America does not feed on controversy by accident. You don’t believe me? At the local gas station or supermarket, you’ll find a wide variety of tabloids that cover the lives of Hollywood A-listers and their issues. Miley cyrus was the subject of much discussion for weeks after her poor performance at MTV Video Music Awards. Whether a person would prefer to talk negatively about Miley’s clothing or the money she gives to private organisations, it shows that gossiping is more common when the topic is negative. We are human because we engage in personal debates. We have strong opinions about topics that we think should be protected and support issues based on moral law and common knowledge. Today’s world is a melting pan of diverse actions that are experienced by both adults and children. In turn, cultures have differing beliefs on how to help their children grow physically and mentally. Retrospectively, the debate over whether violent video games contribute to the desensitization and social, emotional and physical backgrounds of children is a controversial issue. However, it can be agreed that what children see and experience in certain environments has a great impact on them.
The Entertainment Software Rating Board, or ESRB as it is commonly known, has a rating system for video games. This allows children to be surrounded by a large number of these games. According to Karen and Jody, the authors of “VIDEO GIAME VIOLENCE: a REVIEW OF EMPIRICAL LYRICS,” they state:
Video games have reached a phenomenal level of popularity. Nintendo, the leading video-game company, sold 3 games every 2 seconds between 1983 and 1995. That’s a total of 1 Billion games. If you want to put it into perspective, this is enough games sold to reach the equator 2 1/2 times if they were laid end-to-end.
In perspective, statistics do not include only children who play videogames, but also adults. The Dills mention this as well:
Egli & Meyers (1984), found that 13 percent of adolescents showed a compulsive behaviour towards video games. These teens sacrificed time and money to devote themselves to video game play. Braun and Giroux ( 1989) called videogames,. . . The perfect model for inducing “addictive behaviors” was noted as being the perfect example. . . “Consumers, particularly children, should be given special consideration” (p. 101).
While there may be some who disagree with the above statement, it remains true that in certain societies, children would prefer to surround themselves in a virtual environment containing animated characters they love than take part in outdoor activities or other leisure pursuits. My niece will play her Nintendo DS console at my house instead of playing with her stuffed toys or creating vivid worlds. Video games may not destroy children’s imagination, but they do influence what children think. Dill & Dill use L. Berkowitz & R. G. Geen information to compare the relationship between video games and television violence. Their conclusion is that the greater the exposure to content, the less inhibitions children have in what they consider to be socially acceptable behaviors. They also state that video games, such as Mortal Combat, portray “learned behavior” that can be justified. If a boy or girl watches a man that they admire karate-chopping someone’s neck and then mimics the action, this is what I mean by “learned behavior”. Children do not necessarily mirror actions or behaviors that they observe in their society. The social norms of society can also affect children’s learning. According to several authors of an article entitled “Brains and video games” published in Nature Reviews Neuroscience “At this time, we should note that time spent on video games by children is inversely associated with academic success, perhaps because it steals time away from academic readings or study.” (Bavelier Gentile Green Han Merzenich Renshaw 753). I am not the only one who has missed classes in the name of relaxing and shooting Nazi zombies. Ask a child if they would prefer to play with flashcards or a videogame. It is not hard to guess the answer. The answer is usually obvious. This action can become habitual. It could also affect the study behavior of the child. The minds of children are like sponges that absorb everything. They can be influenced by the things they hear and see.
It is important to understand that the emotional development of your child can have a significant impact on their behavior in later life. The content that they are exposed to can sometimes be detrimental to their ability for empathy and emotional development. Michael M. Merzenich expresses this concern in his book “Brains on Game”:
It has been found that playing violent or anti-social games reduces empathy and stress, as well as increasing confrontational behavior.
