Understanding Children’s Gaming - Violence and Game Addiction

Expert CommentaryAdvice for parents by Robert and Carole Hart-Fletcher with contributions from Sigrun Landro Thomas, Rune H. Rasmussen and Odd Arild Olsen of KidsandMedia.

Robert and Carole Hart-Fletcher create online learning communities for children, young people and adults. Over the past twenty years, they have provided rich learning experiences for over two million school children and their teachers in 44 countries. They now run KidsOKOnline which provides specialist consultancy, design and development services to those who wish to create safe social learning spaces for children and adults and the Kids and Media international advisory site for parents who wish to guide their kids and teens safely through the world of digital media.

Violence and Game Addiction

There are lots of great video console games and online multiplayer games that are suitable for children and teens. But some of the most attractive and compelling games are extremely violent, bloody and gory and feature very strong language and sexual exploitation. Some research claims that these games encourage violent behavior in the real world. Some research shows the exact opposite. But certainly many people believe these games can have a bad influence. Indeed lawsuits have been filed (unsuccessfully) in the United States against the developers of Grand Theft Auto after some young people had committed murders in ways that were very similar to incidents in the game.

Some games are so fascinating and compelling that they can soak up huge amounts of children’s, teenagers’ (and plenty of adults’!) time and attention - to the extent that players can become socially isolated and show symptoms of addiction.

Let’s look at two vastly popular games and consider their effect on children and teens.

Grand Theft Auto

The infamous and immensely popular Grand Theft Auto is a hybrid between a racing game and a first person shooter. The players have to complete missions to work their way up the criminal hierarchy in a big city. The game has a vast and well-developed single player campaign, as well as several multiplayer modes. Humor is an important part of the game,

© Copyright Robert Hart-Fletcher Reprinted from Family Online Safety Institute Quarterly Review 1

and the play activity ranges from killing to dating or bowling, going to a strip club or drunk driving.

Grand Theft Auto is critically acclaimed and distinguishes itself with an impressive technical platform, exceptional attention to detail, a very good plot and a huge and dynamic gaming world.

The players attack people with baseball bats, firearms and run them over with cars – making blood spray everywhere. Players can buy sexual services, and subsequently murder and rob the prostitute. There is abundant strong language, sex and nudity, and widespread use of narcotics.

Although it has a PEGI rating of 18 (see below), we know it is played by much younger children.

So, does playing such a game encourage more violent thoughts and greater tolerance of violence in media. Does it lead to perpetration of violence in the real world? Or does it lead to a decrease in real world violence? There is research evidence on both sides.

Do violent video games cause aggression?

A new meta-study, overseen by Craig Anderson, professor of psychology at Iowa State University and the director of Iowa State's Center for the Study of Violence, combining results from 130 research reports on more than 130,000 subjects worldwide, concludes that exposure to violent video games directly causes increased aggressive thoughts and behavior, and decreased empathy and prosocial behavior in the youths exposed to them. Anderson said, "We can now say with utmost confidence that regardless of research method – that is experimental, correlational, or longitudinal – and regardless of the cultures tested in this study (both East and West), you get the same effects: that exposure to violent video games increases the likelihood of aggressive behavior in both short-term and long-term contexts". Anderson adds: “Such exposure also increases aggressive thinking and aggressive affect, and decreases prosocial behavior...These are not huge effects – not on the order of joining a gang vs. not joining a gang. But it is one risk factor for predicting future aggression and other negative outcomes. And it's a risk factor that's easy for an individual parent to deal with – at least, easier than changing other risk factors for aggression and violence, such as poverty or one's genetic structure.”

For Craig Anderson, the question is no longer ‘are there real and serious effects?’ but ‘how do we make it easier for parents – within the limits of culture, society and law – to provide a healthier childhood for their kids?’ However, some scientists question the

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conclusions of the report. Thomas Wold, Norwegian University Lecturer in Media Psychology, says, “Maybe these people would be aggressive regardless of video games? We know that people with aggressive attitudes, to a large extent, choose aggressive media products. Therefore, we can imagine that they would have been aggressive anyway."

Do violent video games decrease violent crime?

Let’s look at another study which found that violent video games may have an ‘incapacitation effect’ which helps prevent violent crime.

In April 2012, researches from Baylor University, the University of Texas at Arlington, and the Center for European Economic Research's Information and Communication Technologies Research Group, published a study titled Understanding the Effects of Violent Video Games on Violent Crime. The study supported the findings of prior studies linking violent games and aggression, stating that “Psychological studies invariably find a positive relationship between violent video game play and aggression.”

