Videogames and violence

Did you know that many crimes are blamed on videogames? Many news articles and analytics
talk about how videogames cause violence; many politicians like Hillary Clinton and Donald
Trump have done so. Videogames are blamed for violence due to parents wanting their children
to do something else, general misunderstandings being spread around, and people who want
attention for their own benefit. Videogames are not a cause of violence for the three following
reasons.

There are many parents frustrated with the amount of time their Children spend on
Videogames, so they end up blaming it for their children’s bad behavior. Although
children having nothing to do with their time may end up addicted to videogames, this
does not necessarily mean it is the cause of their violent behavior. Most parents
nowadays have little to no management on what their children are playing, so they
inadvertently blame violence on videogames. Furthermore, these parents did not have
videogames to the same extent that their children have, so their claims can not be taken
for granted. However, it is not just the parents.

Many people think videogames cause violence because they give the player the option of
murder. However, these people forget that videogames are a form of entertainment like
movies and other mediums, in other words, it is like a theatrical experience. Videogames
can be “competitive” with a visualization, it is like a digital colosseum in which no one is
getting hurt. Also people are quick to judge, so these claims can not be taken seriously.
There are also attention seekers.

There are many people sharing opinions that are not true, but are guaranteed to garner a
lot of attention. They often spark controversial conversations for attention. These same
people would link murder to videogames. At the same time, news outlets would publish
their talk as facts. Though, videogames can be slightly misleading.

Many people think that due to how violent videogames can be, they are a cause of
violence, yet according to (Kühn, S, etc (2019)) there is no link between videogames and
violence. Parents who want their kids to do something else, misconceptions, and people
seeking attention are all reasons why videogames are associated with violence. If
videogames were a cause of violence, half of humanity would have been criminals.
Kühn, S., Kugler, D. T., Schmalen, K., Weichenberger, M., Witt, C., & Gallinat, J.
(2019).
Does playing violent video games cause aggression? A longitudinal intervention study.
Molecular
psychiatry, 24(8), 1220-1234. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-018-0031-7