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Video Games

Introduction
Since their introduction in the early 1970's, the popularity of video games has skyrocketed. As a result, they have had an increased impact on society, and have received more and more attention from the media. Video games have many effects on gamers. Many people have speculated that video games have a direct influence on how violent a person becomes. In addition, some gamers develop severe addictions to video games, to the point where it can dominate their lives. Not all effects of video games are negative, however. For instance, video games have been proven to improve attention, learning, and motor skills. Still, the negative repercussions of excessive game play seem to outweigh the positive. In this paper, we will analyze the arguments made about the effects of video games on society.
Method
The majority of our research was conducted on the internet, at www.mediafamily.org, www.vifamily.ca, www.cnn.com, www.apa.org. Information was also obtained from GamePro magazine.
Results
According to Dr. Craig Anderson, several studies have yielded indisputable evidence that violent video games cause an increase in aggressive behavior. Games such as Mortal Combat and Grand Theft Auto portray murder as a casual, lighthearted sport.
According to Anderson, video games are "…potentially more dangerous than exposure to violent television and movies, which are known to have substantial effects on aggression and violence."
Dr. Anderson conducted two studies of the effects of violent video games. The first study was a survey of 227 college students who were asked to report their actual aggressive behavior (delinquencies) and their general video game habits. "We found that students who reported playing more violent video games in junior and high school engaged in more aggressive behavior," said Anderson. "We also found that amount of time spent playing video games in the past was associated with lower academic grades in college." The second...