However these researchers investigated the relationship between the prevalence of violent video games and the perpetration of violent crimes. As a result, the study found that video games actually reduced violent crime by keeping potential offenders off the street and out of trouble. The study called this an ‘incapacitation effect’ and found that, "Overall, violent video games lead to decreases in violent crime”.

To put this in context. recent FBI figures show that US murder and robbery rates nearly halved from 1991 - 1998, a phenomenon that has saved thousands of lives and spared many more potential victims of crime. BBC News cited the study, and they listed the ‘incapacitation effect’ of playing violent video games as one of ten theories behind the decrease in violent crime in the US over the past two decades.

What can parents do?

If your child is prone to being aggressive, then playing violent games may bring out more aggression or it may reduce the expression of aggression in the real world. You know your child best - just keep an eye on his or her behavior and notice if there’s any change resulting from playing games.

You need to limit what media comes into your house - from the games store or from the Internet and discuss with your child or teen what’s suitable and what you’ll tolerate. Be brave enough to make some rules and strong enough to enforce them.

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It’s best if parents get involved - get down and play with your child. Enjoy the game play, the design and graphics and talk about any violence and help your child see it as fantasy.

The Pan-European Game Information (PEGI) age rating system was established to help European parents make informed decisions on buying computer games. Age ratings ensure that entertainment content, such as films, videos, DVDs, and computer games, are clearly labeled by age according to the content they contain. Age ratings provide guidance to parents to help them decide whether or not to buy a particular product. You can read more about PEGI at http://www.pegi.info

Games Addiction

Are games addictive and, if so, how can we identify children’s addiction and help them to a more healthy relationship with games? Let’s start by looking at the vastly popular online multi-player game World of Warcraft.

World of Warcraft

This is the largest online role playing game in the world, with more than 12 million subscribers. It is a relatively harmless game, although it has created controversy due to the many cases of video game addiction it has apparently caused. The game is set in a fictional world of adventure that resembles the film series The Lord of the Rings. The point of the game is to develop a character, take part in missions and advance through levels as you gain experience. You may play alone, but it is very popular to team up with friends or other players. Critics have praised the exciting plot, the enormous gaming world and the excellent playability of the game. The missions involve violence and murder, and are often quite macabre. However, the game has a 12-year PEGI age rating due to a low level of realism. World of Warcraft is the game most young people develop an addiction to. Sweden’s Youth Care Foundation described World of Warcraft as “more addictive than crack cocaine”. There is a huge amount to learn and the more time you spend on it, the better you become at it. The game creates satisfying feelings of achievement and an obligation to be there for your online team. This can be amazingly motivating and hugely time consuming.

What can parents do?

Many young people who experience addiction symptoms don’t even realize that their lifestyle might be unhealthy and destructive, but there are clear signs that parents can look for:

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• Addicts will cut out other activities and won’t prioritize being with friends• Playing games will often take precedence over sleeping, eating, personal hygiene• They may be tired and irritable or withdrawn• They may be late for, or completely skip school• Their school results may be dwindling

It is vital that these young people have parents who are involved and set boundaries. Parents need to set clear playing time limits when children are young.

Parents can introduce a ‘screen break’. When your children play games, or have friends over playing with them, and you think they have spent enough time on a computer game, you can say, "When this round is over...", or "In five minutes...", "...it’s time for a screen break”. This means that the TV/PC is switched off and the children must do something else. If introduced early, and the pill is sugared with lively and enjoyable alternative activity, your children and their friends will respect it.

If the children are older, or the addiction has been going on for a long time, parents may need professional help and can contact a range of resources:

www.pegi.info/ Clear advice on which games are suitable for which age group, gives parents good ammunition for the conversations with the children.www.kidsandmedia.co.uk Reviews of current popular video and online games and sound practical advice on how to talk with your child about healthy use.http://familylives.org.uk/ Family Lives has several interesting articles on gaming addiction. Their Parentline Helpline on 0808 800 2222 is available 24/7, 365 days a year if you want to discuss video game addiction in more detail.Psychotherapy - many psychologists specialize in addictive behavior and can be really helpful. See who is available in your area.

Conclusion

Playing video and online games can be a hugely rewarding experience for children and teens. They can learn a great deal about strategy, logic, effective communication with others and it can help their literacy and numeracy and provide an outlet for their creativity. For 90% of children there is no adverse effect, but some may become more aggressive and some may slip into addictive behavior. The solution for parents is to get involved. Get down and play with your children. Ask your teens to show you how well they are at playing. If you can, set some time limits and enforce them with rewarding distraction activity. If you need help, find help online or talk to a psychologist in your area.

© Copyright Robert Hart-Fletcher Reprinted from Family Online Safety Institute Quarterly Review 5