[July Discussion] Video game addiction + Do video games lead to violence?

[Arez Al'Loke]

Fine, I surrender =P

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

Fine, I surrender =P

 

no, no, i didn't mean to shut down dissension.

 

i was enjoying the discussion.

 

and now i'm sleepy so i'll let other people have a word in edgewise.

[SinisterDeath]

Can you get addicted to video games?

 

 

No. And I only say that, because even if you have a psychological addiction to play video games the only type of physical withdrawl you'll experience, is entirely imaginary/mental.

 

I consider video game addiction on the same level as gambling addiction.

Even alchohal/Tobacco actually have a physical (and obvious mental) addiction qualities to them, specially with withdrawl from not using)

 

What most people fail to understand about addictions like gambling, video games, over-eating, ect, is most of the time its a blame game. "I didn't do it. My addiction made me do it! My god made me the way I am."

Instead of proclaiming "Its my fault I got to into gambling/sex/eating/gaming I allowed it to consume my life. Its my fault, and I'm sorry for it. And I'm going to go cold turkey/reduce it to the point that I no longer need it."

 

Anyways, As far as addictions go, I'd rather be addicted to vidoe games than

Alchohal

Tobacco

Crack

Meth

Gambling

Sex

Over-eating

Fisti-cuffs

ect.

 

Besdies, doing to much of anything even when its a good thing is Bad.

 

Does Playing Violent Video Games Lead To Actual Violence?

No,

No more than watching WWE on tv causes violence, or watching Die Hard or XXX cause violence.

People who are pre-desposed to violent tendencies, will cause violence, regardless of the media they ingest. Be it movies, video games, or books. (Need I remind anyone about Jon Lennon and his assassins reading material?)

 

For every study saying Video Games are the great inciter of violence, theres another saying thats all bull hockey.

 

NOTHING Causes people to make violence.

PEOPLE allow themselves to DO Violence!

Its the same with addiction (Addiction to violence anyone?) They are not allowing themselves, to admit that They are responsible for there own actions! it has to be something/someones elses!

 

Anywho, if anyone here has gone through addiction, or has addicts in their family that now hate me for some of the things I've said on it... Well, heres some more kindling to the fire!

 

Children (Of all Mental Ages) need to be spanked more.

[Sakaea]

Yes you can get addicted to video games, I am myself. But I think it's the most harmless addiction out there, compared to drugs/alcohol/gambling, etc.

 

I don't think video games lead to violence, quite the opposite. But there is always the element of society that will blame violent video games for violent people. I say to that, those people were already violent, the games were superfluous to that element of their personality.

 

Video games are a good outlet for emotions, better than most other outlets.

[BNICK1026]

I'd be more concerned about a drug/alcohol addict.

 

Honestly, I think playing violent games is a avenue to release those violent feelings. Sniping in 12 stepping with Call of Duty. lol

[Niniel]

Very interesting topic. There are many things you can get addicted to and video games is one of those. I don´t know anything about this particular addiction but I have been addicted to work ("workoholic") and I guess it works the same way. One part of the addiction is about control. By doing something really good you think you are in control of your life. If life is tough it´s easy to focus on one thing and let your life depend on it. There is also a physical part of the addiction. Your brain rewards you with adrenaline, serotonin, dopamine etc which you get used to and after a while you need it to get to feel good. I don´t think it´s the things in it selves that makes us addicted (games, work etc) - I could surely had been addicted to video games or something else. It´s what we decide to focus on.

 

As a teacher and a mother I wonder about if video games leads to violence. I think it´s up to the parents. If you learn your kids that it´s just a game or a movie, than they will know the difference between rl and games. It´s obvious that some kids haven´t learned that though. But just like video game addictions - it´s not the games fault - it´s how we deal with it. I also need to point out that video games is good for a lot of things when you are a kid too. Depending on game you can learn to make strategies, plan/think ahead, get better memory etc.

