Violent video games and desensitisation

By Rick Nauert PhD Senior News Editor

Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on July 28, 2006



"...exposure to violent video games can desensitize individuals to real-life violence. According to the investigators, this is first documented finding that video-games can alter physiological responses typically aroused by real violence".

The article alludes to preivous research into aggression and how teenage audiences are desenstized from real lifer violence.

"Past research revealed that exposure to violent video games increases aggressive thoughts, angry feelings, physiological arousal and aggressive behaviors, and decreases helpful behaviors".

"More than 85 percent of video games contain some violence, and approximately half of video games include serious violent actions".

Nicholas Carnagey, an Iowa State psychology instructor and research assistant, and ISU Professor of Psychology Craig Anderson collaborated on the study with Brad Bushman, a former Iowa State psychology professor now at the University of Michigan, and Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam.

They authored a paper titled “The Effects of Video Game Violence on Physiological Desensitization to Real-Life Violence,” which was published in the current issue of the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. In this paper, the 'authors define desensitization to violence as “a reduction in emotion-related physiological reactivity to real violence.'

The methodology- Anderson and Bushman experiments

Their latest study tested 257 college students (124 men and 133 women) individually. After taking baseline physiological measurements on heart rate and galvanic skin response — and asking questions to control for their preference for violent video games and general aggression — participants played one of eight randomly assigned violent or non-violent video games for 20 minutes. The four violent video games were Carmageddon, Duke Nukem, Mortal Kombat or Future Cop; the non-violent games were Glider Pro, 3D Pinball, 3D Munch Man and Tetra Madness.

After playing a video game, a second set of five-minute heart rate and skin response measurements were taken. Participants were then asked to watch a 10-minute videotape of actual violent episodes taken from TV programs and commercially-released films in the following four contexts: courtroom outbursts, police confrontations, shootings and prison fights. Heart rate and skin response were monitored throughout the viewing.

The physical differences

When viewing real violence, participants who had played a violent video game experienced skin response measurements significantly lower than those who had played a non-violent video game. The participants in the violent video game group also had lower heart rates while viewing the real-life violence compared to the nonviolent video game group.

This shows how violent video games desensitise the audience to real violence, as they are unable to react to real life violence in the media.

“The results demonstrate that playing violent video games, even for just 20 minutes, can cause people to become less physiologically aroused by real violence,” said Carnagey.

“Participants randomly assigned to play a violent video game had relatively lower heart rates and galvanic skin responses while watching footage of people being beaten, stabbed and shot than did those randomly assigned to play nonviolent video games.

“... individuals who play violent video games habituate or ‘get used to’ all the violence and eventually become physiologically numb to it.”

This actively shows how violent video games seem to 'dumb down' audiences, as these games cause addiction and don't necessarily teach the audience new skills.

Participants in the violent versus non-violent games conditions did not differ in heart rate or skin response at the beginning of the study, or immediately after playing their assigned game. However, 'their physiological reactions to the scenes of real violence did differ significantly, a result of having just played a violent or a non-violent game'. The researchers also controlled for trait aggression and preference for violent video games.

The researchers’ conclusion

"...the existing video game rating system, the content of much entertainment media, and the marketing of those media combine to produce “a powerful desensitization intervention on a global level.”

“It (marketing of video game media) initially is packaged in ways that are not too threatening, with cute cartoon-like characters, a total absence of blood and gore, and other features that make the overall experience a pleasant one,” said Anderson. “That arouses positive emotional reactions that are incongruent with normal negative reactions to violence. Older children consume increasingly threatening and realistic violence, but the increases are gradual and always in a way that is fun.

“In short, the modern entertainment media landscape could accurately be described as an effective systematic violence desensitization tool,”

“Several features of violent video games suggest that they may have even more pronounced effects on users than violent TV programs and films,” said Carnagey.

In effect, this article believes that marketing and the content in the games manage to desensitise the audience, as the constant exposure to violence, inevitably leads to the audience being unable to differentiate between real violence and 'game violence'.

http://psychcentral.com/news/2006/07/28/video-games-desensitize-to-real-violence/137.html

Video game violence is 'harmful to the brain' article- The Telegraph

Within this article from the Telegraph, scientists and audiences believe that violent video games do indeed cause harm to the brain. In effect, these games seem to alter the way the brain functions, as these games deprive the player of control and concentration .

