Playing Video Games "Definitely" Doesn't Harm Children

[Foxi4]

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Video games and their influence on the human psyche, especially that of children, have been a subject of heated debates since their invention. Each side has their own strong proponents but neither had any truly conclusive proof that "they're right".​

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This subject pops up whenever we hear of school shootings or terrorist attacks committed by young perpetrators - it's often stressed that they "played video games". Some call that a relevant fact regarding the cases, others call it shifting blame.​

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This mist of confusion might be partially dispelled by a recent study published in the British Medical Journal, a part of the UK Millennium Cohort Study... although it's only "recent" in terms of the publication date - the study itself actually began a decade ago.​

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Some 11,000 children were being observed throughout the decade with their mothers periodically filling out surveys. The researchers wanted to find out if exposure to video games or television has a negative impact on their behavior and/or mood and... video games don't. It was watching TV (for over 3 hours a day) that turned out to lead to behavioral problems between the ages of four and seven... checkmate, television?​

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So what does this study change? Probably not much - people won't change their minds overnight... but it's certainly a step towards proving what gaming enthusiasts have been saying for ages - that video games are a positive way of spending your spare time, and if not positive, at least they don't do any harm.​

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Source​

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

Oh good, now we have scientific evidence we can throw at people's faces when they cry about how video games make our children murder-rage-hate filled machines.

 

[FAST6191]

Oh good, now we have scientific evidence we can throw at people's faces when they cry about how video games make our children murder-rage-hate filled machines.

Damn right. I was a murder-rage-hate filled machine before I even touched a computer game, said computer games just allowed me to hone my talents.

 

[Foxi4]

Damn right. I was a murder-rage-hate filled machine before I even touched a computer game, said computer games just allowed me to hone my talents.

Ah, you mean the famous murder simulators?

 

[Gahars]

Video games corrupt the youth. Just like rock and roll, heavy metal, rap, comic books, movies, television, the cartoons, anime/mangos, and pogs.

Won't somebody please think of the children?

 

[Taleweaver]

Okay...nice argument. Unfortunately, this issue isn't a discussion but a debate. In other words: people aren't going to change their minds over it, no matter what happens. And this study is just going to illustrate that.

pro-gamer: hey...did you hear that a study of 11'000 people didn't show any behavioral difference in playing video games?
game-hater: yeah, well...but I know for a fact that some criminals played video games at some point, so video games are STILL EVIL!!!
pro-gamer: ehm...yeah. So...what WILL take you to believe my view?
game-hater: hmm...if the full hundred percent of those 11'000 people turned out to have never committed ANY form of crime...then I MIGHT consider it. Until another maniac video gamer shows up, that is.
pro-gamer:


Also...I wouldn't call it checkmate on the television, as I think it's more to do with the longitude than anything else. Three hours a day in front of television is three hours they aren't spend making friends at school, kindergarten or whatever them four-to-seven'ers hang out nowadays. And it would surprise me if that study shows that that DOESN'T go for video games as well.

 

[Blaze163]

Just gonna leave this here, kthanxbai

 

[slingblade1170]

I've been playing games for 23 years and i've only killed 4 people and done a bunch of drugs while having unprotected sex, nothing too bad. Haha not really

Video games doesn't hurt anyone with self-control, but there are some kids/teens out there that get obsessive with games and take it a bit too far reenacting them in real life. Although, kids/teens that are like that, it isn't just video games, they are that way with movies, music, tv shows etc. Personally, GTA isn't really that bad compared to some other games but who cares its called "video games" not "real life", its all just an excuse for bad parenting.

