Several years ago studies were saying that video games were
bad for you, caused violence in children, but just recently a few studies are
showing that games are good for you; help you with critical thinking and
learning skills. Do these studies hold any proof or are they just full of hot
air? Do video games cause violence in players or are these players already
violent to begin with? Do you think
video games, even violent ones, have something to offer players in terms of
something they can take away from the game into the real world? And children
that play these violent games have bought these games by themselves or do you
think the parent is to blame, because they are not paying attention to the ESRB
rating, with them having access to these mature games?
18 comments:
I have never been into video games but I can see how they may not be good for small children to play. I do think that children can pick up small amounts of violence from playing video games but there are also many children out there that do not pick up the violence. I think the biggest problem about video games is that some people get almost addicted to them and spend most of their free time playing video games. I could see how video games could make someone "smarter" because some can be educational. Also, not all video games are full of violence. I would not blame the parents fully for their children playing video games because I am sure children go out and buy games whenever they have a little spending money but if parents do not want their children to play violent video games then they should monitor what they are playing and buying.
Shelby Walker
I don't think video games promote violence, but some video games can instill a violent view of the world into some young children if they are exposed to such video game for a long period of time without proper parenting to teach them right from wrong. That's a simple fact based on how the human mind works, and how children learn based on perception.
If someone from a young age is exposed to movies, video games, etc that involve violence, this child may grow up to view the world through the perspective of those movies and video games if their parents aren't making sure they understand the difference from right and wrong. If this wasn't the case, there wouldn't be so many children's programs on TV that show things such as mutual respect, tolerance, helping others, etc. Young children learn a lot from what they view on TV, because the TV programs mimic a realistic situation; the children are subconsciously aware of that. Young children can learn even more with interactive video games.
So if there is an unstable environment in the child's house, if the child is viewing real violence around them (perhaps an abusive parent, or abuse from a sibling that is not punished by parents) and the child is also being exposed to even more violence in interactive video games that they use a lot, then yes, it can influence the child to be more violent.
The type of environment the child lives in, the type of parenting the child is exposed to and how long the child is exposed to violent video games can influence (that's the key word there, influence) the child to become more violent; but the video game itself isn't the sole cause of that. It can contribute to the problem, but a violent video game alone isn't going to turn a child into a psychopath. It's a combination of factors that turns people violent.
Because of the above, that is why there are age restrictions on violent video games. Most violent video games are labeled as being for 16 or 18 and over only.
Shane Rasor 1000
Ahhh Video games, when i was about 13 i started playing online video games and it took me till last year to break that horrible thing that consumed my life. computer games were a major part of my life i would be glued to the computer 24/7 and it held me from getting good grades being social and sometimes eating. ive spent over 1000$ on it and still regret it. im not against video games but they need to be moderated and i was not moderated at all. if i learned anything valuable it would have to be marketing skills video games are not all bad they teach you alot of stuff like percentages and marking skills and how to use your brain in a quick situation. lets just say if i had some money to put on the stock market i would be doing pretty good right now. so in the end they just need to be moderated yes they are fun and help consume time moderation is all, you don't want to consume a whole handle of ever clear in one night do you?
Xeromy Kaizad (8:00)
I think there are good educational games for children and then there are some really violent ones. Yes I think adults should monitor their children s games. I don't know about the studies, i would say a percentage of them would be correct.
I think a lot of the games give people ideas, and emotions that are pretty violent. But that is just what I think, I dont know a lot about this subject study.
pa
I would not put the complete blame on video games, but what I will say is that, it really depends on the individual and what frame of mind they are in to begin with. There are so many people who try to blame the decisions that they make on anything but themselves, such as: they have sex with people because they were drinking or I cheated on her or him because they don't play me any attention, etc.
That goes back to whether the person wants to get something out of it or do they just want to relax and enjoy playing. Sometimes there could be a message but whether many of people that play games are looking for more than just getting a good score, that remains to be seen.
That again depends on the individual household. There are parents that are monitoring what their children watch and video games they are playing, but then there are the ones that are happy that their kids are "Out of Sight and Mind."
Linda H.
I think video games do help with learning skills. I am sure there are studies out there that say they are good and bad for learning. Being a gamer myself I think that video games help with learning and critical thinking. I think video games do cause people to be violent. And I think you can take something from video games and take it out into the real world. Have a different way to look and approach things in life. Parents should pay more attention to the ESRB ratting for the games they are getting for their children. Someone who is younger than 15 shouldn't be playing games involving killing and strong language. They are just simply not mature enough to handle things of that nature.
Slade
Truth be told, i feel it's just a bunch of hot air. Anything to make a buck or in this instance, anything to bitch about. People blaming video games for their bad ass child behavior is just plain ridiculous to me. They're just trying to take the blame off their poor parenting skills. Nobody wants to be the blame of why their children don't act according. People that commit violent acts and then try to say it was due to a game, is full of it; yes they were already violent, that's why they started playing the violent game. As for someone learning from these games, yes one can. I think it does have something to offer, but only to those who will apply the skills in the right legal way. Now, as for these games children are buying themselves, sometimes the parents know and other times they don't. Children are very manipulative, and sneaky when it comes down to getting what they want. We as parents need to be more in-tune to what our children are doing at all times and at all ages. So yes parents are the blame. We are responsible for our minors
Latonya
i think the video games are not good for minors to play because i honestly believe that minors do what they see on T.v and video games. like when minors play games like Mafia or call of duty. from what i have seen growing up its almost as if minors try and immitate what they play or see because they want to be like that one day. i also believe that video games can be helpful to some extent mainly because the more a kid plays the less they are getting in trouble, or it can also give minors ideas of what they would want to do when they get older.
