Reaction: Video Game Violence Study

There have been several shuns about the results about this report. The first comes from Toothfairy of DCTP:

I am still not entirely convinced that there is a causal relationship between playing videogames and becoming more violent. I haven’t dug through the article itself, but I suspect it is more a relationship in that violent people play violent videogames. I don’t think that you can turn Ned Flanders into Manson by making him play Doom.

In any case, this is going to go right into the fodder of the “Moral Majority”…. sigh. Let’s hope the folly comes to pass.

One, it is being framed as a study that could shed some light on why two psychos opened fire in Columbine. Two, it only establishes a correlation between videogames and hostility/violence and bad grades.

The first point is what annoys me the most, as it is absolutely impossible to deduce from this study what exactly prompted the shootings. I’m sure though some Senators will pick it up and proclaim it to be final proof that videogames do kill.

The reason the second point bugs me is that there are a lot of things that correlate positively with hostility/violence, both in short-term and long-term studies. This is completely overlooked. There has been a study that correlated aggressive behavior and lunch-time workouts, yet you don’t hear anybody calling for the ban of workouts. A probable reason is that it simply means a rise in adrenaline, which leads to more aggressive behavior. Wait a little bit, and the aggressive behavior disappears with the adrenaline.

From IIHito:

If for every psycho kid there are dysfunctional parents at home I suspect it is because psychologists would like to us to believe that we are all dysfunctional to greater or lesser degree and should pay for their services to make us better happier people. Some kids have mental illnesses which cannot be simply traced back to their environment.
Personally I have no doubts that violent games can increase violence in susceptible personalities. But just because videogames may cause kids to be violent shouldn’t stop adults from having their fun.

When I saw Saving Private Ryan, some parents took their five year olds. Personally it would have pleased me if federal laws and responsible theatre owners had refused entry to the five year olds who were going to see a movie with that much disturbing imagery. But I wouldn’t have wanted the government to have stopped me.

VFKidz:

Videogame connects to increase violence ???
Guns, Guns, knifes, baseball bats that’s the cause of violence.

If they want to stop people making violence videogames why can’t they stop people from making Guns ????? I guess Guns and military weapons are just to big of business for government to give up.

All these studies that desperately try to link violence with videogames are just plain stupid. I’ve read some already, the so call published journal of so and so, just make me laugh.

Some videogames does have a violent content, But so is everyday life. If some kid turned violent because of playing videogames, obviously that kid didn’t get enough education. If he can turn violent by playing video games, he probably turn violent just by riding a bike or driving a car.

High level of Testosterone lead to aggression. Uncontrolled aggression leads to violent.

My conclusion, education system is not sufficient, maybe under funded, who is to blame, the government, for wasting money on stupid research to create Scape Goats, and research on new weapon, instead of education for the young.

And finally, Whipping Boy:

I think it’s funny (actually rather sad) that there is little problem w/ Senators trying to do studies and ban videogames in certain cities (I think there are still areas in Arizona that can’t have gun games in arcades.) Yet whenever there is a new bill about gun control…WOAH!! That’s a constitutional right! I need to own as many guns as I like thank you! It’s a healthy hobby!! Oh brother…meanwhile I can’t find a licensed gun peripheral for my DC, but in 7 days I can be the proud licensed owner of a Desert Eagle .44 Automatic pistol! That makes sense… certain cities (I think there are still areas in Arizona that can’t have gun games in arcades.) Yet whenever there is a new bill about gun control…WOAH!! That’s a constitutional right! I need to own as many guns as I like thank you! It’s a healthy hobby!! Oh brother…meanwhile I can’t find a licensed gun peripheral for my DC, but in 7 days I can be the proud licensed owner of a Desert Eagle .44 Automatic pistol! That makes sense…