Video games and their effects on people

            In recent years people all over the country have been arguing over the effect of video games on children and adults. Some people argue that it causes children and adults to act more violent and others argue it does not have any effect on them. Over the years many people have made their own opinions without looking up research or other sources.

In an academic journal “Defending the Morality of Violent Video Games” by Marcus Schulzke talks about how video games are talked about people all over the country. He starts off by saying that it’s a valid topic to talk about and that it should be discussed by people. He then talks about critics and their arguments that they give on why videogames are bad for children and adults. This academic journal shows that a lot of people are misguided in what they believe and really do not understand the truth. The audience for a journal entry like this is anyone who wants to educate themselves on video games and affect it has people and their actions. “One of the most controversial and practically significant topics in the study of contemporary media is whether there is a connection between violent entertainment and aggressive behavior” (Schulzke127). Anyone who looks up this topic are able to find this journal and if they are interested, they would read it. The tone is very informative. “Scientific studies of video game violence have proved inconclusive. Most suffer from the limitation of not distinguishing the context and type of violence” (Schulzkel 131). This is clearly shown because during this entry the author he says that there is no definite proof and that every test has lacked in support. The purpose of this journal entry is to teach people the truth about video games and the toll it has on people. “This essay shows that many of these criticisms are misguided. Theoretical and empirical arguments against violent video games often suffer from a number of significant shortcomings that make them ineffective. This essay argues that video games are defensible from the perspective of Kantian, Aristotelian, and utilitarian moral theories” (Schulzkel 127). In the very first part of the essay he states that he will be defending video games and why the other side is wrong. The genre of this entry would be a scholarly source as it uses data and backs up everything with experiments and research. The medium of this entry is an academic journal. It uses research and quotes it at the end of the essay. The author’s stance is that video games do not cause violence. This is shown through the fact that he defends video games throughout the entire entry. “As the evidence currently stands, there is no compelling reason to oppose violent games on utilitarian grounds. This does not mean that there are no consequences of playing these games, only that the amount of harm does not outweigh the value they have to entertain, create jobs, and generate wealth. Even more importantly, the amount of damage that violent games may do does not justify the restraints of free expression that would be necessary to censor them” (Schulzkel 136). He completely stands by video games throughout the essay and strongly believes that they are more beneficial than harmful. He also believes that censoring them will be bad for everyone in the end.

In a magazine article titled “Does Playing Video Games Increase Behavioral Violence in Individuals?” by Poonam Mondal, talks about the effects of video games on children. He gives information on the mental and physical effects of gaming on all kinds of people. He talks about the psychological effects and how technology has become such an important role.  The purpose of this text is to show the effects of video games and to explain contradicting viewpoints. This clearly shown by “ A lot of contradictory statements one will encounter over the internet which states that gaming creates violence, it entices and influence children, gaming helps in improving concentration, gaming increases aggression, depression and other, a good mode of entertainment, social gaming a better mode of studying and so on”(Mondal). He is talking about the things people see online and is going to elaborate on these things as he goes through the magazine article. The audience for this magazine articles is parents. This is shown in the very first sentence “Parents often wonder, are their children safe while playing the video games which are action packed and leaps the adrenaline rush?” (Mondal).  It clearly addresses parents who are wondering about their children and if them playing video games bad for them. The tone of this article is informative, and this is shown by the information he gives through other research that is done.  An example of research that was done was “However, the studies also indicate that gaming triggers the reward centers of the brain and may lead to obsessive-compulsive behaviors which triggers anxiety and depression if the person is prevented from gaming. The reward centers of the brain send out the signal of the deficit and the gaming addict seeks reward by going back to the game and being rewarded by getting high” (Mondal).  He backs up his arguments with this type of research throughout the article. The genre of this is a magazine article. The medium of this writing is online magazine article. The author’s stance is that video games are not the greatest when it comes to kids’ behavior. This is shown through “ As far as mental health is concerned, Kinger has definitely seen an increase in propensity for passive-aggressive behavior, low frustration tolerance, verbal aggression, impulsive behavior, sleep disturbances, changes in diurnal cycle, daytime sleepiness, attention deficit disorders, childhood/adolescent depression, and so on has increased over the past two decades in kids” (Mondal).  This quote makes it feel like he’s against video games and that the data he uses shows why he’s against it.

