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Violent video game effects on children and adolescents
Do violent games affect you negatively
Studies on how violent video games affect children's behavior
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Kids And Mature Rated Video Games
Rated M video games, m stands for mature, are games that have been around for quite some time now. The Entertainment Software Rating Board, or ESRB, will give games ratings before the games are available for purchase. The ratings consist of early childhood, everyone, teen, mature, and adults only. You’ve most likely seen these ratings on commercials, in stores, or even when you’re buying a game for someone. My goal in writing this essay is to educate you on mature games and let you know what goes on in these types of games.
Ratings for movies are basically the same thing as ratings for video games. If you see a game in a store take a closer look at the case. In the bottom left corner, you will see the rating
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Some games have certain content while others do not. For example, Call of Duty has blood and gore, intense violence, and strong language. Grand Theft Auto on the other hand has the same content as Call of Duty and more. What I’m trying to get at is all mature games aren’t the same. Some kids won’t be able to handle mature games but on the other hand some will. They will be able to take the material very well and understand that this is just a game for entertainment (Dylan McAndrew). Even though some kids can take this mature content very well it’s kind of a bad thing. When kids are playing these mature games, they can easily become desensitized to the content in the game. In class, we talked about how when we are exposed to a lot of violence like fighting, we can get desensitized to it. This happens because when we are exposed to it all the time, it gets old and we become used to it. Kids will 100 percent become desensitized to violence if they play mature games because most mature games will have intense violence. These kids are going to play this game every day and eventually they are going to get bored with it. When they get bored most of the time they are going to want to buy another mature game that’s different from the one they’ve been playing. It’s a never-ending cycle but kids don’t just see violence on games. They see it in person, on tv shows, and on social
Most games today that children play depict some type of violence. However, parents neglect that the games have warnings for violence, language, and even nudity. In my own personal experience, kids will ask for the most trending games at the time and parents will buy the game to satisfy the needs and wants of the children.
While unbiased studies of video games and their links to violence are hard to come by, recent research has shown that video games do not in fact have a casual link to violence, and may even have the opposite effect. Violent video games have nearly no link to violence in teens or adults. The ESRB rating system was created in 1994 in response to violent video games like Doom, Mortal Kombat, and Night Trap. The ESRB rating system is meant to protect those under the age of each rating, eC (Early Childhood) through A (Adult, 18+). While it is not illegal to sell adult or even mature games to minors, most retailers like Gamestop and Target refuse to sell them to those under 18.
I happen to sympathize with the children, though, perhaps because they’re getting hooked on these games and some have aggressions problems because of them. Increased exposure to violent or “action packed” vide...
The first reason video games are an issue is that many video games made today possess content that many people would consider to be obscene. The term obscene covers violence, profanity, and sexual images (obviously). Such videogames are usually branded with the M (mature audiences only) rating on the front of the videogame cover. This means that only players seventeen or older should be playing such games. However, many children around the ages of twelve and under are acquiring these video games as gifts or are purchasing the games themselves. Therefore, it can be assumed that the parents are purchasing M-rated games for their children, and that stores are willingly selling these young children M-rated games. As Paul Keegan says, parents are not following these ratings and stores are not enforcing them, thus allowing young children to view content that is considered obscene (6). Thus, if parents understand and follow the various video game rating labels, and if stores enforce the videogame rating system, then young children will not be as easily able to view mature material.
Violent video games are becoming more popular among children and adolescents of all ages since its debut approximately 30 years ago. This growing popularity is generating an increasing concern that these sometimes very graphic videos and life like characters can have a negative influence on the younger generation. Although never proven, there has been speculation that some of the high school shootings across the country were committed by students who were habitual players of violent video games. Due to these concerns, a non-profit, self-regulatory organization was established in 1994 by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) to appropriately rate all video games from EC (early childhood), E (everyone), E10+ (everyone 10 and over), T (teen), M (mature), and AO (adults only). While assessing the efficacy of violent video game ratings, it is unknown how effective these ratings are for the intended audience (Becker-Olsen & Norberg, 2010).
video games often warp their sense of reality. The kids think that if they shoot a person in a game and nothing really happens then nothing will really happen if they shoot a person in real life. When video games first became popular, people may not have seen this as much of a problem because games were not very realistic. With the advancement of technology, however, video games are becoming more and more realistic. If video games become more realistic, children will forget what is real and what is simulated; a child seeing somebody violently murder another human being in a video game will have the same effects as seeing somebody murder another human being in real life. Witnessing these brutal acts of violence either will traumatize or desensitize them to violence. However, this is contradictory to the “Play is labile” theory (Schroeder 4), which will be discussed, in further detail.
