Hi here is a description of what my research paper is supposed to have : Remember that the research paper will run between 8-10 pages, will integrate sources from a diverse array of resources using MLA style, will have a clear thesis/research question as the backbone of the paper, will avoid fallacious rhetoric, and will construct logical arguments to advance the ideas in the paper. Thanks in advance for any help! I need help with grammar and any other comments would be appreciated!
THANKS!
Video Games And Violence
Violence in America has increased, and over 60% of Americans play video games every day. This research paper will be going over in depth how violent video games affect the young minds of adolescents in America, and just how serious this issue is. There has also been an increase in mass shootings in America and the majority of those shooters have been adolescent boys who have been avid video game players. Researchers have been looking for a link between these violent video games and violent behavior in real life to see if there is a connection. An analysis of 15-19 year old boys who play violent video games has shown an increase in aggressive behavior, a decrease in prosocial behavior, and have become desensitized to violence.
Researchers have found that playing violent video games increases aggressive behavior in young adults. Yet, studies show that more and more adolescents are playing these violent video games in America. "Data from the first nationally representative study of video game play in the United States indicate that 97% of adolescents age 12 to 17 years play computer, Web, portable, or console video games, with 31% of the sample playing on a daily basis and another 21% playing 3 to 5 days a week" (Willoughby et al., 1). This is a huge number of kids playing everyday so researchers have a large group to sample from. "Over half of the adolescents surveyed reported playing violent video games, and five of the 10 most frequently played games were assessed as violent" (Willoughby et al., 1). In addition, researchers have found that kids who play violent video games temporarily exhibit aggressive behaviors. "It has been demonstrated in experimental research that playing violent video games temporarily increases aggressive behavior, aggressive cognition, aggressive affect, and physiological arousal" (Willoughby et al., 1). This is concerning because over time these kids are learning these aggressive behaviors and as the games get more and more violent, so will they. These video games create a world apart from the real world and these kids can do anything they want in these separate worlds without any repercussions. That in itself is problematic because they aren't learning boundaries or consequences for their actions and they could potentially translate that to the real world. Competition is also a part of video games that can lead to aggressive behavior, as the player gets more and more amped up they exhibit more aggressive behaviors. So that makes the point that the content of the video game is only a part of it and that video games as a whole could be making kids more aggressive.
When researchers look for aggression following violent video games they dont always look for behavior. Sometimes they take language as a form of aggressive behavior. In a study by Melinda Moyer she looks into the difference and how the meta analysis used needs to change (Moyer 2018). This article also noted that there is a difference in the effects based on ethnicity but that could be due to cultural norms (Moyer 2018). Overall studies show a very small percentage of correlation between violent video games and violent behavior but that's not to say it is not relevant and important
Violent video games can also cause a decrease in prosocial behaviors in adolescents. Researchers have found an immediate decrease in prosocial, or helping behavior, after violent video game usage, however they have only noticed this as a short term effect. "The repeated activation of aggressive thoughts, both novel ones (especially in children) and well-practiced ones, is the most likely route to relatively permanent changes in the person, because the activation of aggression-related knowledge structures becomes more automatic and chronic with repetition and eventually becomes part of the person's personality"( Anderson et al., 1). Prosocial behavior is imperative to our society, it is how we survive as civil people. To damage that at such a young age is horrible and could be prevented so easily. Restrictions need to be made so that kids aren't given access to these games and maybe the games themselves should be less violent, although that would be almost impossible to enforce.
In addition, when a child starts to play a video game they create an emotional attachment to it because they spend hours creating a character, making it look exactly how they want and they bond with it. After they do that they embark in this world that is different than the real world, they can be anything in this world and that gives them a sense of power and pleasure. It almost creates an addiction. They want more and it gets to a point where they prefer the world in which their avatar lives over reality and the lines between them start to blur (Anderson 2009). This addiction is something that the player sometimes isn't even aware of and neither are the parents so it never gets addressed and could get worse over time. So that needs to be taken into consideration by researchers when conducting experiments and studies. Researchers also noted that violent video games reduce the child's ability to notice or their urge to act when people need help. This could potentially be detementrial so someone in the right situation. When people are young and their brains are developing it is of the utmost importance that we learn simple cues like when to help someone when they need it. "Because emotional desensitization to injury-related cues (expressions of pain, presence of blood) reduces the perceived need for help by violence victims, repeated exposure to violent video games should yield long-term declines in this specific type of prosocial behavior"(Anderson et al., 1). Although the aggression is thought to only be short term, the decrease in prosocial behaviors can be long term which is strong evidence that violent video games are harming the youth of America.
