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Violent Games As Great Teachers
Posted by
Zonk
on Mon Nov 19, 2007 04:22 PM
from the takes-skill-to-pull-off-that-hit dept.
from the takes-skill-to-pull-off-that-hit dept.
Gamepolitics and the site Physorg have an in-depth look at a study (pdf) done on the educational nature of violent games. While the implications of the study reinforce the old 'games lead to violent kids' saw, the authors of the research stress that they're more interested in talking up the benefits of games in education. "When considered in the light of what is known to be the "best practices" of education, violent video games appear to be exemplary teachers of aggression ... It should therefore be no surprise that video games are excellent teachers, both of educational content and of violent content... The fact that learning occurs regardless of whether the effects are intentional or unintentional is irrelevant, and should make us more thoughtful about designing games and choosing games for children and adolescents to play."
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The Year in Game Politics 30 comments
The Next Generation site has a look back at 2007 through a political lens. Manhunt 2, crackdowns on game sales, and endless stories about gaming and aggression seemed to dominate game headlines this year. The article runs down the details on each of these thorny issues: "There is no conclusive evidence that playing violent videogames leads to violent acts. That hasn't stopped researchers from looking for links between videogames and aggression. A study released ... in November tainted [the role of games as teachers] ... A University of Michigan study by psychology professor Rowell Huesmann called violent videogames a public health threat ... And Villanova University in Pennsylvania found that games caused aggression, but not much: 'It's not as if this is a light switch that either videogames do or do not cause aggression...Most people assume it has a really big effect, but what we find from research is it actually has a very tiny effect,' professor Patrick Markey told Next-Gen in April."
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Ask Slashdot: When Are Kids Old Enough to Play Videogames? 503 comments
A piece at the MTV Multiplayer blog is exploring the issue of kids and gaming, wondering aloud how old is 'old enough'. A recent CES talk indicated that you should wait until at least seven to introduce your children to Mario, and we've talked in the past about the educational role games can have. MTV's Tracey John spoke to a pair of mothers who offered their own opinions on this topic: "When I asked Alisa why she thought that games weren't imaginative and explained that many games have challenging, puzzle-solving elements, she conceded a little but remained skeptical. 'Honestly, I haven't really explored video games thoroughly, and I'm sure there are video games that fit more the bill of something that I'd be interested in, but I'm kind of hard-pressed to find a game that's like reading a book or something like that. I understand the kids like it, so I allow them to do it; it's monitored but it's not my favorite thing for them to be doing.'" What's the right age for a kid to start playing games? Do you see games as more or less acceptable than traditional kid pastimes like TV or reading? Does it matter if the parents are gaming-savvy?
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The Typing... (Score:3)
Further comment seems superfluous.
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aggression? (Score:4, Insightful)
What makes me want to hurl the tv out the window is throwing an interception in Madden '08. I've never had that feeling when playing Day of Defeat though, even when I get bazooka'd, which is pretty embarrassing. Perhaps when the server drops my connection though.
So video games may increase interest and understanding of violence and war, but if someone's having a good time, I don't think it is promoting 'aggression'. The anger is probably already there with or without video games. Unless it's Madden and the damn wide receivers won't fight for the ball.
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Psychologists beat this dead horse because it grabs headlines. Professors at research institutions, unless they are very lucky, are under constant pressure to publish, and sexy research gets more grants and publication deals than boring research. Seriously, if you were one of these publishers, what would you rather publish: a paper which tells Middle America that their children are little shits because of an across the board decrease in hope, parental involvement, social mobility, and community strength alo
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Stupid shrinks. (Score:5, Insightful)
This is the huge problem with sociology. Put 1200 kids through a test where they're reporting their own answers, and then make blanket assertions about the world. If the world doesn't agree, must be a fluke, right? Their numbers, if real, would have to be reflected in actual numbers...The percentages are statistically very significant.
Goes without saying that they got the results that supported their initial hypothesis.
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I have seen time and time again about how this book or this movie has changed someones life. I have seen people say that religious movies, books, and or teachings in general barin wash people.
So why is it that people are willing to say that violent media doesn't have an influence on people?
I have a friend that will not allow his kid to see "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" and edited out the religous content of veggie tails videos but at the same
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I go to church with my wife and kid, because it's important to her, and hell, I was raised religious
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Do can media have an effect on people or not?
Is not the question. The question is "Do video games that are not designed to increase violent behavior increase violent behavior?" The single most obvious reason they would reduce violence is they take up significant quantities of time leaving time to be violent.
PS: I suspect video games reduce real world violence and I have yet to see any evidence to the contrary.
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My gut feeling, is that violent games reduce violence in society by providing a safety valve. I doubt that is as significant, however, as the fact that most people aren't all that prone to violence in the first place. We're less and less the sort of society where going ou
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My post was more about how people that in their heart feel that they are critical thinkers are willing to toss it away in a second when it suits them.
They know that in this came violent video games are harmless and will toss away any study that goes counter to that belief.
