Video games, amongst other forms of media, are being blamed for the violent actions of children and adolescence. “Movies and television entertain with realistic and bloody dramatizations of murders, beatings and tortures. Warlike video games have become a popular part of culture, and children routinely watch cartoons that depict violent events” (Earles,
Alexander, & Johnson, 2002). The controversy and debate argues whether or not this claim is true. One side of the claim states that video games are genera lly harmless, a popular form of entertainment enjoyed by individuals of varied ages and origi ns. Regardless the popularity or the nature of the game, the individuals playing the game should understand that it is a fictitious scenario and should be treated as such. In addition, cens orship ratings have helped identify the appropriate audience for each individual game but as is the case with cigarettes and alcohol, it is not always adhered.
Opposition claims state the cruel and bloody dramatizations have instilled images that have affected the minds of children. These effects have influence children to act violently often reenacting scenes and scenarios from certain video games. In addition, supplemental claims state that the lack of parental supervision and presence adds to the extremity of the violent acts.
In terms of research analysis, quantitative statistics claims, “Youth violence results in considerable physical, emotional, social, and economic consequences. Although rates of youth homicide have declined substantially since the mid-1990’s, much work remains in reducing this public health burden (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013). On the contrary, news reports of violent shootings in schools and other public venues have increased in occurrences.
Oddly enough, the sales and cost of videos have