Video Games and Sensitivity to Violence

This topic submitted by PJ Gassman, Matt Salter, Alex Beough ( gassmapj@muohio.edu ) on 3/10/06. [ Human Nature Team: PJ Gassman, Matt Salter, Alex Beough-Section: Cummins/Wolfe]

I.) Introduction
The goal of our research project is to examine whether video games are capable of making people less averse to acts of violence. Our hypothesis is that video games will indeed desensitize individuals towards acts of violence. It is important to note that this study does not test whether playing these games leads to acts of violence, simply whether the games can make people less averse to violence. It seems logical that being less averse to violence would lead to an increase in violent behavior, but that is a study for another day.
We will use interdisciplinary methods to evaluate and analyze the data we are given, in order to formulate a more complete analysis of our information. We will primarily use the field of psychology to analyze our data, but we also will take care to integrate other disciplines such as sociology and biology in order to determine whether our results are influenced by culture or biology, which is essential towards understanding human nature.
Our research is very important in the study of human nature. We will be examining the extent to which human beings are susceptible to cultural influences with regards to acts of violence. The implications of this can help us better understand what drives people to violence, the extent to which we feel the need to punish those who commit acts of violence, as well as our empathy for victims of violence. It is our aversion to violence that helps prevent war and formulate the basic laws of our society. A cultural shift in our aversion to violence could have profound effects on global relations.
We hope to accomplish a greater understanding of the effects of mass media on human relations. His knowledge will help illuminate our understanding of human nature, and should prove invaluable.
Our study relates to this course in many ways. We are examining the extent to which our opinions are shaped by media influences, and the effects of short-term cultural suggestion on subjectÕs opinions. This is highly applicable towards the rest of this course, as the debate between culture versus biology may be affected by our results.

II.) Journal/Book Sources

#1 Buse, Peter. Nintendo and Telos: Will You Ever Reach the End? Cultural Critique, No. 34. (Autumn, 1996), pp. 163-184.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0882-4371%28199623%290%3A34%3C163%3ANATWYE%3E2.0.CO%3B2-4

Annotation- this article is of particular use to our project, insofar as it addresses the immersion and identification in video games. The violence that comes from the people through video games may have a desensitization effect if from a self-produced source.

#2 Garbarino, James. Mitigating the Effects of Gun Violence on Children and Youth
The Future of Children, Vol. 12, No. 2, Children, Youth, and Gun Violence. (Summer - Autumn, 2002), pp. 72-85.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=1054-8289%28200222%2F23%2912%3A2%3C72%3AMTEOGV%3E2.0.CO%3B2-U

Annotation- this piece speaks to the negative consequences of exposure to violence. Our experiment seeks to test the desensitization effect of expose to violence, which may lead to future acts of violence. If violence does have a significant effect on responses to future violence, the contents of this article will help shape our conclusions about the consequences of violent video games.

#3 Subrahmanyam, Kaveri; Kraut, Robert E.; Greenfield, Patricia M.; Gross , Elisheva F.
The Impact of Home Computer Use on Children's Activities and Development
The Future of Children, Vol. 10, No. 2, Children and Computer Technology. (Autumn - Winter, 2000), pp. 123-144.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=1054-8289%28200023%2F24%2910%3A2%3C123%3ATIOHCU%3E2.0.CO%3B2-R

Annotation- Building upon the ideas of the previous article, this writing addresses the potential impact of technology on the lives of people. Be it negative or positive, the integration of video games proves to have a persuasion on those who experience them.

#4 Osofsky, Joy D. The Impact of Violence on Children. The Future of Children, Vol. 9, No. 3, Domestic Violence and Children. (Winter, 1999), pp. 33-49.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=1054-8289%28199924%299%3A3%3C33%3ATIOVOC%3E2.0.CO%3B2-6

Annotation- Our main utilization of this piece is the reference to the sheer amount of violence children are exposed to today in modern America. Our experimentation will draw upon the concept of a desensitized culture and the prevalence of violence in our culture.

#5 Richardson, Jeanita W.; Kim A. Scott . Rap Music and Its Violent Progeny: America's Culture of Violence in Context. The Journal of Negro Education, Vol. 71, No. 3, Juvenile Justice: Children of Color in the United States. (Summer, 2002), pp. 175-192.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0022-2984%28200222%2971%3A3%3C175%3ARMAIVP%3E2.0.CO%3B2-H

Annotation- A brief extrapolation from video games as our sole media, music is shown to have a profound effect upon the listener and their response violent suggestions. Several studies have shown that other forms of media can help form violent tendencies, especially considering the hypnotic qualities of music. Possible connections depending on our data resuts

#6 Henry, Stuart. What Is School Violence? An Integrated Definition. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 567, School Violence. (Jan., 2000), pp. 16-29.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-7162%28200001%29567%3C16%3AWISVAI%3E2.0.CO%3B2-J

Annotation- Our research and experimentation was inspired by the idea of violence in video games, especially amongst youth. A better understanding of approaching the problem of violent media and the affect on the viewer.

