Christopher
J. Ferguson asserts that, “[I] do not believe that these
studies ... provide meaningful information related to [violent video
games] and youth violence.” (Much ado about nothing...) We know
that video games affect aggression in youth, but what about real
world violence, such as that of Columbine and other serious youth
violence?
The
chart above depicts research done by the criminal justice system for
trends in crime, mostly related to the causation of the crimes. As
you can see, there is a near perfect negative correlation between
video game sales and the rates of youth violence. Not what you
expected? Me neither.
To add
to that, we see that video games is the lowest influence when it
comes to serious crimes, easily trumped by causes involving disorders
and just being violent in general. In another article by Ferguson,
“it is argued that
the pathway to violent criminal acts occurs through a com-
bination
of innate propensity (e.g., genetics or brain injury) and exposure to
violence in the
family.”
(Casual Relationship...) Playing video games and seeing a possible
digital role model participate in it is one thing. Being exposed or
subject to violence involving family, those you love, care for, and
look up to, is another totally different experience. Real life
encounters will always be more influential than that of encounters on
the screen.
Earlier,
in my disclaimers, I cautioned you not to let children with special
needs to play violent video games without the express permission of a
doctor and/or a psychologist. The statement above is one reason why I
included that. Some children are already innately violent because of
disruptions in their development, and exposure to violence on the
screen could make it all the worse.
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