The Effects of Violent Video Games on Youth in Terms of Aggression

Abstract

The video game industry has seen rising success over the last 30 years. Today, people from every age group and gender are found to spend some amount of time playing video games, regardless of whether they are computer games, console games or online games.

Video games of today have violence as a dominant theme in them. Though the violence in them might be of different levels, such an exposure can affect individuals, especially when it comes to aggressiveness in their behaviour. Multiple theoretical accounts support the hypothesis that violent video game exposure increases aggressive behaviour. These theories include Social Learning Theory (Bandura, 1971), Script Theory (Huesmann, 1986), Cognitive Neoassociation Theory (Berkowitz, 1993) and Excitation Transfer Theory

(Zillmann, 1971). This paper, ‘The effects of violent video games on youth, in terms of aggression’ looks at the intensity of aggression among the youth, in relation to violent video games. Therefore an experiment to measure aggression was conducted through situational surveys among adolescents aging 20 to 25 years. Results showed a direct relationship between violent games and the intensity in aggressive behaviour among the youth. However, it was also determined that this aggression was not necessarily a negative influence as participants chose positive ways to channelize it.

This study therefore suggests that the participant’s personal traits play a major role in determining the influence of violence in video games over them. It also suggests that the more a participant can relate to a game, the more is the possibility of influence over him.

The effects of violent video games on youth, in terms of aggression

“Aggression which is flagitious when committed by one, is not sanctioned when committed by a host.”

Herbert Spencer

The video game industry has seen rising success over the last 30 years. Today, people from every age group and gender are found to spend some amount...