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Michael A. Wendler Instructor: Malcolm Campbell English 1103 10 April, 2012

Violent Video Games: A Major Teenage Problem

In November 2011, a new record was set in the sale of a single video game. On November 6th the Call of Duty franchise released their latest installment, Modern Warfare 3, and the game sold over 6.5 million units in the first 24 hours it was released (Snider). According to Activision, one of the companies that make designs Call of Duty, this should come as no surprise. Company CEO Bobby Kotick has said life-to-date sales for the Call of Duty franchise exceed worldwide theatrical box office [sales] for the Star Wars and Lord of the Rings films (Snider). But the big question is why is this important? Why should Americans care about how many Call of Duty games are sold? The main answer is the type of game Call of Duty is and how it may be affecting teenagers. Call of Duty is what is called a first person shooter or FPS game. From my own personal experience, an FPS game gives the player a realistic view of what it would be like to actually do the acts portrayed in the game. This means the only thing the gamer sees on the screen is a frontal view from the characters eyes. The gamer controls a characters action only from what the character would see through their eyes (See Appendix). Call of Duty and the FPS style of games only account for 101 of the 887 Xbox 360 games, but they account for 4 of the top 5 game sales of all time. Any type of shooter style of game accounts for 189 of all Xbox

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games (Xbox.com). This means that Americas teenagers are exposed to a large variety of games, but tend to favor the violent FPS style games. These games may seem harmless to some people but they have been affecting teens. These effects have been in a predominantly negative way which is why violent video games should be have tighter restrictions so only people over the age of 18 are allowed to play. This is due to the apparent correlation between violent video games and increased aggression levels, a loss of emotional feeling when it comes to violence, and may help trigger an addiction to the games themselves. After violent video games started to become a mainstay in American households, parents teachers, other adults, and even other kids began to notice a change in the behavior of kids that played these games. Children who played more video games were starting to tend towards aggressive behavior. These acts of aggression could be small such as sticking a tongue out at a classmate to much larger such as bullying. Everybody was more aggressive if they'd played a violent game than if they'd played a nonviolent game was the conclusion after a test done by Brad Bushman, a social psychologist from The Ohio State University (Vedantam). In his study, video game players blasted each other with varying loud noises. They were able to make the noises as high as they wanted towards the other participants. The kids who played violent video games were more aggressive in the noise levels then those who did not play those types of games. This is just one example of the increased aggression in teenagers who play video games. Furthermore increased aggression is causing problems for students in schools. With problems such as bullying on the rise in the schools in British Columbia, the teachers association decided to stand up to what they believe is the cause. Last fall, the BCTF joined with other concerned organizations to form the new Coalition Opposed to Violent Entertainment writes Nancy Knickerbocker. (Knickerbocker). This organization was designed to help fight the sale of all

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violent forms of entertainment including violent video games such as first person shooters, as well as violent themed movies. While many actions are being taken to show people the harm that violent video games may be causing to teens, naysayers may believe that the aggression is only a natural phenomenon associated with puberty in teenage males. The studies with human males suggest that there may be a positive relationship between plasma testosterone levels in adolescence and adulthood and one or more aspects of aggressive behavior (Owleus, Mattson, Schalling, and Low, 261). This is a very valid argument but one needs to ask themselves why, only since the rise of violent video games, has there been a nationwide call to end the aggression? I personally believe that the aggression is a result of testosterone, but the competitive nature of gaming amplifies this aggression to a whole new level. This new level of aggression is a problem which is harming teens in other ways besides aggression. Besides being described as overly aggressive, another seemingly similar trait in teens that play violent video games versus those who dont play them is they are desensitized to violence towards others. In the second part of the aforementioned study by Brad Bushman gamers were exposed to two violent images. According to Bushman, people who were exposed to a lot of violent video games, their brains did not respond to the violent images. To put it in his words the gamers were numb to the violence (Vedantam). This numbness is bad as it creates a stigma that violent acts by the teen wont affect the person that it is aimed at in a negative emotional way. This is due to the concept that the games have showed teens to a new type of morals. Many parents find the games very morally objectionable. The content was far beyond anything I could have imagined, including sadistic violence, dismemberment, and torture said Jillian Skeet, a mother of a 6 year old boy (Knickerbocker). This morally objectionable world is

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what I, as a gamer, experience for 3-4 hours a day on weekdays and upwards of 8 hours on the weekends. With school, homework, a part time job and sleep that can be more time than one spends interacting with my parents, the ones that are supposed to help shape my morals. Instead parental intervention is replaced with the things that I learn while playing video games. To paraphrase Chris Ferguson, a psychologist at the Texas A&M International University, many of the games are morally objectionable, but they wont cause major violence such as stabbings. They will cause lesser forms of violence such as disrespect and disregarded for the feelings of others (Vedantam). While what Ferguson says is his own interpretation of the study is a valid thought, what happens when violent video games do lead teens to take their violence to the level of killing? The short answer is bloodshed. April 20, 1999 is a day that will live in infamy for most Americans. That is the day that Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold caused the forth worst school massacre in American history (Scott, and Riggs). The two teens used guns to kill 12 fellow classmates, 1 teacher, and attempted to kill many more with bombs planted in a crowded cafeteria at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. The bombs never went off so many were saved, but 13 people still lost their lives. The days after the massacre people began to search for reasons why Harris and Klebold would massacre students. One major idea is that Harris and Klebold were trying to live out a fantasy world, like that in the video games Quake and Doom, both of which were played by the pair (Ward). The games are first person shooters, so they game a very direct image of what it is like to kill people. Theorists believe that Harris and Klebold planned their attack to be based on the tactics they learned while playing violent video games. In May 2001, 2 years after the massacre, families of the victims filed a lawsuit against 25 video game manufactures. The lawsuit states that games the companies created the

