With the increased availability and use of technology, it is nearly impossible to not be exposed to violence in the media. Violent media, especially video games, are often blamed by many as the cause of violent behaviors despite there being a lack of substantial evidence for these claims. In the 2018 New York Times article, “The Real Problem With Video Games,” Seth Schiesel points out the use of these broad claims by politicians that often overlook the actual problem with video games. Schiesel goes on to say that it is the toxic behavior and verbal abuse that individuals use on these violent video game platforms that should be blamed for the violent behaviors exhibited in society. Racism, homophobia, misogyny, and other toxic behaviors are often exhibited through the interaction of players, with many individuals reporting verbal harassment and abuse by their fellow game-playing “peers”. Schiesel raises the important question: is it the lack of empathy and inappropriate social behavior used while playing video games that is responsible for damaging emotional and psychological effects that are manifested as violent behaviors?
In the research article, “Cool, callous and in control: superior inhibitory control in frequent players of video games with violent content,” Laura Stockdale and colleagues addressed the question: Do violent video games have long-term effects on emotional processing and cognitive control? University students were surveyed on their frequency of playing violent video games. 32 individuals who identified themselves as playing violent video games frequently (30+ hours per week, and 2 out of 3 video games played weekly were violent) and 32 individuals who identified themselves as playing violent video games infrequently (>5 hours per week and 2 out the 3 video games played weekly were non-violent) participated in study. Participants were then given a questionnaire to measure empathy. They were then given the stop-signal task (SST), where they were shown faces with either fearful or happy expressions and were asked on certain trials, called go trials, to indicate whether they believed the face was male or female. On stop trials, participants would see a visual stimulus indicating they are to withhold their responses. EEG data was collected during the entire task, looking specifically at the P100, N170, and the N200/P300 complex because they are implicated in emotional face processing and inhibition.
Stockdale and colleagues found that participants who frequently played violent video games had significantly smaller P100 and N170 amplitudes when viewing faces than their infrequent violent video game playing counterparts. These findings implicate that individuals exposed to violent media often are less empathetic than their infrequently exposed counterparts. Stockdale and colleagues also found that participants who frequently played violent video games had a significantly smaller N200/P300 amplitude than participants who infrequently played video games. This suggests that individuals who frequently view violent media require less recruitment of cognitive resources to successfully inhibit responses. This evidence is interesting as it supports the claims that chronic exposure to violent media may desensitize individuals while also demonstrating that individuals who are exposed to violent media frequently may be better at inhibiting unwanted thoughts and behaviors.
Based on this research, Seth Schiesel may be correct in questioning the true way in which violent behaviors are caused by video games. Gamers seem to have a greater ability to exercise self-control over their actions, making it hard to confidently claim that violent video games cause violent behavior. However, online video game platforms offer players a platform with little to no repercussions for what they say. There is a sense of anonymity, which may lead to the use of abusive and hateful speech. There often needs to be a lack of empathy to participate in such toxic behaviors. Does this lack of empathy actually have implications in violent behavior? Is there a relationship between online harassment and violent tendencies? Further research would need to be conducted to explore these ideas, but I think it is an interesting perspective, nonetheless.
References
Schiesel, S. (2018, March 13). The Real Problem With Video Games. New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/13/opinion/video-games-toxic- violence.html
Stockdale, L., Morrison, R. G., Palumbo, R., Garbarino, J., & Silton, R. L. (2017). Cool, callous and in control: superior inhibitory control in frequent players of video games with violent content. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 12(12), 1869–1880. doi: 10.1093/scan/nsx115
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