#7 Sutton-Smith, Brian; John Gerstmyer; Alice Meckley. Playfighting as Folkplay amongst Preschool Children. Western Folklore, Vol. 47, No. 3. (Jul., 1988), pp. 161-176.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0043-373X%28198807%2947%3A3%3C161%3APAFAPC%3E2.0.CO%3B2-7

Annotation- Drawing upon our previous discussions of human nature, this article explores the chance that violence, in the form of play fighting, is a biological preprogramming, and therefore a part of human nature. While our hypothesis assumes that violence will desensitize the viewer to future violence, this article allows room for a biological interpretation, or at very least a cultural one.

#8 Holmes, Marsha Lee. Get Real: Violence in Popular Culture AND in English Class. The English Journal, Vol. 89, No. 5, A Curriculum of Peace. (May, 2000), pp. 104-110.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0013-8274%28200005%2989%3A5%3C104%3AGRVIPC%3E2.0.CO%3B2-Z

Annotation- Building upon the idea of violence education, this article calls into question our negative associations with violence. Not only that, but the negative association of Òlaughing at violenceÓ. Our study relates to this idea in the capacity of the acceptance of violence.

#9 Marsha, Kinder. Playing with Power in Movies, Television, and Video Games: From Muppet Babies to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 98, No. 1. (Jul., 1992), pp. 175-176.
Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-9602%28199207%2998%3A1%3C175%3APWPIMT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-X

Annotation- This article makes a passing reference to video games being targeted towards a young male audience as an outlet for (or preying upon) rebellious anger held for patriarchal authority. This will add a dimension of gender to our results concerning violence.

#10 Anderson, Craig; Karen E. Dill. Video Games and Aggressive Thoughts, Feelings, and Behavior in the Laboratory and in Life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 78, No. 4.
Stable URL: http://www.apa.org/journals/features/psp784772.pdf

Annotation- This is a study that was done regarding the influence of video games in producing aggressive behavior in the short and long term. Being that this is closely related to our study, this is a very helpful source. The results of this study suggested that violent games did actually increase violent thoughts and the tendency to seek a violent solution to problems, which was formulative to our thesis.

#11 Anderson, C.A., & Bushman, B.J. Effects of violent video games on aggressive behavior, aggressive cognition, aggressive affect, physiological arousal, and prosocial behavior: A meta-analytic review of the scientific literature. Psychological Science, 12. (2001). 353-359.
Stable URL: http://www.apa.org/science/psa/sb-anderson.html

Annotations- This study deals with video game violence versus other forms of violent influence, and contains possible suggestions about why video game violence may or may not be worse than television.

#12 Thompson, Jack (2005). Out of HarmÕs Way. Tyndale House Publishers, New York

In-depth analysis of the influence violent media, particularly video games, has on youth culture. Highly biased but representative of a crucial tenor of the debate on cultural violence. Jack Thompson has crusaded against video games for years, and has been highly publicized in the news. We thought it only fair to get his side of the story.

Web Sources

#1 http://www.gamepolitics.com/
Addresses the sociological context of gaming, particularly in terms of the extent to which gamers are receptive to influences in the community. Also chronicles events in gamer culture, particularly those that connect in some way to violence.

#2 http://www.killology.com/
An ex-military man addresses the consequences of training young people for violence through aggressive interactive media. He focuses particularly on first-person shooters, which are central to our experimental process.

#3 http://web.archive.org/web/20050311045523/http://www.stopkill.com/
Website operated by Miami attorney Jack Thompson, figure head in the fight against violent videogames. Thompson blames violent media, especially violent video games, for harmful behavior displayed in children in modern America. A link between these opinions and our study can be made. If violence does desensitize a person to violence, they may be more capable of performing it in the future. Actually a web archive of the site, which was shut down.

#4 http://www.starttruth.com
Calling itself the site telling ÒThe truth about video games since 2005Ó Start Truth is a counter movement to the Stop Kill website. Contained therein are articles and editorials attempting to sever the link between violent video games and aggression. Its contents were used to temper the opinions of the previous web source and help shape our hypothesis.