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conditions that made the massacre possible (Ward). Harris and Klebold are just 2 of many in a line of shooters that learned how to kill by being exposed to violent video games. Actions like this are some of the many reasons why video games should be banned from sale to teens under the age of 18. With all of this evidence, the question remains; why havent they been banned? The main reason is the First Amendment in the US Bill of Rights in the Constitution. The First Amendment states: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances(Cornell University Law School). This law was written well before the rise of electronic mediums such as video games, but video games are a form of expression which is protected under the First Amendment. In 2010 a law aimed at banning the sale of video games to minors was shot down by the California Supreme Court (Gallagher). While the purpose of the First Amendment is meant to protect our freedoms, there should be a line when the sale of violent video games leads to murder. As most people know, the Declaration of Independence states that we have three unalienable rights; life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Violence, caused by violent video games, impedes on others ability to have access to these rights. One of the biggest arguments of people that are against banning violent video games, is that there are other forms of media out there that portray just as much if not more violence. Last year, the Federal Trade Commission said the computer and video game industry outpaces other entertainment industries in restricting marketing of mature-rated products to children

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(Gallager). While this claim can be made, no other form of media can claim to show violence from a solely first person view. Movies, while violent, show a mix of first and third person views with the action primarily being from a third person view. A third person view does not give the view the true image of a killing like those seen in a first person shooter style of game. Finally violent video games may be contributing to what is known as a video game addiction. In a video game addiction players need to play the game or they will be unable to be happy. This causes problems as players may be unable to go to work or perform other needed tasks involved in being a productive member of society. A video game addiction is something that has not been accepted into the scientific, medical and psychiatric communities, but more and more it is becoming an unofficial diagnosis of people that cannot stop playing games by certain psychologists and medical professionals. From personal experience, video games have greatly affected my grades and desire to do homework. Before I got my Xbox I had nothing to do besides the homework, now I have an alternative that provides me with more enjoyment then typing this essay for example. While video games may be causing a form of addiction people may argue that video games can be affecting teens brains in a positive way. According to a study done by cognitive neuroscientist Daphne Bavelier from The University of Rochester the violent action games that often worry parents most had the strongest beneficial effect on the brain (Fox News). These effects range from an increase in vision to an increase in the speed of decision making. While this may be good for the individual person that plays the game, others are affected by his or her actions associated with violence and aggression. These negative reactions to gaming are far outweighing the positives as seen by Bavelier in her studies. All-in-all violent video games need to be restricted from children under the age of 18. The main reason for this is violent video games can cause adverse effects on adolescents.

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Children, especially teens going through puberty, are ever changing. The increase in aggression associated with increased testosterone does not need to be further amplified by the playing of video games. When violent games are played and the adolescent is already exposed to an increase in aggression, horrible things can happen. It is only a matter of time until another child plays a first person shooter game and gets the idea that they could do this for real. After the massacre of Columbine in 1999, society needs to do something to make sure it never happens again. As previously stated it is believed that Harris and Klebold learned how to hone their craft of killing from first person shooters. Whos to say that this wont happen again? Society as a whole needs to protect its youth so there will be a bright future. If this means the banning of video games, so be it. One new law is well worth the safety and future of children.

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Works Cited "Bill of Rights." Legal Information Institute . Cornell University Law School, n.d. Web. 4 Apr 2012. Gallagher, Michael. "Video Games Dont Cause Children to be Violent." usnews.com. U.S. News & World Report, 05 May 2010. Web. 26 Feb 2012. Hodson, Charlotte. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. 2010. Photograph. Blogger.comWeb. 8 Apr 2012. "Hours of Playing Video Games can Change Brain for the Better, Research Finds." Fox News. NewsCore, 06 Mar 2012. Web. 6 Apr 2012. Knickerbocker, Nany. "BCTF supports campaign against video-game violence." Teacher Newsmagazine. May 2001: n. page. Web. 28 Feb. 2012. Olweus, Dan, Ake Mattson, Daisy Schalling, and Hans Low. "Circulation Testosterone Levels and Aggression in Adolescent Males: A Causal Analysis." Psychosom Medicine. 50.3 (1988): 261-272. Web. 2 Apr. 2012. Scott, Steve, and Joel Riggs. "The Top 5 Worst School Massacres in United States History." Top 5 of Anything. N.p., 2011. Web. 5 Apr 2012. Snider, Mike. "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3' Sets First-day Record." Game Hunters. USA Today, 13 Nov 2011. Web. 2 Apr 2012. Vedantam, Shankar. "It's A Duel: How Do Violent Video Games Affect Kids?." npr.org. National Public Radio, 07 Jul 2011. Web. 21 Feb 2012.

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Ward, Mark. "Columbine Families Sue Computer Game Makers." BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation , 01 May 2001. Web. 6 Apr 2012. "Xbox 360 Games." Xbox.com. Microsoft Corporation, Mar 2011. Web. 4 Apr 2012.

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Appendix Screen view of a first person shooter game (Hodson)