The teenager had been arrested for possession of a stolen vehicle. During the murder trial, the Defence Attorney pleaded for the youngster arguing that; the Video Game, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City was to blame for the tragedy. The accused murderer was an avid player of the mentioned Video Game.
Video Games And Behaviour Change
In their book: A Meta-Analytical Review of The Scientific Literary, published in 2001 Craig Anderson and Gregory Bushman reveal the outcome of a study on the relationship between Violent Video Games and Behaviour change. Their research involved over six hundred American students between the seventh and ninth grade. Both Female and Male students were exposed to long sessions of playing Violent Video Games. All players involved later appeared physiologically stimulated while harbouring aggressive feelings and thoughts.
It is estimated that 90% of all the youth in the US aged between eight and eighteen are exposed to a Video game. Professor Grossman a former Psychologist at West Point also concurred with the negative attributes of Violent Video Games. In his book: Stop Teaching Our Kids To Kill published in 2004, he asserts “Video Game Manufacturers harden our children emotionally, This they achieve through murder simulation and training players in the use of lethal weapons”
Anti-social attitudes are side effects noticed for players over exposed to Video Games. Players are known to isolate themselves avoiding other social contacts while religiously absorbed in a game, their focus solely on achieving a high score. On the 7th of March 2010 shocking News on CNN told of a young South Korean couple who had abandoned an infant child to starve to death. The young couple were addicted to an online Video game.
Advantages Of Video Games
Others will beg to differ over the issue, Cheryl Olson in her 2004 book: Grand Theft Childhood considers Video game play as part of an adolescent’s normal setting when growing. Olson views the Video Game as a positive factor contributing to a good social upbringing. Proponents of the Video Game will also argue that no scientific evidence has been linked to back claims on the negative attributes of playing Video games.
Steven Johnson, Author of the book Everything Bad Is Good For You 2005, believes video games demand more from a player than our traditional games like Draughts. He writes, “The process of learning boundaries, goals and controls of a given game is often highly demanding, one that calls on different areas of cognitive functions’’. It is presumed learning principles found in challenging Video games can be substituted to reform the US education system.
Today, researched evidence supports the argument; Exposure to Violent Video Games impacts negatively on player’s behaviour. As a modern medium of entertainment the Video Games should not be condemned in wholesome; checks ought to be placed on Violent Video Games.
OLUOCH.J OKELLO - Okello is a talented business and medical writer, with many years of literary experience in various firms.
Join the Conversation