The Positive Impact of Video Games: Beyond Entertainment and Fun
The computer and video game industry has grown to a colossal multi-billion dollar industry. Half of all Americans age six and older play video games, and the average age of a game player is 29 years old.” Videogames have been around since 1958, which was when William Higinbotham invented the first video game that was very similar to Atari’s Pong. After Pong, the next game released was called Space Invaders, soon followed by Pac-Man. In the 1980s, Nintendo released many well-known games such as Mario and Zelda. Towards the end of the 1990s and up to today, newer video games incorporated major advancements in sophisticated gameplay, story, graphics, and interactivity.
These achievements give the ability for game developers to produce much more realistic depictions of violence and gore. So, some video games may have the power to negatively impact a person’s mental health, yet others are being used for medical and educational purposes. Actions, such as creating a rating system and informing parents of their children’s games, have been taken by the government and private organizations. Because of this, many people have raised concerns about the effects of video games, and researchers have found both positive and negative results.
Regardless of all the possible negative effects, video games can have a positive impact on people and also have more value than just simple entertainment. Videogames have been used for educational, medical, and stress relief purposes. There are many games, such as ones from V-Tech, that can teach young children and toddlers about colors, numbers, letters, and decision-making skills but there has yet to be made a truly educational game that targets an older audience. In David Kushner’s extensive article called “Video Games Are Good for You,” David explores different areas where video games have had a positive impact.
For example, When NASA senior research scientist Dr. Alan Pope and his team wanted to study how pilots might be trained to overcome boredom and fatigue, he found the natural solution: Videogames. Pilots use game-like simulators and he decided to spin off the idea by exploring how games might be used to help people improve their own behavior during times of boredom. He used games on the market and wired people into a special biofeedback system that allowed maximum in-game performance only when the player was showing signs of intense concentration.
This resulted in the players (with attention-deficit disorders) to be conditioned to improve their focus and concentration skills by being rewarded in the game. Dr. Alan Pope stated that “We were surprised that they were able to change their brainwaves in order to succeed at the game. Those changes had beneficial effects on behavior and focus.” Another similar study was conducted at the Royal Free Hospital in London, where people suffering from irritable-bowel syndrome could use video games as a means to relax.
Another example of games having a positive effect was when a company called Click Health created a special video game called Rex Ronan—the game casts players as a surgeon who gets miniaturized and has to neutralize cancerous cells. Throughout the game, information and an exploration of a smoker’s body made players lose their desire to smoke.
Furthermore, at the Cognitive Brain Research Facility, dyslexic people who had trouble understanding and expressing language were presented with a game with the aim of improving reading speed, accuracy, and comprehension. The researchers declared that “most of the current video games require an individual to read carefully enough to gather information in order to progress through the game.”
Another example is when psychologists in England, such as Dr. Jo Bryce of the University of Central Lancashire, found that people who played more than 18 hours of video games developed hand-eye coordination comparable to that of traditional athletes. She concluded that because players experience high levels of concentration, reactions become automatic and it trains the brain to be creative and deal with frustration.
Another use for video games is for the development of a cure for epilepsy. According to neurologists at Brandeis University and at the Children’s Hospital in Boston, some video games have high-speed frame rates and strobe-like flashing lights which trigger seizures in epileptic players. The researchers wire-up the children in the lab and monitor where the seizure causing brainwaves come from. They hope that someday, with the help of these children, they can find the cause of epilepsy and find a cure. A common use of video games in hospitals today is helping injured patients relax and recover. Researcher Dr. Mark Griffiths at Nottingham Trent University has used videogames to help burn victims, wheelchair users, and muscular-dystrophy sufferers. Through routine exercises, the controller helps the patient’s hand muscles develop.
A child once had a chronic face picking disorder and all treatments so far had been unsuccessful. By playing videogames, his hands and his mind were preoccupied so he felt no need to pick his face, so within weeks, the affected area had healed. Videogames can also be used by everyone as a way to “blow off steam.” As Gerard Jones writes in his book called Killing Monsters, he expresses his thoughts on how adults need to understand the role of make-believe violence for human development. Adults should understand that it is a crucial tool in accepting reality and being able to play with rage is a valuable way to reduce its power.