[Red2111]

re-addiction

 

Yes you can. if you have an addictive personality, then you can get addicted to anything. and while its a mental addiction, it shoudln't be discounted. there are instances of people who destroy their lives due to video game addiction because they lack the self restraint to put the controller down; as well as others who have caused their own deaths because they wouldn't stop playing even to sleep. a few months ago a girl from china did exactly that.

 

 

re-violence

 

i don't think video games lead to violence any more than any other medium (books, tv, movies, music) but i do think it desenatizes people to heinus acts. one thing, especially with MMO's like Real Life, people with Violent Tendancies are able to act out their fantasy's or impulses and this may inbolden them to act sooner on their fantasy's. but those that would do so are already predisposed imo to eventually act on those impulses.

 

if anything, i think video games might have lessened violence to some degree because it gives an outlet that in most cases will sat a persons fantasy's and keep them from acting on them in the real world; like porn on the internet often does for sex addicts.

 

however, i do think scapegoating video games this way (and yes it is making them a scape goat) just allows people to shirk personal responsability for their actions. which is a big problem in todays society if you ask me.

 

 

Oh, fair enough =)

 

What about children who, generally, have more impressionable minds when they see violence in a game they're playing? Are they more likely to copy it? Not to the point of lethality, just violence.

 

only if the parents have completely and utterly failed in their duties to teach them right from wrong and reality from fantasy

 

^ this!!

 

Children (Of all Mental Ages) need to be spanked more.

 

^ this!!!

 

Yes you can get addicted to video games, I am myself. But I think it's the most harmless addiction out there, compared to drugs/alcohol/gambling, etc.

 

I don't think video games lead to violence, quite the opposite. But there is always the element of society that will blame violent video games for violent people. I say to that, those people were already violent, the games were superfluous to that element of their personality.

 

Video games are a good outlet for emotions, better than most other outlets.

 

i disagree Kae. depending on the person and what their self control is i wouldn't consider a video game addiction so lightly or deam it harmless. addiction is bad regaurdless, and feeding a video game addiction can get rather expensive.

 

i also woudl disagree to the games being superfluous to a person predisposed to violence. take a stalker for instance; some stalkers are fine with just watching their victims, others need to take it a step further by escalating it to an attack. in this way, a perosn who is goign to commit a violent crime and has a video game addiction, the video game could be a spring board to them escalating their behavior. a spring board that otherwise woudln't be provided seeing the unique nature of some games like those that allow you to psychologically become another person and control those actions and live through that avatar.

 

also, with the outlet; yes its a good outlet; but its not solving the underlaying problem its prolonging it.

[Jonas]

Who do we blame WWI and WWII on then?

 

Did Pong cause Vietnam?

 

I think humans have a long and violent history that predates digital violence.

 

While some video games are disturbing for certain individuals, we are free to not play them, or buy them. If Batman can inspire violence, should we shut down all movies altogether?

 

The answer, I think, is no. Video games seem to inspire a lot of criticism because they are hella fun. Sometimes they are so engrossing that people escape to that world, forgetting all that remains behind, like a good book. Or a RP board. A D&D group. And sometimes, those who want to criticize video games are probably going home and plopping themselves on their couches for 4-5 watching TV, which they think is ok because in their mind TV = good and video games = bad. They are just impressing their personal, subjective value assessment of an activity and attempting to make it so for everyone else.

 

For me, I think #1 is yes. People can overdo anything. Blame the behavior of the person, not the video game. #2 is a resounding "No." Being human leads to human violence.

[John Snow]

For me, I think #1 is yes. People can overdo anything. Blame the behavior of the person, not the video game. #2 is a resounding "No." Being human leads to human violence.

 

pfft. Anything worth doing is overdoing (I kid).

 

According to dictionary.com:

 

ad·dic·tion

   [uh-dik-shuhn] Show IPA

noun

the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.

 

Therefore, I say no you cannot be addicted to video games. I do not believe that video game withdrawl can cause 'severe trauma.'

 

And, for the reasons everyone has said, No, video games do not increase violence.

[Red2111]

John you say that but my Aunt would disagree with you. especially when my uncle through her through a wall when she chucked his NES out the window cause he preferred to stay home playing on it instead of goign out and getting a job.