Published at 12:01AM GMT 04 Dec 2006

Violent video games leave a harmful "fingerprint" on the brains of young teenagers, scientists have found.

Like the NBC article on video game effects, this article states that the game effects ' increased activity in the brain region that governs emotional arousal, and decreased activity in the part of the brain associated with control, focus and concentration'.

Europe's justice commissioner, Franco Frattini, called for 'tighter controls on violent computer games to safeguard children'.

"...an increasing number of games now displayed and even glorified extreme violence".

He has written to all European Union governments to urge them to take action and is calling for talks on the issue when Europe's home affairs ministers meet in Brussels later this month.

On an important not, this article signifies how violent video games are a serious concern, as children can easily access these games and can reenact the violence. Though, this issue has become a global concern, as the EU's justice minister feels that the children especially are desensitized to violence, as gaming institutions such as Infinity Ward condone violence and construct ideologies of violence and immoral values such as murder.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1535948/Video-game-violence-harmful-to-brain.html

Psychological factors of playing violent video games and links to aggression in teenagers

This article focuses on whether violent video games do cause agression in teenagers. As well as this, this article tries to pinpoint the effects on the teenage audience who palay violent video games and the link to emotions. Within this article, scientists at the Indiana University School of Medicine try to monitor brain activity in correspondence to playing violent video games.

Researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine say that:

"brain scans of kids who played a violent video game showed an increase in emotional arousal – and a corresponding decrease of activity in brain areas involved in self-control, inhibition and attention".

The article states that children playing violent video games tended to be absorbed in game to such an extent, that they were unable to focus away from the game. In effect, the article shows how playing games tend to leave the audience with a strong desire to focus solely on the game.

Does this mean that your teenager will feel an uncontrollable urge to go on a shooting rampage after playing “Call of Duty?”

Vince Mathews, the principal investigator on the study, hesitates to make that leap. But he says he does think that:

"the study should encourage parents to look more closely at the types of games their kids are playing". “Based on our results, I think parents should be aware of the relationship between violent video-game playing and brain function.”

However, the article supports the ideas of Professor David Buckingham, who also states that parents should take an active role in monitoring the content in violent video games and seemingly portectingthier children against harmful content.

Vince Mathews and his colleagues conducted an experiment , where two action games were chosen - one violent the other not.

The first game was the high-octane but non-violent racing game “Need for Speed: Underground.” The other was the ultra-violent first-person shooter “Medal of Honor: Frontline.”

The team divided a group of 44 adolescents into two groups, and randomly assigned the kids to play one of the two games. Immediately after the play sessions, the children were given MRIs of their brains.

"The scans showed a negative effect on the brains of the teens who played “Medal of Honor” for 30 minutes. That same effect was not present in the kids who played “Need for Speed.”

The only difference? Violent content.

"What’s not clear is whether the activity picked up by the MRIs indicates a lingering — or worse, permanent — effect on the kids’ brains".

And it’s also not known what effect longer play times might have. The scope of this study was 30 minutes of play, and one brain scan per kid, although further research is in the works.

OK. But what about violent TV shows? Or violent films? Has anyone ever done a brain scan of kids that have just watched a violent movie?

John P. Murray, a psychology professor at Kansas State University, conducted a very similar experiment, employing the same technology used in Mathews’ study. His findings are similar.

Kids in his study experienced increased emotional arousal when watching short clips from the boxing movie “Rocky IV.”

So, why is everyone picking on video games? Probably because there’s a much smaller body of research on video games. They just haven’t been around as long as TV and movies, so the potential effects on children are a bigger unknown. That’s a scary thing for a parent.

Larry Ley, the director and coordinator of research for the Center for Successful Parenting, which funded Mathews’ study, says the purpose of the research was to help parents make informed decisions.

“There’s enough data that clearly indicates that [game violence] is a problem,” he says. “And it’s not just a problem for kids with behavior disorders.”

But not everyone is convinced that this latest research adds much to the debate – particularly the game development community. One such naysayer is Doug Lowenstein, president of the Entertainment Software Association.

“We've seen other studies in this field that have made dramatic claims but turn out to be less persuasive when objectively analyzed.”