In general, many video games can have a positive impact on a person. According to David Kushner in his article called “Skill Building,” skills can be learned or practiced that are not part of a school curriculum such as problem-solving abilities, perseverance, pattern recognition, hypothesis testing, estimating skills, inductive skills, resource management, logistics, mapping, memory, quick thinking, hand-eye coordination, and reasoned judgments. Certain video games also have the ability to allow the learning of leadership skills and provide positive role models. Video games are of the few activities that children can teach adults. Video games have many uses for medical and educational purposes, skill building, and stress relief. Despite all the positive effects and uses video games can have, there are many concerns relating to how games (especially violence within them) can have a negative effect on people.
There has been much debate and conflict on the possible negative effects of video games. According to the research done by David Walsh and Craig Anderson, realistic situations in video games can influence how the brain reacts. After displaying repeated acts of violence and aggression, the brain can develop and sometimes imitate the reactions to it. After playing violent video games, players may become de-sensitized to them or even become hostile to others. After being exposed to violence, the body may also become generally aroused and have symptoms identical to an adrenaline rush—breath, heart rate, temperature, and skin response (the electrical activity on the skin) all increase. Because of this and other similar studies, many researchers have concluded that video games have a negative effect on mental and social health.
Violence in video games is a major concern and it is feared that playing violent video games promotes violent behavior in real-life situations. Some research has found no connection between the two, and these researchers state that most children know the difference between real and simulated violence. Opposing these ideas, other research actually does link playing video games to aggressive behavior. One of the biggest limitations is that the experiments do not allow researchers to determine the effect of video game violence in a “real or playful” environment. Voluntary versus forced exposure to violent video games could have a different effect on the individual. In the lab, video games are not entered into a playful frame of mind as they are in the real world. However, the need for a controlled, experimental situation in this experiment makes such a distinction difficult.
So are video games and other media the one thing to blame when it comes to violence? Zoe Flower, a freelance writer, shows how some people jump to conclusions too soon. For example, she writes that a newspaper article suggested that video games are to blame for increased gun violence. Another incident was when the family of a murdered victim had filed a $250 million lawsuit against Rockstar Games because the two kids cited a violent game as the reason they randomly shot a man. “Imagine a 15-year-old boy stabs a friend and drives away. The teen is tried as an adult and is sentenced to life in prison. Jerrilyn Thomas, the mother of the murderer, was approached by lawyer J. Thompson who is an anti-video game crusader. He blames video games for driving kids to kill others and being an easy way out, and the mother agrees with him (Scalzi, Imagine it’s Your Kid 48).”
Many of the negative effects and results of video games are exaggerated or even completely bogus. Movies and other media are also capable of creating a negative effect on a person’s behavior, so why is there so much conflict about games? Perhaps the biggest concern with video games has been the amount of time that children dedicate to playing them. According to the Media Scope Press, nine out of ten children play video games, and many of them play for hours a day. On average, children play video games two hours a day with 64 percent of all American children playing at least one hour a day.
Part of this obsession is because most games always contain a new challenge or a story that compels people to continue, and this creates an urge to continue playing. When more than two hours a day are spent playing video games it is often at the expense of other activities. Parents see their children as becoming obsessed with playing, and they are able to see just how powerful this gaming force is. “One potential direction of this force is that it immerses children in useless, repetitive play that has the power to affect the ways in which they develop both emotionally and physically. These children are in a programmed environment, simply following the rules that the programmers have put into the game (Rybiki 66).” Unfortunately, solid experiments have not been performed to produce solid results, and the effects vary from person to person. Dr. Fischoff, founder of the Media Psychology Lab at California State University, states that “Violence in video media is disturbing to us all, but because two phenomena are both disturbing and coincident in time does not make them causally connected.” Due to all of the concerns relating to video games, the government and other organizations have come to respond and take action on the issue.
The government and many private organizations have taken action against the violence in video games. The video game industry’s trade group called the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), claims that 90 percent of all games sold are appropriate for everyone over the age of six—meaning that the game contains a rating label of “E” for everyone. So why should people be worried?
