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Claire Johnson

Angela Pedrotti

English 1201

16 April 2019

Violent Video Games

In today’s society seeing a child on a tablet or playing a game of some type is now a

normal occurrence. However, not too long-ago children were playing outside and running

around with other children. The shift in culture has gone more towards technology and while

this has made the lives of people easier there is a negative side effect as well. Violent video

games, such as Red Dead Revolver, are becoming more popular and children are playing these

video games. The violence that children engage in while playing these games has a negative

impact on their development. Studies show that these violent games cause a lot of negative

mental and physical effects in the child's behavior and development. There needs to be a

movement away from having children plugged into video games during their spare time. There

are many other options that can guide a child into different alternatives for their free time.

Video games can end up being highly addictive and often a child doesn’t even realize that

they are addicted to the game. Violence within video games often occurs as just part of the

game. However, when children engage in activities within the games, such as shooting someone,

it begins to desensitize them to violence in general. These games have been proven to affect the

same part of the human brain as an addiction for drugs and alcohol. This means that an addiction

to video games is in the same category as drug addiction.

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The problem with video games is the fact that they desensitize children to violent acts,

and they can increase violent behavior. Furthermore, playing video games can cause

socialization issues, lack of interest in education, and other negative issues into adulthood.

Children are spending more time playing video games and less time socially interacting with not

only their peers but their families as well. They are missing out on valuable social skills and

interactions.

“Is My Child Addicted to Gaming?”

Think about a child who plays on a video game device. They are often completely

absorbed in the game and are unaware of anything else that is occurring around them. Being

engaged is good for children, however, video games are often over stimulating for their young

minds. “The intense visual stimulation and activity flood his brain, which adapts to the

heightened level of stimulation by shutting off other parts it considers nonessential” (Dunckley,

2016). This means that while the video game is stimulating for some areas of the brain it can be
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catastrophic for other areas of the child’s brain. The problem is that while playing the video

game there is a high level of stress going on because of the intensity of the brain. This makes it

difficult for the child to calm down, or even unwind.

Often children who play video games may have violent outbursts or react strongly to

situations in everyday life. Leading to the question do video games lead to violent behavior

among children? A lot of research is done on this topic and Victoria Dunckley explains, “When

this instinct gets triggered, our nervous system and hormones influence our state of arousal,

jumping instantly to a state of hyperarousal — the fight-or-flight response” (2016). This means

that it is actually caused by hormones within the child’s system being triggered which can cause

their aggressive behavior.

This leads to chronic stress among children because of the heightened state of arousal due

to overstimulation from video games. Some of the effects on children are less noticeable and can

be attributed to them just simply going through a phase. However, “Because chronic stress

effectively "short circuits" the frontal lobe, a hyperaroused and mentally depleted child will have

trouble paying attention, managing emotions, suppressing impulses, following directions,

tolerating frustration, accessing creativity and compassion, and executing tasks” (Dunckley,

2016). It is no surprise that the increase in video gaming has coincided with more aggressive acts

of children. They miss out on learning valuable skills about how to handle their emotions in a

healthy way. This leads to problems later on down the road when they need to interact in the

“real world” during their jobs.

Not only do violent video games cause negative mental health issues but it can also have

an effect on a child’s physical health. When a child is spending hours on end sitting and playing

video games it can lead to weight gain because they are not running around playing. Children
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need to have activity and playing video games takes away from the active time. There are

numerous other health aliments that can be caused by too much video gaming. For instance, “the

addiction can lead to such medical issues as backaches, headaches, eye strain and carpal tunnel

syndrome--pain and numbness that your child may feel in his wrists, hands, shoulders and

elbows”(Christopher, 2018).

The fact that the increased screen time can cause physical problems as well as mental

issues for children points to the fact that something must be done to help combat these issues.

However, video games are a popular avenue for entertainment. This is evident during the

holidays as there always seems to be a newer model of a gaming system being advertised so

there is a large market for video games. “Mobile gaming revenues for 2017 were revised upward

the most, from $46.1 billion to $50.4 billion” (Takahashi, 2017). These statistics show that there

is a lot of money to be made within the video game market. Due to increased growth of the

industry, it is becoming more popular for new game to be developed. This gives rise to a larger

genre of video games for people to play. The wide appeal of these new options is causing more

people to want to buy these games. Once more people buy the games and begin to play, people

end up spreading the word to others, over television, online, or social media. Before long a high

number of people are playing these games every day.

