Video Game Violence
Do violent video games really make for more violent people? Jack Thompson screams yes, Rockstar scoffs, age labelling is introduced, and states all over the place are implementing new laws governing sale and rental. But what’s the real deal?
Researchers at Michigan State University have tried to address the question by having 13 male volunteers play violent video games while hooked up to a functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system which measures brain activity. What they found were brain activity patterns that had characteristics suggestive of aggressive thought. Now I’m sure that anti-violence people are going to jump all over this one, but there are some study related issues that must be considered and acknowledged if the generated data is to be given any sort of credence. Firstly, the study does not show anything beyond a short-term relationship between violence on screen and violence in gamers. I’d be the first to admit that when I’m playing GTA and I need to hit someone with a bat, I’m thinking “%^&@#! I need to beat the CRAP out of this punk!“, but that does not mean that my aggressive thinking extends beyond the several minutes (okay hours…) of game playing I do every day. Secondly, of course thoughts are going to be aggressive during playing! I guarantee if you did an fMRI of my head while I was playing Barbie Horse Adventures you’d find characteristically aggressive patterns. Why? Because I’m competitive. I want to beat the game, be the best at it, and eventually take over the world. These study results don’t impress me beyond being an interesting look at how different activities look at a neurobiological level.
The Japanese are also using violence in games to help explain the rising rate of juvenile crime in their country. The 2005 government report shows ~33% increase in student assaults on school staff, with similar statistics in evidence for more serious crimes outside of school hours. Naturally, amid all the kerfuffle over violence in North America, Japanese politicians and academics have also jumped on the anti-game bandwagon and some are pushing for accountability at the developer level, urging those responsible for making the game to create titles that educate rather than enrage. Some believe that the rise in crime is attributable to a growing frustration and stress imposed on members of Japanese society, with video games and similar forms of entertainment providing an outlet for these emotions. Not all games are being targeted mind you. Key educational reform proponent Prof. Takashi Sakamoto has shown that continuously playing games that have violent content may result in adverse effects on the minds of children, but plot-driven games featuring a more ‘benevolent’ allied force helping each other as they fight a common enemy, does not necessarily have the same effect.
Games as a scapegoat for growing unrest is a popular topic at the moment throughout the gaming world, but not all of the stats back such a black and white interpretation. Ars Technica looks at the 2004 data on crime from the FBI. They note that violent crime on the whole has decreased, with violent offences among younger age groups not only have plummeted since the mid-90’s, but continued to decrease this year, down 0.8 percent under last year’s tallies. Similar numbers have been reported based on data from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics. But it’s not all good news. The FBI report states:
As for trends in arrests of juveniles for violent crime, a comparison of 2004 data with those of 2003 indicated that the number of juveniles arrested for violent crimes declined 0.8 percent, 5.5 percent compared with 2000 data, and 30.9 percent compared with 1995 figures. In terms of arrests of juveniles by offense from 2003 to 2004, the number of juveniles arrested for aggravated assault declined 1.6 percent; the number of juveniles arrested for forcible rape decreased 0.4 percent. Conversely, the number of juveniles arrested for murder rose 21.6 percent. The number of juveniles arrested for robbery increased slightly (0.3 percent). [emphasis mine]
So while overall crime rates are down, including in the juvenile age group, arrests for serious crimes like robbery and murder have in fact increased. As the article points out however, there are bound to be spikes in the records as the arrest statistics from year to year fluctuate. Looking at juvenile offences between 2004 and 1995, the rate of young offenders arrested for murder has actually dropped 507 counts, or 20%, despite the 2004 increase blip. The overall trend, as the author points out is still “significantly downward”. I guarantee we’ll have politicians waving the 2004 murder increase around like a platform banner for re-election, and the gamers jabbing mercilessly at the general trend in self-defense.
This is the trouble with numbers you see, you can make them say whatever you want. What’s your take?
3 opinions for Video Game Violence
Matt
Nov 11, 2005 at 11:01 am
Parenting. I blame parenting. We’ve gotten to a time in this age where parents are less strict with their children, less mindful, and they choose not to put as much effort into raising a child, letting games and the TV raise them. The 60s had the hippies and the free love, 70s were the baby boomers and whatnot, 80s were the rebels, 90s were uh..just kinda there. And now the 2000s have come up with the negligence. We’re an ADD society with no time to install good morals and family values into our children, with modern culture telling us to obey raging hormones and act as we please. If something’s not right, we subscribe pills and a therapist. As a nation we’ve “matured” we think we know better, and that people are intelligent enough to make their own decisions. And while to a degree we are, we also obviously, are not. People, being the way they are, refuse to look at themselves for the blame, so they look to what they do not understand and what can easily be used as a scapegoat.
Games. Which, as we can all see, have gone through a huge culture boom and recognition. You now see more game advertisements on TV, more game related programs (G4 network, SpikeTV video game awards). Gaming is becoming a more accepted and recognized hobby, and as such, as with anything, it’s going to get the negative feedback that comes with the territory. People are going to use it to blame whatever they can on it, and to get their point across.
We have to start taking responsibility for our actions, for those people affected by our actions. There will always be people who only look out for themselves, but in the end, you reap what you sow. And that is exactly, what we as a nation, are doing at this moment.
Erin
Nov 11, 2005 at 10:06 pm
I think we had a similar discussion when I brought up Jack Thompson the first time. I think, like you, that games are a very convenient scapegoat thanks to their increasing visibility in society and are a natural target. Nevermind TV, movies, magazines, and music. No, it’s the games.
criminal background check
Nov 14, 2005 at 12:33 pm
great article. i completly agree with you.
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