In the news article Video games and Violence by Arianna Goodman, she talks about how video games are a new industry and people are blaming video games for things it has not done. She talks about how not all video games are the same and that it is very possible that video games do cause some problems but there is no definite proof. The genre for this piece is a new article. This can be shown because next to the author’s name it states that she is a staff writer. The medium for this article is an online electronic news article. The Author’s purpose is to show that all games are not the same and that they do not cause all the problems. “While it should go without saying, not all video games are violent. There are those who would like to see all video games banned, deeming them mindless entertainment. However, video games provide stimulation and challenges that cannot be attained through more passive activities like reading books, listening to music and watching movies” (Goodman).  This clearly shows that she is defending video games and that sometimes it is good for children to play them. The audience of this article is to anyone who wants to learn more about video games and are doing their own research. “ In recent years, plenty of arguments have been suggesting that the recent epidemic of violent crimes–like mass and school shootings–are the result of video games, particularly violent video games. According to such arguments, violence begets violence and having so much of it available to the public is naturally a recipe for disaster. This train of logic is simple and makes some amount of sense and yet, there are several reasons why video games alone are not to blame” (Goodman). The people who would read this news article is people who would want to learn more about violence and if children are affected by video games. The tone of this article is to persuasive. “ As for the games that are truly violent, I am open to the concept that these violent video games played by young children can have a negative impact on their lives. After all, their brains are still growing. However, even in this scenario, the onus would be on the parent to ensure that their children are only being exposed to what they can handle. Video games already have a rating system and, much like movies and books, they can be and often are curated for specific audiences” (Goodman). She is open to the fact it might have an effect, but she is trying to persuade people that violent video games are not a problem. The stance of the author is that not all video games are bad and can be helpful to people. “However, violent video games should have little to no effect on adults. In fact, such games could prove cathartic and provide healthy outlets for anger, pain and aggression. Studies suggest that while the rate of video game sales has been dramatically increasing, the average rate of violent crimes has not. Furthermore, some studies have even linked an increase of violent video game sales with a decrease of certain violent crimes” (Goodman). It is clearly shown that video games do not have a bad effect on people as there is no proof that it hurts children behavior.

In the website article The evidence that video games lead to violence is weak by Art Markman talks about politicians and how they talk about video games as if they cause violence. He then talks about research and that video games do not cause violence in people. He then says that the research done proves that violent video games makes kids more aggressive but not by much. The audience of this article is anyone who wants to learn more about video games and their affects on children. “As has become routine, politicians took to the airwaves to talk about the factors that lead to these mass shootings. Dan Patrick, Lieutenant Governor of Texas, focused on video games. He said, ‘We’ve always had guns, always had evil, but I see a video game industry that teaches young people to kill’” (Markman). People who see politicians might want to educate themselves and would find this article on the internet. The genre is website article. The medium for this source is an online blog post. This is clearly said on the website. The purpose of this article is to prove that video games do not cause violence. “Mathur and VanderWeele looked at these meta-analyses carefully and suggest that these analyses are not really telling different stories. In their view, a detailed look at the literature on violence and video games suggests that video games probably do increase aggressive reactions, but that the effects are quite small. That is, playing a lot of violent video games probably makes people a little more aggressive overall—but not much” (Markman).  The tone is persuasive because he uses research to prove his point that video games does not cause violence. “There have been enough studies that several groups of researchers have done meta-analyses of the research. A meta-analysis looks across several studies to assess whether there is a general trend in the literature. The meta-analyses done so far have also reached somewhat different conclusions, with some arguing that the studies demonstrate a consistent influence in which violent video games increase aggressive behavior and others suggesting that there is no consistent evidence that violent video games make people more aggressive” (Markman). He uses the research so to prove that two different conclusions are happening because the difference is so minute in the grand scheme of things. The stance of the blog post is that violence is not prompted by video games and that there are many other factors. “When explored through that lens, video games are not a good place to start. The evidence suggests that while playing violent video games can make people act a little more aggressively in some circumstances, they do not seem to be a big enough contributor to violent behavior in the world to warrant being mentioned as a cause of mass shootings” (Markman). The author believes that video games are not the problem and that there many problems that lead to violent acts.

Throughout all the sources the audience has been the same between them. They all have been focused on people looking for more information about video games and their effects on children. The tone of the sources has been to be informative to people and teach them the effects of video games with research to backup their claim. The genre has been different in that some have been a website, and another have been a newspaper article. The medium has been similar in that they all have been posted somewhere online and can be easily found if searched for. The purpose was similar between all sources in that they wanted to teach people the effects of video games. The stances were similar between three of the four sources. One source states that video games are not the healthiest for kids, but the other three sources argue that it is good for kids to play video games and it does not cause problems.

In conclusion all the sources all strive for the same purpose on educating people. They differ in their stance and depends on which website a person goes on. In the end there is more experiments that can be ran to make better data and help answer the question indefinitely.

 

 

 

Work cited

“Does playing video games increase behavioral violence in individuals?” Animation Xpress,14Jan.2019. GaleGeneralOneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A578663275/ITOF?u=cuny_ccny&sid=ITOF&xid=f4a913a4. Accessed 2 Oct. 2019.

Markman, Art. “The Evidence That Video Games Lead to Violence Is Weak.” Psychology Today, Psychology Today, 4 Aug. 2019, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/ulterior-motives/201908/the-evidence-video-games-lead-violence-is-weak.

Schulzke, Marcus. “Defending the Morality of Violent Video Games.” Defending the Morality of Violent Video Games, 20 Mar. 2010, pp. 127–137. Ebscohost, doi:10.1007/s10676-010-9222-x.

“Video Games And Violence.” UWIRE Text, 9 Sept. 2019, p. 1. Gale Academic Onefile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A598831149/AONE?u=cuny_ccny&sid=AONE&xid=a578a474. Accessed 2 Oct. 2019.