, but am overall unaffected. Call it what you wish but location and the personal nature of the crime is an emotional trigger, where the humanity sets in with the reality of ones situation. Second, I have begun to notice, at least within myself and the society around me, that while these are horrifying events, the more they happen and the more they are paraded day in and day out on television and other media outlets, the less affected we as a society on a whole are. I think we should regulate how long and how much the media broadcasts on these situations if we are to curb some problems. Not only does it become normal to hear these tragic stories week after week, sometimes day after day, but it also attracts a crowd of disturbed people. When I say disturbed, I mean sick individuals, looking to exploit their crimes in a manner that brings them some form of personal satisfaction, by becoming 'famous', or even fulfilling other character defects or desires. I am all for the freedom of speech and media, but I think maybe our corporate media giants should analyze the effects of being to open and honest. Let me share something I have written.

Waterfalls

"Water always falls, it is how it falls that determines how much damage it does."

There is a such thing as being to honest.

I would also like to point out that quite a few people have commented on the lack of discipline within our society and I quite agree. America, please tell me when we stopped being parents? Police officers and military members that are station home side carry weapons all the time and do not commit these heinous acts. Why? because they more than likely grew up under a firm and steady house hold, and went in to a career that also taught what? DICIPLINE.

Previous replies

hk71

Jan 17, 2013 7:00PM

The game was Dynasty Warriors that he liked and that game only had old cannons in it at worst nothing like assault rifles or anything like that so it has nothing to do with the video games. He had mental problems and his mother is the one to blame she brought him to the gun range and had the weapons at her house knowing her son had mental conditions.

Previous replies

PatS11

Jan 17, 2013 6:59PM

Take a violent game or movie and mix it with crazy and guess what you get, a nut who thinks he's a super hero killing innocent people.

Previous replies

mmp13

Jan 17, 2013 6:59PM

I agree, people kill people. Still, if you play or watch violence as entertainment, how do you seperate the real from the fake. Sandy Hook tragedy was horrific! How can you say "how horrible!" and then go home and sit and play a game with violence or buy a ticket to see it play out on film. Please explain why when it happens for real its a tragedy but then quickly turn around and use it as entertainment just b/c its "not" real. Really? If its not acceptable when its real then it shouldn't be acceptable as entertainment!

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Alex Ru

Jan 17, 2013 6:58PM

Yes violent video games absolutely influence behavior and emotions. Billion or trillion dollar entertainment businesses around the world have been successfully doing it .Anyone who says anything contrary to that is lying. When you see a sad movie ...you get emotionally sad. When you see a scary movie ...you get scared and jumpy with the music and the scene. You laugh when something is funny even if it's not real or ridiculous. You go to an amusement park and get scared or have numerous visual scenes which cause an emotional reaction. Your mind and your emotions react to whatever visuals or sounds even when you know you are sitting safely in a building. Yet the visual settings and the seating movements and sounds cause you to experience an emotional reaction to what you are subjected to. How about a song it too influences us.

Video games absolutely desensitize children over and over again because they play games that cause violent bloody deaths to opponents. While they jab with a button or joystick at the opponent you hear the loser painfully screaming in agony and visual pain. How can anyone rationally say it doesn’t affect them? Have you not ever seen something so gory that it stays with you? Well then how can anyone say that constantly seeing violence doesn’t desensitize you?

I agree there are negligent and very evil people who are miserable lousy parents. These people became parents only because they were fertile not because they were responsible or caring. But that is just one additional component instilling a distortion in the minds of the players decreasing their humanity. Violence and/or immorality are a common ingredient in video games that annihilates any concept to have a standard of human conduct.

Previous replies

Starsailing

Jan 17, 2013 6:58PM

Certainly the video games are a cause of vilolence. It used to be on tv shows and movies, the bad alays lost, the bad was always wrong, the good people always won the battle between good and simple evil. Now the evil is glorified, the bad /evil is made to be cool because of the level of ugliness and meaness, the level of killing and killing in many ways.......all this is portrayed as cool.........the more the evil is worse all the better.....Don't like being told it is wrong.....just pick up a gun.....or weapon......and make it the way you want it t be......unfortunately....many choose the evil way, because it is too hard to try ...the right way.

Previous replies

rh2006

Jan 17, 2013 6:58PM

Interesting. Violent video games cause violence, yet in the last 20 years violent crimes have gone down. Does anybody remember what console games looked like 20 years ago? To say "comparitively crude and unrealistic" is a massive understatement. This was even before the Nintendo 64.

This is the same kneejerk reactionism that led to the Comics Code Authority crap in the 50's. Look, a better way of enforcing sales of M rated games to kids should be in place. But they ARE rated and the parents CAN see this! They need to be more involved. If you want to look somewhere start with the parents.

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tchndn

Jan 17, 2013 6:57PM

PLEASE! stop pointing your fingers at everything else and stand up. maybe we should start taking an accounting of the parents whose children are accused of acts of violence! if we would start holding them responsible, they might get involved with their kids. maybe we should put those parents in jail if their kids get into trouble, after all, they did raise them.