I have never really played videos but I could see where people would say that it would be good for kids. You have to think quickly in order to not get killed or whatever will happen. I could also see how it would affect kids in their learning skills because it would take time away from their school work. But its just a personal opioion.
Emily
When it comes to violent video games there are a lot of things that need to be taken into consideration. First how old the child is playing and what type of game are they playing, I don’t think that young children should play game like “Call of Duty” or Dante’s Inferno”. The parents of these kids do need to be vigilant and know what game their children are playing. Parents can’t use the excuse that their kid bought the game without their knowledge because stores can only sell M rated games to kids 17+, I do understand that sometimes stores don’t even bother to check the ages of children they sell these game to. I do believe that all sorts of game teach us things even the violent ones, in some games the moral lesson is easy to spot were as other it is hidden. Violent video games show us the darker side of how the world works, that bad things can happen to those who did nothing to deserve it.
Ryan M.
Some games may cause younger players to get a "bad" view on society and the world around them. I believe it also has a lot to do with how the child is raised. Some children may know the difference between the game and real life, where as some other children might take some of what they see in the game and not be able to differentiate the game from real life. Is it the parents' fault? Like I said, I think it has a lot to do with how the parents raise the kids. There are certain things that parents shouldn't let kids do, like let a 10 year old play a mature rated game. That's just my opinion though.
Kevin (Noon)
There are certainly two sides to this argument. Most video games are extremely stimulatory to the brain, there is a lot going happening on the screen that a user needs to concentrate on. Games don’t just help with the cognitive side of things; they also help develop the myelin sheath, a neuron insulator that is associated with helping muscle dexterity and control. This in turn helps with concentration and things that aren’t related to gaming. A good example of this would be driving a car.
On the other hand, the psychological messages in certain games are inappropriate for younger audiences. This is where the ESRB rating and good parenting get involved. While a game may be developing a young child’s cognitive function and muscle dexterity, the message may be completely inappropriate for someone of that age to be receiving. It’s important that parents are keeping an eye on the ESRB rating, just like it’s important to read a films age rating before deciding if the child should watch it.
I think the ESRB rating should be advertised more via the media. There is certainly a gap of understanding between ESRB ratings on games and age ratings on movies. Parents seem to pay more attention to what children watch, and neglect to oversee what they are playing. For example a parent may be heavily against letting their child watch a murder scene in a movie, yet they are totally unaware that there are several murders in the game their child plays. Just my two cents!
Zach Daniels
I’ve never been into video games, but I can see why they may not be good for little kids. There are amounts of violence that kids can pick up that can be bad for them. But there are also kids out there that no it’s not real and it’s just a game. I think the problem about video games is that people get addicted to them and that’s how they spend most of their time instead of doing something productive. There are some games that are educational to kids; I know that because I have nieces and nephews that have them. The parents are somewhat to blame because they could monitor how much their child can play a week/day.
Caitlin Wakefield
I think they are true because by playing some video games i can see how it could help you with critical thinking and learning skills. But i also think video games can cause violence in young video game players. I think some video games do offer players in terms of something they can take away from for the game into the real world. I think parents are the reason to blame for letting some kids play some violent video games because they should be responsible and pay attention the ESRB rating.
Kyle Ogle (Noon)
They do hold some truth cause theirs games that can teach you how to do things properly. It can cause violence in people on the shooting games that kill people. No, there are some things that you can take out in the real world. Games will always have effects on players no matter what type of game it is.
Alexis H (noon)
yes, I think that video games are bad for kids. I have always thought video games caused kids to be violent. Kids starting out at a young age playing video games, dont know any better of what they are playing. For example, Grand theft auto, you go around shooting people and stealing car, and young kids are going to think that's alright for them to do. I think that the parent is to because you cant rent violent games that that are rated M which is for mature until you are 18. So that means that the parents have to buy them which is encouraging kids to see that stuff and do it in real life.
Brooke
I think they are true because by playing some video games i can see how it could help you with critical thinking and learning skills. But i also think video games can cause violence in young video game players and not help them learn anything at all. I think some video games do offer players in terms of something they can take away from for the game into the real world. I think parents are the reason to blame for letting some kids play some violent video games because they should be responsible and pay attention the ESRB rating. For example kids that are under 15 shouldnt be aloud to play Call of Duty or Halo yet you see kids at the age of 8 playing games like that.
Brandan McD
I think that the effects of video games vary from person to person, and game to game. Some games are so dark or raunchy that I'm sure they affect anyone at least subconsciously. Some games vary from person to person--it all depends on what affects you. I have never felt affected by violent games, as I have been at times, a frequent player of common ones such as Modern Warfare 1-3, and still don't consider myself very violent at all. This is also true for many of my gaming friends. However, I once knew a man that had a natural temper, and it seemed to me that the violent video games he played made it more irritable. So the conclusion I find is that players must know what they can handle, and use discretion so as to not irritate their natural issues.
Trevor J. (10AM)
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