Do Video Games Make You Violent?

Even new gamers have had to sit through discussions of people claiming that video games result in aggressive behavior. This argument has been raging on for as long as first-person shooter games and other realistic games have been on the market. And, it doesn’t look like they will be going away anytime soon.

Still, the question needs to be asked: do video games cause you to be more violent than the average person? The short answer would be no. However, it isn’t quite as cut and dry as that. To get a better understanding of the situation, consider the factors below…

 

Why the Confusion Remains

As mentioned, much of the evidence shows that there is little to no link between playing video games and violent behavior. Still, though, the debate continues – so why is this? Well, this is mostly because the scientific community is having a tough time coming to an agreement on this particular topic.

While there have been a number of studies conducted on this idea, researchers appear to be coming up with different answers every time. There is actually a relatively simple explanation for this. To start with, few people can actually tell you what a violent video game is. This perception changes from person to person. Since people can’t really narrow down this definition, it can make it difficult for scientists to identify the impact.

There is also the fact that it can be tricky to monitor and analyze violent behavior. After all, it isn’t like scientists can force children and teenagers to play video games and to then let them run amok. Rather, these individuals have to use various assessments and tests to sort out what violent behavior may look like.

Of course, it is these very things that will also keep this particular debate heated for quite a while. Despite this, there is still an overwhelming amount of evidence that shows that there is no correlation between video games and violent tendencies.

Short Term Effects

The argument of video games fundamentally changing children and teenagers behavior wasn’t the forefront of the issue, though. This is was because many believed that violent video games were able to prime kids and adolescents for a short period of time. In essence, experts argued that younger individuals could be more aggressive shortly after playing such games.

For the most part, though, these claims have been done away with. For one thing, they are statistically marginal and for another, it is unlikely that video games are the cause of these spikes. What is interesting, though, is that another short-term, positive effect that video games may have on society in general.

A group of researchers looked at the level of violent crime shortly after popular video game titles were released. What they found was quite surprising – violent crime decreased during this period. So, even though people were definitely playing more video games during this time, they weren’t being more aggressive. In case you are wondering, the explanation might be simpler than you imagined.

For one thing, video games allow the demographic most likely to commit violent acts – young men – off of the streets in their home. In short, they are being preoccupied with a safe way of relieving their aggressive tendencies through video games. This prevents them from carrying out such acts in the real world.

Long Term Effects

As mentioned, people were just as concerned about the long-term effects of video games on people’s demeanors and personalities. So, to handle such questions, they ran experiments for a longer period of time – months instead of weeks. This was all done to discover if a consistent playing of violent video games was enough to change the very structure of gamers’ brains.

The good news was that this was not the case. Even when people were put on a video game playing schedule, there was no change to their personality, behavior, or tendencies. This held true even when their actions and thoughts were compared to people who played non-violent video games or no video games at all.

So, in short, you can play video games every day for the rest of your life and it is unlikely that you will change in any way at all. This holds true for children, teenagers, and adults across the board! This means that you can now feel free to head over to https://www.computer-realm.net and learn as much about gaming as you want to.

The General Consensus

As you can see, there is a lot to digest here. However, if you are a fan of the more graphic video games, all of this news will be quite welcome to you. Of course, while all of the evidence is overwhelmingly positive, you may be wondering if violent video games are still a passion that you should continue.

Well, that all depends on how you feel when you are playing your video games. After all, these days, most games are played on a community basis. It isn’t just you against a screen, you are probably playing with people from all over the world. In turn, this can result in some rather healthy competition.

However, you should keep an eye out for when this competition takes a turn for the worse. For instance, if you find yourself feeling stressed out, anxious, or annoyed while playing video games, then you may need a break. Remember video games are only a good idea as long as they elicit a positive or a happy emotion.

When this ceases to be true, you may want to take a break. At this point, video games may be doing you more harm than good, regardless of whether they are violent or not. So, do yourself a favor, focus on something else and come back when you are feeling calmer.

For the most part, though, you can continue to enjoy your video games as they are. A majority of behavioral scientists and video game experts have shown that there is nothing to worry about. In fact, the benefits of playing video games will probably continue to outweigh any of the minor negative things that come along with it. If you are a passionate gamer, this is sure to put a smile on your face.

Summary:

This article takes a look at whether there is any truth to the rumors regarding video games causing violent behavior. The passage is based on scientific evidence and takes a look at a variety of studies conducted over the last few years. With all of this proof, the answer regarding this question is clear.

 

We at b4gamez will be happy to hear your comment below!