Australian Study "Confirms Dangers of Violent Videogames"

[Squilookle]

as soon as i saw Australia i knew it would be a bash agaisnt games, they hate violence down there, though funny enough are ok with sex (or so I been told.)

Please- it's the classification censors that hate violence down here. The rest of us normal people on this island have no problem with it whatsoever.

 

[l3o2828]

this isn't science, this is just stupid.

 

[ChillShark]

I always wonder if the dehumanization goes both ways. What I mean by that is that a guy will be more willing to go into a real life shootout without thinking about the consequences because he forgot he is an actual human that could die as opposed to a avatar/character that can re-spawn.

 

[Chrmike]

This concept of dehumanization originates long before video games even existed. You can see the most extreme examples of dehumanization occurring during major wars, and we even see minor dehumanization occurring in our daily lives. Therefore, it seems rather biased to claim that the dehumanization present in video games is somehow a cause for great panic when dehumanization exists in much more virulent forms elsewhere.

 

[Nudu]

The specifics of the study weren't revealed

Well, god damn, why are we talking about it then? How to we review the methodology and results if he's keeping it a secret.

 

[Sixties Spidey]

Okay, did Michael Atkinson fund this study?

 

[Lord Kloo]

My question is, even if these video games are ruining our society and turning us all into mindless murdering rapists then how do you explain the Mongols.. because surely if these games remove our modern humanity then we should rightfully be grabbing our ropes and our horses and quartering some anti-violent video game protesters..

 

[Clonekiller]

Of course violent video games can have a negative impact on "impressionable minds". That's why we have a rating system. Obviously a 9 year old playing Grand Theft Auto could have some pretty nasty psychological effects. The brain forms multiple synaptic pathways to accommodate new stimuli until about the age of 15, so heavy exposer to realistic violence during that time will effect a person's psyche. Games like Star Wars Battlefront, not so much. However, similar data has been found regarding movies, so I highly doubt video games are any more dangerous. What makes games more "dangerous" is that many parents don't understand that games can be just as, if not more, violent than movies, so they are more likely to buy an M rated game for their 9 year old than an R rated movie. However, that's not the game's fault, that's the parents.

 

[wyrmslayer1991]

If I ever make a kick-ass action story, "Brock Bastion" is going to be my protagonist's name.

 

[UnderCoverGuest]

Video games to not induce violent actions in non-violent, mentally stable people.

Video games can induce violent actions in aggressive, mentally unstable individuals.

Let's move on.

 

[SinisterGehe]

That is rather odd since I as a human with diagnosed problems with emotions learned to express, understand and even read other people's emotions, via use of video games, mainly violent ones. I learned why someone expresses fustration is certain events, cheer in some, sadness in others and even why some people enjoy getting the shit bashed out of them via idiots behind microphones and losing a game in a horrible way the same time...

Yes clearly my concept of humanity has changed because of video games, to the better... POOR ME!!! I wish I could still see people as hollow shells filled with shit, lies, sexual desires and pure essence of assholism... Instead of getting attached to people and getting my "emotions" hurt because of them... Yeah poor me...

 

[Callate]

How do you make long-term predictions based on a study that, whatever other flaws it may have had (likely many), observed only short-term effects?

 

[punipunipyo]

Which is why extremely violent games are rated, so our children couldn't damage their minds (though I think with our crappy school system... they ARE going to be exposed to craps anyways...). On the other hand... If you are a lazy/useless parent, yeah, it's easy to blame video game (your once trusty free digital babysitter) for your failure as a parent... once again... our rating system is very harsh.. Zelda is rated TEEN as in "13 years old+"!!! by my the time I was 13... I had already consider Zelda games to be too childish...

One thing I point out a while ago... as I play through Bullet Storm, I find my self more frequently use profanity... with friends... but as a child growing up playing all sorts of violent games... I was considered by many... non hostel.

 

[Trishbot]

Wait, this game study was in Australia and it involved "Mortal Kombat"? Isn't it illegal to buy that game in Australia anyway?

I think we know what to do. We need to find the guy who did this study... and arrest him for buying a copy of Mortal Kombat in Australia to do his studies with. That'll teach him.

 

[AnarchistFish]

his new study has found that people who play these games tend to see their opponents, and even themselves, as "lacking in core human qualities such as warmth, open-mindedness and intelligence."

Well yes, they're pixels.

Or, if online, other gamers.

 

[Sylveria]

So the country that is most vocal about how violent video games are corrupting our kids got a university in the country that is most vocal about how violent video games are corrupting our kids issued a statement claiming their study confirms that violent video games are corrupting our kids. Well how about that.

Why do neutral parties never have these "findings?" Oh wait, cause any time there's a study on video game related violence that isn't done by people who are trying to prove there's violence, rather than just observing and recording.. like real scientists.. they always find there's no significant link.

Oh well, maybe some day there will be no video games and we can go back to those peaceful times before video games existed when there was no violence at all.

 

[Ragnarok2kx]

"The findings of Study 2 also showed that simply playing a violent game with another person did not affect perceptions of their humanity. Ratings of other people's humanity were only lowered when the other was the target of cyber-violence, not when the other was a co-perpetrator of that violence," Dr Bastian said.

I wonder how playing a video game stacks up against playing any competitive sport in this regard.

Exactly what I was thinking. As far as I can tell, they didn't do a non-violent but still highly competitive control like a racing game.

I also want to know if they tested for both immediate and lingering "loss of humanity."

Hell, they even mention that this "dehumanizing" doesn't happen in a violent videogame where there is cooperation against cpu opponents, so even their own results seem to be singling out the competitive aspect as the main cause.

 

[SilentCom]

The key phrase here is "impressionable minds" because any other mind would not be affected from violent video games. The "impressionable" would find a way to do bad things whether or not there are violent video games.