 

[Foxi4]

Okay...nice argument. Unfortunately, this issue isn't a discussion but a debate. In other words: people aren't going to change their minds over it, no matter what happens. And this study is just going to illustrate that.

pro-gamer: hey...did you hear that a study of 11'000 people didn't show any behavioral difference in playing video games?
game-hater: yeah, well...but I know for a fact that some criminals played video games at some point, so video games are STILL EVIL!!!
pro-gamer: ehm...yeah. So...what WILL take you to believe my view?
game-hater: hmm...if the full hundred percent of those 11'000 people turned out to have never committed ANY form of crime...then I MIGHT consider it. Until another maniac video gamer shows up, that is.
pro-gamer:


Also...I wouldn't call it checkmate on the television, as I think it's more to do with the longitude than anything else. Three hours a day in front of television is three hours they aren't spend making friends at school, kindergarten or whatever them four-to-seven'ers hang out nowadays. And it would surprise me if that study shows that that DOESN'T go for video games as well.

That's not how debates work - in a debate, you need to support your standpoint with arguments. If you don't, you lose the debate.

I used the phrase "Checkmate, television?" in a cheeky manner, obviously television alone isn't to blame either.

 

[Blaze163]

I dunno, Foxi. Ten seconds of watching The Only Way Is Essex is enough to drive even the most mentally sound person to a Postal 2 style killing spree.

 

[Dork]

b-but if video games don't harm children what will i use as a scapegoat now

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

b-but if video games don't harm children what will i use as a scapegoat now

Let's give bad parenting a try

 

[Foxi4]

I dunno, Foxi. Ten seconds of watching The Only Way Is Essex is enough to drive even the most mentally sound person to a Postal 2 style killing spree.

MTV Poland announced a new series called "Warsaw Shore".

I'd like to point something out:

...because rivers don't have shores - they have banks.

...you know nothing about life, my friend.

 

[Ritsuki]

Life ruined my video games.

 

[Kalker3]

Meh, what's the point?
People will eventually see another "Kid brings a gun to school, it was a present from his father"
and go all "OMFG, Did u see diz? IT's ALL GTA I TELL YOU!!!".

I wonder how long it'll take for people to realize that if games change one's way of thinking
and influence him to "go nuts", the person is question wasn't that sane to begin with.

 

[mkdms14]

You mean video games aren't destroying our lives?????!!!!! You mean politicians have been lying to us for years?????!!!! Well I could of told you that I have been playing video games regularly since the NES days and so far I am fine.

 

[Idaho]

I dont think video games can make kid violents but when I see all these three years old playing plain odd stupid shitz on tablets I'm still kinda worried...

 

[Kalker3]

I dont think video games can make kid violents but when I see all these three years old playing plain odd stupid shitz on tablets I'm still kinda worried...

It's even worse when the tablet belongs to them, they get all cocky and stuff.
For f**** sake, my first electronic gadget was a secondhand Nokia when I was 10, and it was taken from
me 1 week later because I spammed my sister all the time.
Kids these days have literally everything, a cousin of mine received a freaking iPad for his 8th anniversary.
That thing costs more than all my stuff combined, and I'm twice his age!

 

[Blaze163]

Video games can bring out a little bit of rage every now and then. Example, some of the language my fiancee is using right now to express her distaste with the AI in Mass Effect fem-shep run (Kaiden keeps blocking her shots) is somewhat....colourful. But I don't think video games can turn people into psychopaths like the media would have us believe. If anything, a little escapism and tension relief is good for mental health. If someone goes on a killing spree, chances are they had much bigger issues in their lives than a scene in GTA 5 that 'scarred them for life' or whatever the latest scapegoat bullshit is.

Having said that I don't necessarily think my beloved yelling out 'Honestly, I don't know whether to fuck him or shoot him' when I'm trying to get Freya to sleep is the best thing for a life of sanity.

 

[spinal_cord]

It's even worse when the tablet belongs to them, they get all cocky and stuff.
For f**** sake, my first electronic gadget was a secondhand Nokia when I was 10, and it was taken from
me 1 week later because I spammed my sister all the time.

10!!!!!!! I didn't get a phone until I was 16 and I bought it myself!! Also, back then, phones were expensive and crap, 10x2 character screen (no dot matrix gfx for us), custom ringtones only if you could fit into 10 notes. not even a calculator built in, nope, had to carry an actual calculator around if I wanted to do complicated maths.