There are many cases where what people perceive as common sense and what science says do not agree. For example, for many people common sense dictates that being in the cold leads to you getting the flu. However, science tells us that when it comes to infectious illnesses, it’s the germs that make you sick and not the cold weather.
There are other times when common sense and science agree. For example, common sense says that children who are exposed to violent media will change how they behave based on what they are seeing. Science clearly agrees with this. The movies that children watch and the video games that they play slowly change the way that they behave. Children who experience more violence in the virtual world have been shown to have increased aggressive thoughts, increased aggressive behavior, and increased anger in the real world.
But My Child Is Different
However, common sense and a feeling of sentimentality can blind parents when it comes to thinking about the behavior of their children. This is to be expected, especially when you see that many adults are blinded by sentimentality when it comes to the way that they see themselves. For example, research shows that more than 90 percent of Americans think that they are better than average drivers. The reality is completely different.
The same principle applies to the way that parents see the impact violent media has on the aggressive behavior of their children. They see their children as the exception to the rule. They see warnings about violent video games, violent movies, and music that features violence as something that applies to other children. They refuse to accept the fact that this media is having the same effect on their own children.
The irony of this is that parents who allow their children to play violent video games would be reluctant to have their children put on a pair of children’s boxing gloves, get into a ring, and fight against other competitors. They argue that contact sports, including football or hockey, make children violent. However, there is a large body of scientific research that says just the opposite.
The Social Effects of Living in a Virtual World
Many young people are living in a virtual world. They spend a lot of their time on social media platforms, playing online games, and mulling about in online communities. There are virtual worlds that are basically online computer animated environments, be them 3-D or 2-D.
Many of them offer massive multiplayer online experiences. They allow people to interact with other people from the real world. In this virtual world there are rules and guidelines that are laid out that dictate how people can interact with those around them. Players represent themselves via avatars in the virtual world.
There are a number of positive aspects that come from young people interacting in virtual worlds. As mentioned earlier, these virtual worlds have created a new dimension of learning. They have allowed communication on a level that was not available in the past. Researchers have seen how playing in virtual worlds can have a positive social and emotional impact on children, not only when they are online but also in the real world.
Playing in the virtual world enables young people who are shy when they are in large social environments to find other people who have similar likes, dislikes, and hobbies. They encourage people to communicate within the online environment.
There are also negative aspects of living and playing in the virtual world. Many children have come into contact with sexting, cyberbullying, and trolling. One study showed that upwards of 12 percent of children between the ages of nine and 16 were exposed to distressing images in a virtual world.
Understanding the Direction of Causality
As mentioned earlier, researchers see a link between violent behavior in children and playing video games. However, there is some question about the direction of causality. What this means is that researchers are not 100 percent clear if it is the video games that make the children violent or if violent children are attracted to violent video games.
Additionally, science has never been able to pinpoint the blame for a singular act of violence on exposure to violent video games or violent media. This is similar to the way that meteorologists or those who study the environment will never be able to say that a particular storm or a particular hurricane was directly connected to global warming.
However, in a general sense, the amount of exposure to violent media a child has correlated to aggressive behavior. Most people would agree that taking steps to reduce aggressive behavior in children and adolescents is a laudable endeavor.
What Can Parents Do?
Parents who have children that are under the age of six should strive to eliminate violent media from their children’s lives. Young children do not understand the difference between reality and fantasy. Even cartoon violence changes the way that they perceive the world.
As children grow into adolescence, parents may be more liberal in the media that they allow their children to use. However, parents would do well to investigate the ratings in the industry, such as those set out by the Motion Picture Association of America. Parents can determine on a movie by movie or game by game basis what they want to allow their children to watch or play. When it comes to your children’s entertainment, ignorance is not bliss.
Finally, if you’re concerned about the media that your children are using, take the time to learn more about it. Sit down and watch movies with your children or play video games with them. This will allow you to provide your children with an adult perspective of what they’re seeing. You will be able to discuss with your children the values that you and your family hold and how these line up with what they’re seeing in movies or video games.
We would love to hear from you. What do you think? In this short article, we have discussed different viewpoints about virtual games and media and how they affect behavior. We understand that this is a complex topic that requires more reading and research. We would love to hear your opinions in the comments section.
