Undoubtedly, many of us have heard, from one source or another, that violent video games cause nothing but trouble and should be avoided like the plague when it comes to raising teens. I have certainly dealt with this belief during the past eleven years of my life, in which I have been enthralled with playing videogames of all kinds. Commentary Part One by Mitchell Grimmett, CBN Editorial Intern
Still, as I have gotten older, playing violent video games has become an almost daily occurrence for me. Neither I, nor anyone who knows me personally, perceive me as an abnormally aggressive person. Based on my experience alone, it seems that this rumor about violent video games simply isn’t true. Nevertheless, I doubt that anyone will change their stance in this debate based on one individual’s story.
Dr. Vaughan Bell, a clinical and research psychologist recently spoke on behalf of these violent forms of entertainment in the article Are Video Games Really the Villains in our Violent Age? in the British newspaper, The Observer.
Bell reveals that, “We now have numerous studies on how playing action computer games, as opposed to puzzle or strategy titles such as The Sims or Tetris, leads to an improvement in how well we pay attention, how quickly we react, how sensitive we are to images and how accurately we sort information.”
This quote speaks for itself when it comes to praising the violent games which people like myself have come to love, but a second opinion never hurts.
Hannah Muniz, a student columnist for the
Muniz also manages to bring Cheryl K. Olson, a researcher and consultant on health communication as well as youth media, into the discussion through a quote found in the New York Times. Olson states, “[A] teen can try out different identities — how it feels to be a hero, a trickster, a feared or scorned killer or someone of a different age or sex — in the safe fantasy world of a video game.”
Each of these pieces of information is paramount in understanding why violent video games should not only be tolerated, but played by willing and appropriate audiences everywhere. Yet, this only leads us to another debate. Who is the appropriate audience? (More in Part Two)
Mitchell Grimmett is a senior at
