Games Don't Create Killers, New Book Says

[Osiris]

To you and I, a book that says “games don’t create killers,” is simply stating the obvious but you’d be surprised to know how many people need to see it in print to believe it.

Lawrence Kutner and Cheryl Olson, a husband-and-wife team at Harvard Medical School, detail their views in "Grand Theft Childhood: The Surprising Truth About Violent Video Games and What Parents Can Do," which came out last month and promises to reshape the debate on the effects of video games on kids.

[H]ard|OCP - www.hardocp.com

[Akubane]

o.O finally lol. maybe this will have even a slight impact on all those do-gooding tree-hugger old ladies who're so bored with their lives they have to bash on games for something to do.

They're probably so far in denial and blind fanaticism that they won't read or even try to understand it anyway, but at least its out there ^^.

[veedubfreak]

Let me be the first to say it.

DUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH H.

[Mak213]

Wow. Something that i could have told you over 20 years ago.

[Merkwürdigliebe]

some of the more important parts in the article

But the data did show a link between playing mature-rated games and aggressive behavior. The researchers found that 51 percent of boys who played M-rated games — the industry's equivalent of an R-rated movie, meaning suitable for ages 17 and up — had been in a fight in the past year, compared to 28 percent of non-M-rated gamers.

The pattern was even stronger among girls, with 40 percent of those who played M-rated games having been in a fight in the past year, compared to just 14 percent for non-M players.

Kutner and Olson said further study is needed because the data shows only a correlation, not causation. It is unclear whether the games trigger aggression or if aggressive children are drawn to more violent games.

"It's still a minority of kids who play violent video games a lot and get into fights. If you want a good description of 13-year-old kids who play violent video games, it's your local soccer team," Olson said.

[vernong1992]

Maybe I should gloat to show this to my parents

[Akubane]

meh I'll agree with the second quote. that just means (in my eyes) that people with violent tendencies would migrate towards violent games, because it's what they're familiar with/enjoy.

i'm sorry I just don't think its games making people violent, i think violent people have a tendency to enjoy playing violent games.
Thats what i observed growing up from 17-21 with the bad kids XD I never fought myself, was never into it, but they liked to. And were always into street fighter and grand theft auto lol. They we're all like that before those games were even released.

LOL vern, do it!