Introduction
For a long time, the public has accused video games of provoking violence, illegal behavior, and cruelty. It is widely believed that observing violence in games reduces people’s sensitivity to it and makes them imitate such actions. For example, longitudinal data from a study conducted by Coyne and Stockdale suggest an existing link between increased aggression and video games in the case of consistent playing, but no association for low-level players.
Lancaster’s article about Christopher Ferguson, Ph.D., a psychology professor who investigates the topic, presents compelling arguments that the notion of violence generated by games is a myth. Although the issue of video games’ effects attracts considerable attention and sparks intense discussion, expert opinions and research results are contradictory, and there is still no single prevailing view.
Review of Scholar Studies
Evidence of video games’ effects may be contradictory, but the idea that they generate cruelty is prevalent and often artificially supported. Coyne and Stockdale note the presence of bias in scientific publications, which contributes to the support of opinion about the association between video games and violence (11). As a result, studies that do not confirm the widespread belief are less likely to be published, which prevents society from learning about the arguments against this statement.
Citing his experience of research publishing, Ferguson also notes such bias and argues that maintaining the myth of violence provoked by games is also beneficial for politicians (Lancaster). In the case of violence, like mass shootings, it is convenient for politicians to present games as reasons and distract the population’s attention from real problems, like inequality, gun control, and ineffective social policies. Nevertheless, many studies do not find evidence that games lead to cruelty in real life, although in some cases, research can reveal increased aggression.
Various researchers have tested the likelihood of real-life violence or increased aggression after playing video games. Ferguson conducted several studies dividing the participants into groups using multiple video games and concluded, “None of the games seemed to cause any increased aggression” (Lancaster). Consequently, the games also did not cause violence in real life, which refutes the common belief.
Coyne and Stockdale’s research presents a slightly different conclusion: “The study provides evidence that of multiple violent video game trajectories, with moderate and relatively consistent play being the most likely related to increased aggressive behavior over time” (Coyne and Stockdale 15). Their study identified several groups of participants based on their behavioral patterns over ten years.
The authors observed a possible increase in aggression in only one group—those playing moderate and constant games—but the other two groups did not exhibit such a connection. Moreover, growing levels of aggression do not necessarily lead to real-life violence. Therefore, many studies lack sufficient evidence to confirm such a connection.
Conclusion
In conclusion, with the advent of video games, concerns arose about their consequences, including the perception that the cruelty depicted in them could lead to real-life violence. However, researchers do not have a consensus on this issue, and the results of the studies are ambiguous. Moreover, there is publication bias, which supports the belief that such games generate violence.
At the same time, many researchers seek to refute this statement, and the current paper provides examples of cases when no connection was found. In some cases, researchers have found that games can increase the level of aggression. However, this fact does not mean a mandatory manifestation of violence. Moreover, the influence of video games on aggression can also be determined by the player’s characteristics and the habits associated with the game.
Works Cited
Coyne, Sarah M, and Laura Stockdale. “Growing Up with Grand Theft Auto: A 10-Year Study of Longitudinal Growth of Violent Video Game Play in Adolescents.” Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, vol. 24, no. 1, 2021, pp. 11-16. Web.
Lancaster, Cory. “Chris Ferguson And the Myth of Video Game Violence.” Stetson Today. 2019. Web.