I don't think that violent video games can make a none violent person in to a mass murder. I am just willing to look at research that says that it may have
Re:Stupid shrinks. (Score:4, Informative)
My argument against games making people more violent would be more historical. Lot's of things have, historically, been said to make people more violent, and this tends not to bear out in the real world. Marijuana was once thought to induce psychosis and violent behavior, and while we may or may not agree on whether or not marijuana ought to be legal, most people do acknowledge that it doesn't exactly make you violent. The same arguments were applied to movies, rock music, sports events, and comic books...Anything that might make the kids into ravening monsters. It just tends not to happen.
On top of that, there has been no increase in violence since the advent of truly violent gaming. It's pretty widespread now, so you'd think that any actual upswing in violence would stand out against the preceding decades, but there isn't anything like that in the data [usdoj.gov].
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
I am commenting on how people that are so sure that they are rational and open minded are willing to toss away there open mindedness when it threatens something they believe is true.
In this case that belief is that violent video games are harmless.
The same people that are dismissing video games I am sure can list some book or movie that they feel "changed" or "influenced" there life.
As I
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Hardly. You can argue, for example, that abortion and contraception has resulted in fewer unwanted children over the same period. Or, if you prefer, that the end of the lifetiime welfare entitlement "did the trick".
You can argue into or out of any conclusion you want using crude, aggregated figures, just by introducing or discounting factors to suit your tastes. You have to put a little more effort into disproving a theor
Re:Stupid shrinks. (Score:4, Insightful)
For example, which do you think is worse -- having someone beat you up, or cheat you out of $100,000 or even $10,000? The bruises would heal in weeks, but the financial damage could take much longer to heal. What if you got cancer and the insurance administrator got paid a bonus to disqualify you from treatment? What about the executives at Enron that cheated their employees out of their life savings? What about cheating with other people's spouses? There are many ways that people mistreat each other every day in many ways that make people suffer far morse than physical beatings ever could, and even make people wish that they were killed instead.
So a game where people actively work against the best interests of other people and delight in their misfortune does not have to literally produce murderers to have negative effects in society. Just training generations of children to laugh at the pain, suffering and misfortunes of others can slowly leach away at the humanity in our society, teaching people to be more cruel and to cheat others more.
The violent effects of video games don't even have to be confined to this country. For example, when Bush invaded Iraq in 2003, most people I know were in favor of the invasion -- it was treated like another video game. The massive human cost of the effects of the war didn't even enter into the minds of most Americans I talked to, even though it's inevitable.
Most networks treated the start of the Iraq War as just another "Superbowl" type event, and very few Americans had the heart to even imagine the vast devastation the war would wreak on both Iraq and the US. Americans should have been horrified at the idea of attacking a defenseless country, but they cheered instead.
I am not saying that violent video games caused the Iraq war, or that they should be banned. I have enjoyed many fragging sessions with co-workers and would still enjoy it. But I also think every action has an effect, and those effects should be thought about. In a day when massive fraud of all kinds is causing the sub-prime mortgage market to fail, taking along banks and threatening our economy, and when our the best and bravest of our country are killing and being killed abroad, and coming home to commit suicide here at far too high rates, one of our biggest problems seems to be a lack of concern for how our actions affect other people. America is still a great country filled with great people, but our position in the world is changing, and we have a lot to think about.
Parent
This is absolutely true! (Score:5, Funny)
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Learning a violent act != being more violent (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Learning a violent act != being more violent (Score:4, Insightful)
Parent
Re:Learning a violent act != being more violent (Score:4, Informative)
At the very least it is a fact that kids will imitate violent behavior they see. This is the reason that you don't see cartoons anymore with Daffy Duck being shot in the face, Porky getting his head snapped in a suitcase, or Sylvester getting hit in the head with a frying pan by Tweetie Bird: Because kids did these things to their siblings after seeing it on television. Obviously a kid isn't going to have a laser gun or a katana or something like in a video game, but instead he's just going to whip a cup or rock at his brother and yell ZAP.
the game doesn't even have to be culturally unacceptable violence. Studies have shown that even things like watching a football game on television has the same effect. I'm not saying it's turning them into little killbots, but there is evidence that onscreen violence does increase aggressiveness.
Parent
Hangman (Score:3, Insightful)
Pfft.. (Score:3, Funny)
Here's what I've learned: (Score:3, Interesting)
I played Oregon Trail.
I learned that Dysentery is a bad thing and can kill me and wreck my trip.
I played Doom.
I learned that you can modify things you buy to make them more fun, like Barney. I learned how to use my computer to modify the aliens into Barneys, and now I use computers every day in my job.
I played Warcraft.
I learned that the key to winning games is not how hard you fight, but how great of control you have over your resources. This is true in games, war, politics, and business.
I played Grand Theft Auto.
I learned that if I steal cars, cops will come. If I shoot at them, they will get mad and I will eventually die to a tank.
I played Socom.
I learned that if I was in the Army, I'd die. I learned that a lot.
I think games reinforce the reality of this world, and individuals that do not let it impact their academic/professional lives benefit greatly from them.