In America we have put many restrictions on violent movies and television programs for children, because desensitization is a real problem, but we have not done the same for violent video games. Desensitization is a diminished emotional response and we get desensitized over time when we see violence in the media or in movies over and over again. In video games the players are the ones inflicting the pain and violence so it's important to see what they are doing to a person's ability to have empathy and other emotions relating to it. Right now all the research that has been done has shown only short term desensitization however they are working on finding a new meta analysis to figure out long term effects.There are many conflicting reports among researchers about violent video games however they need to figure out a system that can test the psychological effects of violent video games so that the public can be made aware of it. " Youth exposed to violent media tend to become more aggressive immediately after exposure, and become more aggressive adults" (e.g., Anderson et al., 2003). If children are so highly affected by violence in the media then it only makes sense that they would be even more affected when they are the ones inflicting the violence in such realistic situations through video games.This shows the being exposed to violence does have long term effects so it is worth investigating if the same is true for violent video games.There seems to be a lack of correlation between violence in the media and violence in video games and there doesn't seem to be a reason why. "The effect of violent television exposure at an early age (between 6 and 11 years old) on later violent behavior has been shown to be larger than the effects of low IQ, abusive parents, exposure to antisocial peers, and being from a broken home" (US Department of Health & Human Services, 2001). The magnitude of this statement is astonishing. That alone should motivate more researchers to start studies on the effects of violent video games. The amount of violence in America done by children is increasing and there needs to be research done to find a cause and figure out a solution. "...The results demonstrate that playing a violent video game, even for just 20 min, can cause people to become less physiologically aroused by real violence. Participants randomly assigned to play a violent video game had relatively lower HR and GSR while watching actual footage of people being beaten, stabbed, and shot than did those randomly assigned to play a nonviolent video game" (Carnagey, Anderson, & Bushman 2007).
This study only had them watch for 20 minutes and they already had adverse effects and kids are playing video games for hours a day. Some play without breaks for 4-5 hours a day or longer. So they would in turn be even less physiologically aroused by real violence.
Mass shootings in America have skyrocketed over the last decade. However there is a huge debate on whether or not violent video games have anything to do with it. There are strong arguments on both sides but no clear consensus. Many say that people are using violent video games as something to blame for the violence because they need to point a finger at something. It is hard to just say that someone is evil and that what they have done is evil, we need to be able to understand it, there has to be some sort of cause that we can blame. If we can't understand it then we start to bring in outside factors to place blame on.
On the other side of the argument people point out that media violence has been proven to desensitize children so how is this any different, especially because in video games the player themselves are the ones inflicting the pain and violence. There are also many other factors to take into consideration when trying to understand the reasons behind a mass shooter such as bullying, problems at home, mental health, etc. So it's hard to pinpoint just one thing.However, the fact that violent video games have all these adverse effects is troubling, whether they lead to a mass shooting or not. After the shooting at Columbine High School there were a few studies done because the shooters were big fans of first person shooting games. However those kids were also unsupervised by their parents and had a history of bullying at school (Keneally 2018). A few of the other school shooters were fans of such games as well however this information alone isn't enough to say that violent video games are to blame.
As far as the law is concerned, there was a case in 2011 that made it to the Supreme Court. It started in California where a law was introduced that would ban minors from purchasing violent video games while unsupervised. However the judge ruled in favor of the video games saying it was our first amendment right to play them (Keneally 2018). At this point there is not enough evidence that violent video games play a big enough role in mass shootings. "Gentile said that given the First Amendment protections, limiting access [to video games] is probably never going to work in this country, but what could work better is having a universal rating system" (Keneally 2018). There isn't a clear answer yet on what to do but psychologists and lawmakers are working towards one. A lot of parents don't understand the rating system that is currently in place so there is a push to create a universal rating system so that everyone can understand. The system would include video games, television shows, movies, and even music so that there wouldn't be any discrepancies. This would make parents more aware of what these games entail and whether they are appropriate for their children. At the end of the day it's about making sure the children in America are protected and that parents are given the right information to be able to raise their kids with peace of mind.
In conclusion, there has always been a debate on whether or not violent video games increase aggression and could lead to mass shootings or other acts of violence but a clear answer has never been reached. At this time I don't think one will be reached in the near future but there is no ignoring the fact that violent video games do increase short term aggression, decrease prosocial behaviors, and desensitize the player to violence. That is more than enough evidence to reform how easy it is to access these games and to inform parents and the public of the dangers. Even though there is no link currently to mass shootings or violence of such a nature, it is still a risk factor that can contribute to such behaviors.Holt Educational Consultant - / 14,835 
4782 Sarah, for starters, the thesis statement of your essay is not clear. It lacks a connected form of discussion that can clarify certain statement that you made. The first sentence in the opening paragraph alone is confusing because of the lack of historical context and relationship between violence and video games in America. You need to create the foundation of the essay by indicating the early concerns regarding violent video games and indicate specific examples that call to mind a direct relationship between video game violence and violence in America. Your paragraph also lacks a direct line of reference to what the paper will be about. The methodology to be used for this essay, and what the outcome of your research was.
You also cannot use successive in-text citation in the paper without offering a full personal understanding of what the quote is about and how it applies to your research. There needs to be a proper discussion of the quote that is more than just an agreement or a paraphrasing of the information. Without a deeper understanding of the pro and con discussion for every citation you present, the essay is not only lopsided in approach, but also shows a clear bias regarding the discussion.
What makes your say that mass shootings in American has skyrocketed? Where are comparative year on year data to support that point of view? In addition to that, considering that even video games now have an age ratings system, how can you say that the entertainment form doesn't have restrictions?
I believe that the paper is researched, but not well researched and in the process, not well discussed. There are several other problematic information references in your essay that show the lack of deep understanding regarding the topic, based on properly informed and cited research. This paper does not accurately inform the reader so it cannot be considered an authoritative piece at this point. It still has a long way to do in terms of proving its claims throughout the presentation. It would be great if your could do more research and add more recent data to the essay. That will allow you to discuss the topic in a more current setting and also allow you to update the outdated information within your paper while adding missing discussion information regarding the pro and con side of the issue.
