Evaluating the Research on Violent Video Games

Curtis Brown Department of Psychology As human beings, we have difficulty accepting random or senseless occurrences. We want to understand why something has happened, and the strength of this desire seems to be proportional to the horror of the event. When a horrible crime occurs, we want to know why. If it was related to drugs or gangs or an armed robbery, I think we find those sufficient reasons. We do not hate the crime …

…in aggressiveness or violence. There is very little relevant research, and no longitudinal studies that might show such effects. It may well be that further research will indicate that playing violent video games is harmful. For the moment, however, there is no such work and no scientific reason to believe that violent video games have bad effects on children or on adults, and certainly none to indicate that such games constitute a public health risk