The ESA has a whole section of its Web site dedicated to the topic of video game violence, which would suggest that they get asked about it — a lot.

Increasingly 'parents are more accepting of video game violence, chalking it up to being a part of growing up'.

“I was dead-set against violent video games,” says Kelley Windfield mother of two. “But my husband told me I had to start loosening up.”

Laura Best, a mother of three from Clovis, California , says she looks for age-appropriate games for her 14 year-old son, Kyle. And although he doesn’t play a lot of games, he does tend to gravitate towards shooters like “Medal of Honor.” But she isn’t concerned that Kyle will become aggressive as a result.

“That’s like saying a soccer game or a football game will make a kid more aggressive,” she says. “It’s about self-control, and you’ve got to learn it.”

Larry Ley believes that parents should encourage thier children to engage inhealthier activities, instead of playing video games for a long period of time:

“Let’s quit using various Xboxes as babysitters instead of doing healthful activities,” says Ley, citing the growing epidemic of childhood obesity in the United States.

On the whole, the article suggests that violent games seem to instill teenagers with a short term aggression, however results from investigations conclude that there are no long term effects of aggression from playing violent video games. Also, the article states that parents should take an active role in decideing what games thier children play. Though, there is evidence from parents which suggests that violent video games are not a concern, as Laura Best feels that violent video games don't have an impact on her child, as he will not reenact the violence in the game. Larry Ley seems to aleviate the growing concern of video games, as children ten to be 'glued' to playing video games, which results in obesity. Playing violent video games

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16099971/ns/technology_and_science-games/

Critical Investigation Essay Plan

Why are video games becoming more violent? How is this a concern?

Introduction

Insight into video games and the fact that they cause aggression and violence.
http://www.raisesmartkid.com/raise-smart-preschool-kid-articles/the-good-and-bad-effects-of-video.html

Look at brief history of violence in video games and how violence has been influencing the male audience
http://www.personalityresearch.org/papers/kooijmans.html

Brief look at the sales of video games on different formats and a link of top selling games
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16597649/ns/business-us_business/
http://forum.pcvsconsole.com/viewthread.php?tid=15831
http://www.vgchartz.com/

Link to popular violent video games- Call of Duty : Modern Warfare 2 and Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

1st Point

Violent video games have been proved to link to aggression- Anderson and Dill/ Copycat Theory
http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/11479041
http://www.selfhelpmagazine.com/article/video-game

2nd Point

Video games which contain violence cause psychological problems in the audience- Dr Bruce Bartholow, Hypodermic Needle theory

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1535948/Video-game-violence-harmful-to-brain.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16099971/ns/technology_and_science-games/

3rd Point

Focus on the content in video games and how violent video games result in violent behaviour- Dr Cheryl Olsen

http://articles.cnn.com/2008-11-03/health/healthmag.violent.video.kids_1_violent-video-video-games-game-genres?_s=PM:HEALTH

http://www.personalityresearch.org/papers/kooijmans.html

4th Point

Desensitisation: The fact that violent video games result in teenage and younger audiences being unable to distinguish real violence from game violence- Dr Bruce Bartholow

http://illumination.missouri.edu/spr06/pro1
http://psychcentral.com/news/2006/07/28/video-games-desensitize-to-real-violence/137.html

5th Point

Many parents and guardians have concerns on the impact violent video games have on their children, as the values and ideologies in the game contrast to reality and actively endorse violence- Reception Theory and Moral Panic

http://techliberation.com/2009/01/23/video-games-and-moral-panic/
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/11/28/3216340/activists-protest-sacramento-librarys.html
http://www.daniweb.com/news/story301460.html

In accordance to my critical investigation essay, I will create a magazine article which focuses on the topic of violence in video games. As part of my research, I will purchase 2/3 gaming magazines and factual magazines such as TIME and Shortlist, which look at gaming and issues such as violent video games being a concern. Using inspiration from these magazines, my article will include two page spreads which will include stills from games such as Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 , Assassins Creed and other related games.

Related Theories for the Critical Investigation

Copycat (Modelling Theory)

This theory suggests that people will imitate what they see in the media. The powers of this approach is that it feeds off the types of concerns parents have about their child's media use.

In response to my investigation, this theory helps me understand how the audience seem to consume violent video games, as a result, they seem to become more violent and re enact scenes in the game, as evident in Smack down vs Raw (2008), where players often reenact the wrestling moves, as a result of playing these games.