#5 http://www.apa.org
Drawing upon one of our chief disciplines for this study, the American Psychological Association guided much of our prior research, hypothesis development, experimental methods and prior works related to our subject

How We Fit In

The study of video game violence is a more recent field, and thus there is still much research that needs to be accomplished. The unfortunate reality of this is that much of literature with regards to video games and violence has been highly speculative, with conclusive data being somewhat hard to find. Our web pages are fine examples of this. Jack Thompson has been in the news recently as an opponent of violent and sexual video games. His arguments against games rely purely on scare tactics, blaming video games for various violent acts, most notably the columbine shootings. (I strongly encourage you to visit his site (web source #3) to get a better idea of what we mean. An example of the ÒfactsÓ provided by Thompson, ÒA recent Gallup Poll found that any American teen who has played this one game is twice as likely to be engaged in an act of violence than those who have not played this one game.Ó Empircal data abounds.
The actual scientific studies on the subject are sparse at best. The best example of video game violence in an actual study found that video games were tied to using aggressive means in social situations.
Violent video games provide a forum for learning and practicing aggressive solutions to conflict situations. The effect of violent video games appears to be cognitive in nature. In the short term, playing a violent video game appears to affect aggression by priming aggressive thoughts (Anderson 2001)
This vein of research is most common, the idea that video games lead to more violent actions. Almost all the studies we have found were looking at this idea.
It is almost universally agreed upon that more empirical research must be done on this topic. ÒClearly more research is needed. The internet age is still formulating and changing social perceptions, and children born in 1992 will be drastically different from children born in 1987, at least in how video games affect and form their opinions and reactionsÓ (Subrahmanyam 2000).
We hope to approach this issue from a relatively new vein, simply by studying how video games desensitize rather than studying a direct casual link to violence. We believe that this study will lead more tangible results than the direct violence, something early studies seem to be seeking. While our results will not be as satisfying to those who seem to have an agenda with regards to linking violence and games, that is not our intent.

III.) Interdisciplinarity
We intend to employ a scholarly approach uniting three complete disciplines: psychology, sociology and aesthetics. We employ an uninfluenced control group and isolated surveys, making our data-collection process fundamentally psychological. However, our overarching goal is sociological in nature: to what extent can personal responses be influenced by mass media? As to the latter, the question of the extent to which social influences can be ascribed to media input must take aesthetics at least partially into account. As the majority of our sources address this question directly, an aesthetic approach is required in order to properly analyze them.

IV.) Methods
We will have three groups: one tasked to play Unreal Tournament, one tasked to play Tetris, and a control group not to play a game. Each group will consist of 20 individuals selected at random. Testing will take place in Tappan Center, to which Matt Salter has unrestricted access. We will test each group separately for a 15-minute period (with the notable exception of the non video game playing group), then show the presentation to each test subject individually, asking them to complete the survey during the presentation. After providing instructions for activating the presentation, the experimenters will depart the testing room while the subject completes the survey, in order to minimize contamination of the sample.

In terms of how our experimental methods will be provided, I (Matt Salter writes this section) have been given the task of composing the Informed Consent Form. Alex will assemble the images for the presentation, which we will order in a group effort. Likewise, we will determine the survey questions together.

Statistically, we are most interested in what percent of which groups indicate a lowered shock response to violent images. We will conflate the statistical results from each of the three groups and measure the difference. Our final project will include a data sheet with each groupÕs responses presented alongside those of the others.

Our specific survey has not been written. We felt it essential to first create the image slideshow before forming this. A sample of our ideas for questions:
1.) For each image (we expect 10 different images) On a scale of 1-10, 1 = not at all and 10 = extremely, how upset were you by this image.
2.) On a scale of 1-10, how much did you feel you reacted to this image.
After gauging feelings for each image, we would like to ask them general information about their video game habits outside the test (asked post viewing the images so as to not corrupt the data)

V.) Materials

Unreal Tournament 2004: Invasion Mode Ð An extremely violent first-person shooter in which the player shoots down invading waves of aliens

Tetris Ð An abstract puzzle game

PowerPoint Presentation Ð A sequence of images depicting real-life violence, either drawn from or reflecting material common to mass media

Survey Ð A series of questions posted online designed to determine the level of desensitization to violence experienced by both tested groups.

Tappan Center LAN Ð Allows the violent group to use multiplayer modes

Informed Consent Form Ð A sheet signed by each subject granting us the right to use information acquired from his or her experience, contingent on anonymity.

VI.) Schedule of Events

Week of March 20th Ð Assemble presentation and survey, get professorial approval on each

Week of March 27th Ð Collect experimental data

After that, until whenever itÕs due Ð Complete and post project

For Further Info on this Topic, Check out this WWW Site: http://web.archive.org/web/20050311045523/http://www.stopkill.com/ . Next Article
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