According to Jon Platner, many people suggest that video games are different from other media because we not only observe violence but also actively participate in it. People are especially worried now because the advancement in technology allows games to depict more violence than ever before. Due to these concerns, Senators Joseph Lieberman and Herb Kohl encouraged the National Institute on Media and the Family to create a ‘report card’ each year that provides a snapshot of the interactive gaming industry with a focus on issues related to the welfare of children and teens.
However, according to a U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Youth Violence, "The impact of video games on violent behavior remains to be determined." This means that there is no proof yet that violent video games cause violent behavior. In response to all of the conflict, the video game industry has tried to regulate itself. In 1994, the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) was instructed by the ESA to create a rating system with two components that made every game clearly state the appropriate age range for players as well as some content descriptors.
This system was aimed at informing parents about the games they buy for their children; whether it was appropriate or not. The system is divided into six parts, each with a letter to represent age ranges anywhere from three to eighteen. The most common letters are “E” for everyone, “T” for teens, and “M” for mature. According to the ESRB and Joe Rybiki, the OPM Magazine editor, these ratings and descriptions are determined by the material sent into the ESRB. A game is rated on a compilation of the “worst” footage from the game organized by the game developer. By creating a system like this, the ESRB shows that games have nothing to hide, and allows people “to choose the games that are right for them.”
The ESRB website states “The rating system is designed to give parents the information they need to evaluate a game before making a purchasing decision… ESRB also urges parents to talk with their children about their favorite games. Playing the games with your children helps stimulate those discussions, and playing games as a family can also be a fun way to spend time together.” Although some retailers such as Wal-Mart have voluntary policies not to sell violent video games to minors, some Americans are calling on the government to pass legislation that would make this a legal requirement. However, this is not actually possible, because after a major debate with the Federal Trade Commission, banning or even censoring video games goes against the First Amendment. The government cannot limit the First Amendment as a means of aiding parental authority and can only provide information about the content. It is the parent’s choice to use it, not the government’s. Video games have indeed become a very controversial topic over the years.
In conclusion, video games have the power to influence people of all ages in both a negative and positive way. Games should not only be viewed as negative entertainment but the opportunity for positive learning. Parents should not be quick to jump to conclusions about video games but rather choose to stay informed. Parents should use the rating systems and be should participate in their children’s virtual life. Playing and buying games is always a choice, and by staying informed, video games can be part of a healthy and enjoyable lifestyle.
References
Anderson, Craig. “Video Games and Aggressive Thoughts, Feelings, and Behavior in the Laboratory and in Life.” Apr. 2002. APA Journals. 30 Nov. 2004
Entertainment Software Association. 1998-2004. 17 Dec. 2004
Entertainment Software Rating Board. 3 Dec 2004. 7 Dec. 2004 <http://www.esrb.org/>.
Federal Trade Commission. 8 Jul. 2004. “FTC Issues Fourth Follow-up Report on The Marketing of Violent Entertainment to Children.” 17 Dec. 2004.
Flower, Zoe. “Weapons of Mass Distraction.” Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine Jun. 2004: 40.
Jones, Gerard. Killing Monsters: Why Children Need Fantasy, Super Heroes, and Make-Believe Violence. Sacramento: Basic Books, 2003.
Kushner, David. “Skill Building.” Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine Jun. 2004: 56.
Kushner, David. “Video Games Are Good For You.” Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine Jan. 2003: 62-65.
Media Scope. 10 Mar. 2000. Video Games & Their Effects. 17 Dec. 2004.
Platner, Jon. “Virtual Violence.” 7 Jan. 2003. Teen Wire. 17 Dec. 2004.
Rybiki, Joe. “OK to Play.” Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine Aug. 2004: 66.
Satcher, David. “Youth Violence: A Report of the Surgeon General.” U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. n.d. 17 Dec. 2004.
Scalzi, John. “Imagine It’s Your Kid.” Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine Aug. 2003: 48.
Scalzi, John. “Nothing to Hide.” Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine Sep. 2003: 26.
“Scientists at Children’s Hospital Use Games to Unlock Secrets of the Brain’s Sense of Direction.” Science Daily. 25 Jun. 1999. 17 Dec. 2004.
Walsh, David, et al. “Ninth Annual Media Wise Video Game Report Card.” National Institute on Media and the Family. 23 Nov. 2004. 17 Dec. 2004.