Reduced empathy in a child’s mind, which is still developing and experiencing certain situations, could be the reason why they show little or no interest in loving or social relationships. The stem is hampered by cutting the roots before the buds have bloomed. This will prevent the bud from ever blossoming and it will remain nothing. The same is true when a young child is experiencing a deep emotional reaction to their video game experiences. It’s possible that this will cause their minds to be affected. Thomas et.al. both noted “that the violence in video games can cause children to become desensitized.” The 1977 study also suggests that desensitization happens when the initial arousal from violent stimuli decreases and changes the internal state of an individual. Systematic desensitization also has the ability to reduce fear-provoking behaviors. This is especially true when there are no negative consequences. Desensitization may cause individuals to lose their ability to notice violent events, reduce the severity of injuries, have less empathy for victims, as well as less negative attitudes about violence. The authors’ concern is that, after a prolonged period of exposure to violent videos games, children could exhibit less emotion towards traumas like loss or fear. Although I don’t think that children should go carjacking and on a rage-induced spree, they can engage in risky behaviors such as testing their courage or defying heights. It is possible that they may have learned to believe their character could “re-spawn”, in the event of death, which would lead them to think they are omnipotent and jump off a roof or cliff. The content of games can be monitored to ensure that children’s minds are shaped positively. Statistic and analysis show that children’s development could be hindered by the exposure to violent videogames.
The physical well-being of children is the most important factor in their involvement. The violence in video games has been shown negatively to impact the child’s physical and mental health. Marilynn Larkin a co-author of “Amygdala differentiating fear response” worked with scientists in order to come to the conclusion that “the amygdala was not there just to mediate fears and anxieties, as most people think.” It’s an important learning tool that helps to mediate associations between stimuli (good or bad) and reinforcers. This in turn impacts future behavior. Statisticians have demonstrated that violent video games can affect children’s empathy and fear towards different situations. The brain’s amygdala acts as a receptor of almost all emotional feelings. It is a transmitter of information and a response to danger. Imagine if this response were to be either slowed down or stopped altogether. A similar situation would be to place your hand over a hot pan without your brain telling it to do so. It is possible to feel sadness or grief but be unable to deal with it, due to mental conditioning caused by playing violent games. The research also shows that the heart rate and skin responses of those exposed to violent videogames are similar to those not exposed. The psychologists at Iowa State University also concluded:
Carnagey explained that, even if people play violent videogames for only 20 minutes, they become less affected by actual violence. ‘Participants who were randomly assigned a violent game showed lower heart rate and galvanic skin response when viewing footage of people getting beaten, shot or stabbed. This was compared to those who were randomly assigned a nonviolent game. The individuals who play violent gaming video games seem to ‘get accustomed’ to the violence.
Desensitization, as determined by studies, is responsible for the violent video game involvement in children’s lives. It doesn’t matter whether the statistics come from empirical data collected through adults or children. The results are always the same. To reiterate, I am not suggesting that violent video games influence the mind of those who commit mass murders. In my statement, I simply state that the violence in video games can have a negative impact on children’s health, mentality, and social status.
Statisticians state that the violence in video games has a detrimental effect on some children. I can only speak for myself. I do not stereotype every person. Authors of “Brains on video games,” also discuss the impact video game violent on people as individuals, not in a general sense. Others are not affected by online role-playing game use, but some develop greater mental acuity. Although it’s not clear if these traits are the result of a “gamer” who has mastered their skills or a non-gamer, each person will have varying experiences (Bavalier Gentile Green Han Merzenich Renshaw 753). We can still influence how our children adapt to the outside world. This is a topic that we cannot ignore. This controversy won’t go away on its own. To help our children reestablish moral and ethical values, we need to interact more with them and expose them to less media influence entertainment. You will never be able to avoid the sting of society’s nails when it comes to controversial issues. The truth is that some stories are more prominent than others. The media will only show us the side that it believes is most likely to benefit us. Who’s to say that media outlets are always right? Has the media distorted the views of people to the point that they believe what is appropriate for their children will be determined by a group men? A tiny thought within a bubble of moral and societal laws, or societal rights. Last but not least, I think that if virtual reality can be used to influence children, it would be beneficial to let them experience real life activities like planning a campout, picking fruit from an apple orchard or selecting the perfect Christmas Tree at a local tree farm. This will leave a lasting impression in their mind.
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