This is a blanket assumption based on an affect seen on a part of the brain that is not yet proven to control “desensitization.” Admittedly I am not a scientist, but I find it difficult to make the leap from “proven desensitization” to predicted future violence. Introduction The debate about media violence has been going on for hundreds of years. The newest form of media being scrutinized is video games. I will be taking you through this debate and sharing with you some things that you may find surprising.
There are a total of four ratings that they show at most cinemas: G, PG, PG-13, and R. One would think that with so many different types of movies, there would be more ratings. Movies today have a very complex storyline and don’t want to give away any of the movie in the commercial. If there were more ratings you can tell what kind of movie it is and what is shown in the movie. For Example, the movie A.I. (directed by Stephen Speilberg) would be D_L-SC. This is because the movie is a drama, has language and has sexual content. If you saw that in a commercial rather than PG-13, you would have a better idea on if you wanted to see this movie or not.
Video games are a rapidly growing industry. There are nearly two games sold for every household in America each year (Anders 271). The vast majority of these are sold to adults, but there is no national law that prohibits minors from buying violent video games. A few states have legislation pending that will prevent this, but the fact is that minors do have access to violent video games. There is a voluntary rating system implemented by the ESRB, where games are rated based on their content. The games that are rated Mature are not supposed to be sold to anyone under seventeen and Adults Only titles, but “some retailers do not impose such limitations” (Anders 271). The bottom line is that minors do have access to these violent games.
“As video games have become more violent and more sophisticated and the sales of video games has skyrocketed in the last few decades, youth violence has plummeted,” Ferguson says, citing evidence compiled by various federal agencies (Adams 3). Violence in video games is not a new issue. It has been debated and argued since the release of the first violent video game. As time has progressed, so has the evolution of violence and strong language within video games. Ratings have become more relaxed, and the lines between T (Teen) and M (Mature) rated games has gotten closer together. Violent games are becoming the normal and accepted of all games, and are being demanded by the gaming industry more heavily. Parents have always shied away from these games for their children, regardless of age. However, kids are getting these games whether they are the correct age (17+) or not. Young kids, less than ten years of age are playing horribly violent games and parents are fearing the repercussions. But video games are not to be blamed for child violence. Violence in video games does not cause children to become violent people later on in life.
Parents should not allow their children to play violent video games because they are at risk of becoming desensitized. Parents often let their kids play violent video games so parents do not have to watch over their kids. Why shouldn’t parents let their kids play violent video games? Parents should not let their kids play violent video games because they will be influenced to make the decision to hurt other people. According to Dr. Phil (renowned psychologist), kids don’t think they are actually killing people, usually when they are shooting someone in the game, they are getting bonus points. Kids are also becoming desensitized by all of the violence. Parents, I just want you to know that, if you are allowing your kids to play these horrific games, then you need to keep a close eye on your kids as they grow up, because you never know if they are going to grow up with such barbaric behavior and then apply it to another human being. Obviously, I do not appreciate the fact that parents allow their kids to play violent video games at such a young age. It is undeniable that your kids are might grow up to be serial killers or homicidal
Video games and violence may seem surreal to have a connection but few adolescents cannot distinguish between fantasy and reality, and as a result, real life crimes have been committed. From robbing a car to killing children, many perpetrators have been influenced by video
One way to tell the content of a game is with the ESRB. According to the ESRB website. The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is a non-profit, self-regulatory body established in 1994 by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). ESRB assigns computer and video game content ratings, enforces industry-adopted advertising guidelines, and helps ensure responsible online privacy practices for the interactive entertainment software industry (About ESRB). They use ratings such as E (Everyone), T (Teen), and M (Mature) to help consumers know which games are age appropriate.
Both mediums of mass entertainment, movies and video games, can severely impact the audience that is engaged in them. Video games require much more involvement of the player because the player of the game controls the avatars every move. Many games such as Call of Duty, Assassins Creed, or Grand Theft Auto involve extreme violence, in which the player is killing other players to achieve objectives or points. From a narrative role, videogames offer many different options in terms of gameplay and the overall outcome at the end of the game. According to Darren Franich, “Videogames have become more “filmlike,” with more realistic characters and complex plotting,” (Franich, 2011). Video games affect the younger generation immensely, which is important to recognize because the younger generations are the ones causing the most problems within society. There are kids as young a ten years old playing violent video games for excessive hours, daily. According to a recen...
Over the years gaming has become a widely popular aspect of our culture. Kids and teenagers have replaced riding there bike or playing with dolls for video games that connect people together all over the globe .We have all been there at one point and time, there are games for just about anybody. Video games are for all age’s yes us adults love to play them to. Playing video games are fun but not a lot of people realize the impact video games can have on the body physically and mentally. Excessive playing of video games can cause decreased social skills, deterioration in health and increased aggressive behavior.