Reception Theory and Ethnography

Audiences are seen as active producers of meaning , rather than consumers of media meanings. They make sense of media texts according to their social position. This theory measures the specific, personal and contextual responses of groups or individuals.

This theory will be used in my investigation, as it looks at audience responses to violent video games. Moreover, I will look at the oppositional readings of texts by parents, as they are active campaigners of violent video games.

Desensitisation

If we are exposed to violence or sexuality, we will become less sensitive to real life violence. This theory looks at how violence and sex are in the media and how audiences witness it.

Most importantly, this theory is crucial in my investigation, as it looks at how children seem to play violent video games and don't seem to distinguish real life violence from video game violence.

Hypodermic Needle Theory

The media 'injects' messages directly into the minds of viewers/ listeners/ readers.

Anderson and Dill: Investigation into aggression and violent video games

From this article, I found that playing a violent video game can increase a person's aggressive thoughts. The research conducted by Anderson and Dill at the Iowa State University of Science and Technology concludes that players' aggressive feelings and behaviour after playing violent video games can be carried out in actual life. The research findings by Anderson and Dill suggest that "... a violent video game may be more harmful than violent television and movies because the video game is interactive, very engrossing and require the player to identify with the aggressor".

How Influential are Violent Video Games?

In one of their studies, Anderson and Dill discovered that "young men who are habitually aggressive may be especially vulnerable to the aggression-enhancing effects of repeated exposure to violent games." Therefore, people with anger and aggressive physical problems are susceptible to violent video games as they encourage and raise testosterone, due to the fact the games are more real and are intended to evoke aggressive feelings. "The other study reveals that even a brief exposure to violent video games can temporarily increase aggressive behavior in all types of participants." By playing for a short period of time, players are filled with a growing need to express their violence and channel their aggression through different ways.

Anderson and Dill's first study

The first study involved 227 college students who completed a measure of trait aggressiveness and reported their actual aggressive behaviors (delinquency) in the recent past. They also reported their video game playing habits. The study carried out by Anderson and Dill found that "students who reported playing more violent video games in junior and high school were engaged in more aggressive behaviour." To some extent, playing video games consistently did tend to instill a level of violent behaviour among teenagers, as they were desensitised to real violence. As well as this, the study also found that ".. amount of time spent playing video games in the past was associated with lower academic grades in college." Interestingly, playing violent video games on a regular basis or consistently does tend to result in lower grades, therefore this is a major concern, as teenagers will end up being uneducated and will not be able to find employment, due to playing video games regularly.

Anderson and Dill's second study

In the second study, 210 college students played either a violent or nonviolent video game. A short time later, the students who played the violent video game punished an opponent (received a noise blast with varying intensity) for a longer period of time than did students who had played the nonviolent video game.

In review of the study , Dr Anderson states how "Violent video games provide a forum for learning and practicing aggressive solutions to conflict situations." As a result , violent video games are more effective in teaching players how to react to situations in conflict, therefore they learn useful self defence skills in the real world. Also, the study states that "In the short run, playing a violent video game appears to affect aggression by priming aggressive thoughts. Longer-term effects are likely to be longer lasting as well, as the player learns and practices new aggression-related scripts that can become more and more accessible for use when real-life conflict situations arise." Effectively, as the player progresses onto the higher levels, they are educated on how to react to more realistic and dangerous situations. Here, the players' aggression levels rise, as they have to adapt to complex situations, which could potentially be useful in real life, therefore they are effective in that sense.

Yet, violent video games are still not received positively by some audiences, as the researchers conclude that "One major concern is the active nature of the learning environment of the video game." The constant exposure to violence fails to have an educational aspect, as games such as Grand Theft Auto rely on the player to carry out crime and killing. "This medium is potentially more dangerous than exposure to violent television and movies, which are known to have substantial effects on aggression and violence." In contrast to movies and television programmes which use violence to respond to public concern, violent video games are quite the opposite as they use violence as a means to channel aggression and to enable the audience to have complete freedom in terms of moral values.


http://www.selfhelpmagazine.com/article/video-game

New hypothesis question for critical invesitgation

Why are video games becoming more violent? How is this a concern?