 

 

liek others are saying, its a MENTAL addiction, not a PHSYICAL addiction. and neither is less severe than the other.

[SinisterDeath]

On a side note on the violent Angle.

 

More and more people are playing video games.

Something like 1 in 5 people or more?

And that number keeps increasing every year. Almost exponentially.

 

yet, at the same time, since the advent of video games, The crime rates, have escentially gone down. (Percentage wise to the population. More crimes are being reported now than back in the 50s, but over the last 20 years, even thought he total number of crimes may have gone up, our population also increases,and the rate per the population, is actually decreaseing.

 

So, if crime is decreasing, specially violent ones, and video games are being used more widely, doesn't that show that video gamse reduce violent crimes?

 

I have a cousin, who instead of breaking things, or going violent, expreses those tendencies in a video game by blasting those F***ers away.

 

Now, tearing a consolea way from someone, or cutting the power on it, is about the same reaction I think, you'd get, if you tore out the last page of a very intensely awesome novel. (like say.. someone being an ass, decides to tear out the last chapter of a Memory of Light on you.

That kind of violence, I find to be a reactionary violence, almost justified under the circumstances.

 

But the vidoe game didn't make you do anything. You can't do anything against your will unless you already wanted to do it. (Hence,mind control is impossible.)

[Jonas]

I wrote and long and detailed commentary on video games and accepting our humanity. And then I deleted it. It even had Shakespeare!

 

As concisely as I can:

 

No one is emotionless and perfect; that is why we are humans. When someone acts violently against society, we should look at all causal factors involved, not just what we disapprove of, are afraid of, or don't enjoy.

[Jonas]

John you say that but my Aunt would disagree with you. especially when my uncle through her through a wall when she chucked his NES out the window cause he preferred to stay home playing on it instead of goign out and getting a job.

 

 

liek others are saying, its a MENTAL addiction, not a PHSYICAL addiction. and neither is less severe than the other.

 

That kind of reaction does sound like a "psychological" reaction, which would fit into your definition John. In my opinion, that was a violent and unnecessary reaction.

 

However, the aunt also initiated violence by throwing something her husband enjoyed out a window. I'm guessing she didn't play video games. However, in my opinion, what's at fault here is not the NES, but the husband's addiction, and quite possibly the aunt's choice in confronting the problem.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

also, the tendency to separate from reality has a heavy genetic component and has been with us since.... nobody knows when. that's what schizophrenia means, splitting from reality. no matter what parents do, if someone's got that genetic loading there's a good chance something, maybe something internal, will cause that personality to lose touch with reality.

 

you can't teach or spank psychosis out of someone.... though you may be able to add to the stressors contributing to its onset.

 

the point is, between 17 and 22,and again in the mid 30s, some ppl are at high risk for breaking with reality. whether this is evident in gaming, or some other way... there's really no way to predict or prevent it. it's not a large segment of the population, and I don't think most ppl need to change the way they live their lives or raise their kids on the off chance they have this unfortunate tendency.

 

oh, and psychosis very rarely leads to violence. let them play. life's been cruel enough dealing their hands.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

oh, yeah, and I'm saying it if no one else did. physical addiction is a lot more severe than psychological addiction. work with addicts for a while. it's not a seriously debated point.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

one more thing. anecdotal evidence isn't evidence. sorry. it's poignant but it's not evidence.

[SinisterDeath]

one more thing. anecdotal evidence isn't evidence. sorry. it's poignant but it's not evidence.

Doesn't stop modern Studies from constantly doing it to prove themselves right.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

one more thing. anecdotal evidence isn't evidence. sorry. it's poignant but it's not evidence.

Doesn't stop modern Studies from constantly doing it to prove themselves right.

 

eh, it's not so modern. people have tried to prove themselves right through argument since they could use words. maybe before, now that I think of it.

 

I like double blind experiments with statistically significant subject groups and nice replicated findings. but that's just me.

[Jonas]

<post removed... just to be safe>

 

Had the F word in it... le sigh

[Niniel]

Thanks.