Studies that Prove Violent Video Games Cause Real Life Violence

Violent video games are causing more bullying, fighting and aggression in kids and teens. 60% of middle school boy and 40% of middle school girls who have played at least one Mature-rated game hit or beat up someone. That’s compared with 39% of boys and 14% of girls who have not played a Mature-rated game. Also, it is known that violent video games cause increased, long-term, aggressive behaviour.

Many studies have shown that kids who play Mature-rated games are more likely to bully and cyberbully others. They also get into physical fights, they argue with teachers, they’re hostile, and show aggression towards others. Real-life violent behaviour is being caused by simulated violence in video games such as hand-to-hand combat and shooting. That’s because in video games most often players are wanted to simulate violent actions, like shooting, stabbing or pulverize someone with a sword, ax, chainsaw or other weapon. Also, violent video games tell the players that fighting is a way of dealing with conflict. So, when they use violent actions they are rewarded with more weapons, more life force and higher levels. Studies suggest that compared to players of video games that punish violence, the players of video games that reward violent actions have more aggression. The rewards that players get are the main characteristic between a violent video games and other violent media like tv shows and movies, because movies and tv shows don’t actually let you do violence, and it also does not reward people who watch.

There was a study of 81 video games that were rated for 13 years of age and up and found that 69% of the 81 games that rewarded the players for killing. And 90% of the 81 games that rewarded the players for injuring other players or characters. That is why people who have played games that reward violence have increased aggressive behavior contrasted to people who have played a version of the same game but that game either punished violence or didn’t contain any. Some games are so realistic, and the controllers are so complicated that it just makes it easier to learn these violent acts. There are many studies that show that the use of realistic controllers have a graphic result on the level of aggression.

There was a story once that in Tennessee there were two teenagers who were shooting at passing cars. These two teens killed one driver and when they got caught they told the police that they got the idea from Grand Theft Auto. Bruce Bartholow, professor of phychology at the university of Missouri, spoke about the effects of simulated violence,” More than any other media, these violent video games encourage active participation in violence. From a psychological perspective, video games are excellent teaching tools because they reward players to for engaging in certain types of behaviour. Unfortunately, in many popular video games, the behaviour is violence.” It is also known that violent video games desensitize players to violence in real-life violence. The peer-reviewed study, Journal of Experimental Social Psychology detailed about desensitization to violence as,” a reduction in emotional-related physiological reactivity to real violence.” It was also found in that study that if someone played just 20 minutes of a violent video game it,” can cause people to become less physiological aroused by real violence.” That’s why people who are desensitized to violence have more potential to commit a violent act.

Studies have found that there are decreased emotional and physical reactions to violence in long term and short term. It is also known that many of the people that were responsible for the mass shootings played violent video games. In 1999 the teenage shooters at Columbine High School massacre 13 of the students played violent combat games. Many mass shootings have been carried out by eager video game players. James Holmes was the reason for the movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado in 2012. Jared Lee Loughner was the reason for the Arizona shooting. Gabby Giffords killed six people in 2011. And Anders Breivik killed 77 people in Norway in 2011.

Also, Anders Breivik admitted to using the game Modern Warfare for training. Later an FBI school threat assessment described that a student who makes violent threats should be more probable if the student also spends extreme amounts of time playing violent video games.