Study: Video Games Increase Aggressive Behavior
According to a study published in the March 2010 issue of the Psychological Bulletin, exposure to violent video games increases aggressive thoughts and decreases empathy in youths regardless of age, sex or culture.
The Psychological Bulletin, a journal of the American Psychological Association, published the study by lead-author Craig Anderson, an Iowa State University Distinguished Professor of Psychology. Anderson and an eight member research team analyzed 130 research reports on 130,000 subjects worldwide.
The team's aggregation of data includes meta-analytic procedures, which combined results from previous, related literature, and new longitudinal data.
In a statement about the study's publication, Anderson celebrates the team's definitive findings. "We can now say with utmost confidence," said Anderson, "that regardless of research method — that is experimental, correlational, or longitudinal — and regardless of the cultures tested in this study [East and West], you get the same effects."
Anderson is also director of Iowa State's Center for the Study of Violence, and this study's strong conclusions are certain to have an impact on public policy discussions regarding censorship of violent video games.
The study has already started debate. In a related article, Mike Masnick questions Anderson's bias as a lifetime critic of video games. Masnick cites a Washinton Post article that points to flaws in Anderson's selection process.
Despite the study's skeptics, policy groups are likely to use the rigorous research to push for policy reform and the promise of raising children in a more healthy environment.
Photo by Bob Elbert, Iowa State University News Service
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