In terms of violently themed video games increasing violence among children it is not

addressed. “In a recent meta-analysis of 98 studies, involving 36,965 participants, violent video

games were convincingly shown to influence social behavior”(Ferguson, 2016). This is

compelling evidence because there is a correlation between violence in video games and

behavior. However, people still question whether or not violence within video games causes

violence among children. Ferguson states, “after playing violent games participants are more
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likely to ‘punish’ unseen opponents in a task with loud noise bursts, compared to peers who had

played a non-violent video game”(2016).

The fact that participants in the study were more likely to punish someone just because

they played a video game shows that there is an impact on the mental thought process. Not only

do violent games cause an increase in the willingness to punish someone, this contrasted sharply

with those participants who played non-violent games. Participants who played non-violent

video games were less likely to punish an opponent. This suggests that if children are going to

be playing video games, they should not include violence.

In terms of violent video games there are a lot of counterarguments as to why violent

video games do not in fact cause violent behavior. There is a lot of research supporting how

violent video games affect children mentally and physically, but there is actually evidence of the

benefits associated these games. Video games are looked down upon by parents as a waste of

time, and some educational experts think that these games corrupt the brain. Children playing

violent video games are blamed by the media and some experts for the reasons why children

develop violent behavior, social issues, violence, laziness and etc.

Many psychologists find that video games can actually have benefits, a big example they

came up with is giving the kid the “brains” (making them smart). Video games may actually

teach kids high-level thinking skills that they will possibly need in the future. For instance when

a child is playing a game that has a strategy in it, they begin to think, and problem solve even

though they don’t realize it. There are video games that are played with multiple players and

these players need to work together so that they can complete their task and win the game. This

plays into collaboration with colleagues in the future and helps to foster a teamwork

environment.
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In fact there is evidence that video gaming among children can be beneficial. There is

argument that contrary to the belief that playing video game is isolating playing games can actual

foster positive social interactions. While playing multiplayer games, “there is constant

communication between the players which in turn results in the development of meaningful as

well as casual relationships among them” (Eugenio, 2017). This means that children can bond

with each other and are able to communicate with others, developing real friendships. It is

important to note that there was no mention of whether violent games held the same fostering of

meaningful friendships as non-violent games. There is a lot of evidence that simply points to the

fact that playing violent video games increases violent behavior.

No matter what genre it may be, video games all usually require some time of “winning”.

When children play these games their brains will require high level thinking to get to the finish

line of the game. These skills that children use for these games are not even taught at school and

it is something that they learn prior to real world experience. Violent video games may cause the

child to show aggression but there are a lot of benefits when it comes to hand and eye

coordination.

Another example would be “quick thinking”; with children playing these games hours at

a time it is giving their brains a workout. According to researchers at the University of

Rochester, led by Daphne Bavelier, a cognitive scientist, “games simulating stressful events such

as those found in battle or action games could be a training tool for real-world situations. The

study suggests that playing action video games primes the brain to make quick decisions.” This

means that children are able to react quickly to situations and make decisions.

The reasons there are so many differing opinions when it comes to video games is

because all games are different. For example, children may be playing video games like Mario
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kart, or sports, or even learning games. These types of video games are giving children a great

learning experience. The games focus on hand-eye coordination, brain strengthening, and much

more. In contrast shooting games there are both benefits and negative effects. The negative

effects of violent video games far outweigh the good.

When it comes to violent video games and their effect on young children, people will find

that there is both negative and positive effects. However, there is a lot more research that

supports the idea that violent video games have a negative impact on a child's development,

mentality, social situations, school, and life. However, traditional games such as sports or other

games that don’t include violence also offer benefits. Children learn to work together, they

develop friendships, and hand-eye coordination. Even though there is research on both sides,

positive and negative, the more positive sides are connected with games that are not violent.

So the question is, why does one portion of research talk about the negative effects of

violent video games and the other talk about the positive effects? The answer to that question is

simple, there is a lot more examples on how violent video games negatively impact a child

verses how they positively impact a child. Often times parents are looking for a reason to explain

their child’s violent behavior and video games are a common activity for children of all ages. It

then makes sense that research and studies are done on the effects of violent games. The

negative effects can actually cause a lot more permanent damage even affecting the child into

adulthood. Some examples would include, social issues, behavior issues, violence, depression,

obesity and many more.

Another issue with video games in general is that there is becoming an increasing

number of children addicted to them. Many people think of addiction in relation to drugs and

alcohol however video games can also fall into the category of addiction. Video game addiction
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can be summarized by saying that, “Video games dominate their lives. Playing gives them a

sense of euphoria, or at least a sense of relief from unpleasant feelings. Kids experience

“withdrawal" if they are denied access to games. And gaming interferes with everyday life,

including school and social relationships” (Dewar, 2013).

