Violent Video Games

Violent Video Games

         In the recent years the subject of violent video games leading to aggression have increased around the world. Some people believe that aggression can be caused by violent video games, but I believe otherwise. There has been so much research done on the correlation between aggression and violent video games, with much research being experiments. Along with all the research there are few studies that have shown violent video games correlate with aggression.
         According to the American Psychological Association there has been over forty plus years of research done on this topic and no clear answers to a precise conclusion. Researchers have been at a stale mate with data, and they cannot get the clear answer they want. This has made the topic quiet down and less research put into it. Now the topic has been brought up and has been reignited. With new games and different ways that they are made, make the older games and research unusable now. All that research that has gone into this topic is obsolete. Along with the new games comes new terms of service with the game and a new community. There are some games that are both violent and educational at the same time. This can help kids learn about certain areas in life, showing some hardships along the way too. This can sometimes make the violent video games more violent if there is a bigger amount of the educational games coming out. They also say that with better technology and advancements, violent video games have more involvement with the violence than violent movies or television shows. Most of the newer video games have a form of leveling for getting kill, they also get rewards sometimes at the end of a game. Most of the newer games coming out have cutscenes, and most of them include violence, vulgar language, murder, and some nudity. There are some games with two sides where one team is a good guy or the hero, while the other team is the bad guy or villain (Violent Video Games: Myths, Facts, and Unanswered Questions, 2003).
         With a lot of research that has been put into this topic, much of it has been finished and have no answer. According to the National Center for Health Research there is little to no research done of violent video games and children of the age under ten. This is when children do most of their learning. They also state the "although males spend more time than females playing violent video games, violent video game exposure can increase aggressive thoughts, behaviors, and feelings in both sexes. There are so many different studies done on this topic because people look at in different ways like hitting or pushing, and some looked at peer or teacher ratings on aggressive behaviors. Competition is the most leading cause of aggression than the level of violence in a game. At the end of the article they state that "violent video game exposure is only one risk factor of aggressive behavior." This is telling us all that there are plenty of other factors that lead to aggression, and it all should not be placed on video games (Violent Video Games and Aggression, 2019).
         Looking at these articles and just hearing about this topic on the news sparked my interest in writing about this. I am one of the males that play video games and some violent. I am a very shy and not very outgoing person, and when it comes to anger or my aggression, I very rarely get mad or agitated. When I think about what happens during the game, I know that it is just a game and there is no reason to get upset or mad about it. Some people can take the game way more seriously than others and that is what I believe. There is never going to be a clear answer if violent video games correlate directly with aggression, but I believe that they are not the whole cause of aggression.

Work Cited

American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association, www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2003/10/anderson.
"Violent Video Games and Aggression." National Center for Health Research, 27 Mar. 2018, www.center4research.org/violent-video-games-can-increase-aggression/.