There has been a long-standing debate whether video games affect a person's mind that supposedly triggers violence in the real world.
The idea that young minds getting driven to 'kill' by shooter games that are out in the market is a seductive one, but it also conveniently draws attention away from the real societal problems such as poverty, violent political climate and most often, mental disorders.
If you ask an avid gamer of its implications, you would get a standard response of denial that games don't trigger real-world bloodshed or violence, its an apolitical fun, just entertainment.
While on the other hand, if you ask someone who doesn't play these games, you would get all sorts of replies – from gamers being aggressive in nature to introverts and what not.
The clash of thoughts is undeniable.
There are a slew of studies claiming to find links between violence in video games and real-world aggression, however, none of them are persuasive. Its a dead end.
Let's look at some of the researches, shall we?
According to two studies appearing in the American Psychological Association, playing violent video games can increase a person's aggressive thoughts, feelings and behavior both in laboratory settings and in actual life.
"One study reveals that young men who are habitually aggressive may be especially vulnerable to the aggression-enhancing effects of repeated exposure to violent games."
"The other study reveals that even a brief exposure to violent video games can temporarily increase aggressive behavior in all types of participants."
This was stated by psychologists Craig A. Anderson and Karen E. Dill.
Meanwhile, researchers led by Aaron Drummond from New Zealand's Massey University had re-examined 28 studies from previous years. He also reanalyzed data gathered from more than 21,000 young people around the world.
His research came to a conclusion that violent video games do not develop violent minds or aggression among youths.
Instead, "it showed a statistically significant but minuscule positive correlation between gaming and aggression…"
"Thus, current research is unable to support the hypothesis that violent video games have a meaningful long-term predictive impact on youth aggression," it added.
A study also revealed that video games improve analytical and decision-making skills of a person.
If you ask me, life is far too complicated than video games being an incentive to violent minds in our societies. What about violent movies that portray weapons, bloodshed, conflicts etc? Sure, these movies are rated adult or mature, but in today's world, everything is accessible in a matter of clicks.
Video games also have a content rating system, which a lot of people are unaware.
People don't know that these games also provide a sense of morality to one's character. Each game has a story, a moral story so to speak. It is not just blatant violence where you go guns out blazing.
However, it is not enough to say that "video games are blameless". For example, in the United States, everytime a 12-year-old decides to go to school with a cool-looking assault rifle and goes on a rampage during lunch break, questions do arise.
Video game companies should also be responsible on what they are creating – a playground, a compelling morally ethical story or just blatant gore and bloodshed.
Parents also have a pivotal role to play. They buy gaming consoles and computers for their children but due to the rush of life, they forget to monitor what content they are consuming. Thankfully, there are parental controls in today's services. They should learn more about that.
The debate on video games will continue, which frequently generates more heat than light. Many criticisms are simply recycled myths from earlier media, myths that are repeatedly debunked on theoretical and empirical grounds.
There are indeed valid arguments, but can we generalise it?