It is interesting to note that the video games offer an escape from reality, which is not

surprising. However, the difference is that the video game in terms of addiction offer not only an

escape from reality but also a sense of high. This means that playing the video games makes the

child feel good which gives them a way to escape from anything unpleasant within their lives.

This is problematic when a child no longer knows how to function without the video game. It is

important that boundaries are set for how much time a child spends playing video games in order

to make sure that they don’t become too dependent upon the video games.

Some examples of how a child can become addicted to video games would be that the

child needs more the video game time to keep them feeling happy. The child may use the video

game as a way to escape feeling upset and a means to distract them from their feelings. The

child may be consumed with thinking about the game when they aren’t playing it. Also, the

child who is addicted to the game may be preferring to play the game over spending time with

friends and family.

There were two strong things that stood out in a study done on video game

addiction. There were that video game addicts, “spent about twice as much time playing games

(24 hours per week). They were more likely to have game systems in their bedrooms”(Dewar,

2013). It is interesting that there were two common things among addicts to video games.

However, it makes sense that the amount of time spent playing video games was a lot more than

the time normal children spent playing video games. Also, having a gaming system in their
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bedroom means that there is a lot more access to the video games. Children are able to play the

games before bed or maybe even sneak in video game time while their parents are sleeping.

This video game addiction mimics the addiction of drugs or alcohol because if the addict

does not get more of the substance or in this case video game, they then become irritable and

miserable. Researchers such as Kimberly Young, PsyD, clinical director of the Center for On-

Line Addiction, states that she has seen withdraw systems just like somebody on substance

abuse. "I've had so many parents call me over the last year or two, particularly about the role-

playing games online. I see it getting worse as the opportunity to game grows - for example, cell

phone gaming”(2018).

Children are often playing video games because the game system is right there for

them to play. They don’t have to leave the comfort of their houses to play their favorite game.

So the question is how do parents help shift their child’s attention onto other activities? One

thing that is important is to limit the child’s amount of screen time. This is important because

earlier it was pointed out many video game addicts spend at least 24 hours a week playing video

games. It has been suggested that utilizing the video game time as a reward for good and

positive behavior can be a healthier approach. In this approach, “ it’s a privilege to play games.

They are a reward, maybe instead of allowance. Practice your trumpet for a half hour, earn a half

hour on the ipad. Mow the lawn, you earn an hour (depending on the size of the lawn)”

(Stillwell, 2018).

This is a good idea because it helps to set healthy boundaries for the amount of time

playing a video game. Children love to play video games and the games are designed to be fun

to play. So instead of completely eliminating the games it might be best to try a compromising

approach. Making the video games more of a special treat for doing things well and helping
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around the house verses being able to play video games whenever the child wants. This helps to

teach the child that although they may love playing their video games it is important that they do

other things as well.

“Children Playing Outside”

Another suggestion that would be really helpful to children is to balance out the time that

they spend playing video games with outside time. Stillwell states, “Contact with nature is as

vital to kids as good nutrition and adequate sleep” (2018). This makes sense to do this because if

a child spends two hours playing a video game then they should spend at least that much time

playing outdoors. This could also entail something like going to a park or taking them to a fun

splash pad if weather is permitting. The key to a healthy relationship with playing video games

is balance. Children need help learning what is an appropriate amount of time to play a video

game and what is not.

Through the guidance of their parents there can be a good balance between playing a

video game that they love and having a fulfilling life. There just cannot be unlimited gaming

time because this is not good for the child’s physical or mental health. If the parents take the

time to sit down and talk to the child, explain the rules for video games, and take the time to

enforce these rules, there is no reason a child cannot play video games.
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While video games are often viewed as a way for simple entertainment it can be

damaging for children. It can have a negative impact upon their social lives as well as their

mental well-being. The violence within video games can cause children to become constantly

stressed and this then trickles down into their everyday lives. They no longer are able to sleep as

they should or even participate in normal activities. The video games consume their attention

and in doing so it places a wedge between them and their real lives.

It is up to parents to become educated and learn what is a healthy amount of time for

children to be playing video games. Parents ultimately are the ones who will be able to protect

their children from the potential harm of violent video games. Video games can be played by

children but there needs to be healthy limits that are set up. Children need to understand how

long they are allowed to play a game and also understand that they will need to go do other fun

things. Video games cannot be the only form of fun that children have and parents are the only

stop between video game addiction and a child who plays video games.
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Work Cited

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