The truth about videogames, please!
By Cheryl K. Olson
On June 27 the Supreme Court invalidated California’s law prohibiting the sale or rental of violent videogames to people under 18. On a practical level, it was never clear which games might be classified under the law, or who would decide.
But more important, the state’s case was built on assumptions – that violent games cause children psychological or neurological harm and make them more aggressive and likely to harm other people – that are not supported by evidence. In the end, the case serves only to highlight __________ ( I ) __________ .
Many people assume that video game violence is awful, but these people haven’t played many video games. The state based its examples of depravity almost exclusively on a little-known game called Postal 2, which is rarely played by children or young teens. The game is outrageous as you can kill animals. A trailer for Postal 3 encourages players to “shoot moms in the face!”
This may sound disturbing, but it’s also ridiculous. And young people know it: as one 13-year-old said during a study I conducted at Harvard, “With video games, you know it’s fake.”
In my research on middle school students, the most popular game series among boys was Grand Theft Auto, which allows players to commit cartoon violence with chain saws as well as do perfectly benign things like deliver pizza on a scooter.
Teenage boys may be more interested in violence, but there’s no evidence that this leads to violent behavior in real life. F.B.I. data shows that youth violence continues to decline; it is now at its lowest rate in years, while bullying appears to be stable or decreasing.
This certainly does not prove that video games are harmless. The violent games most often played by young teens, like most of the Grand Theft Auto series, are rated M, for a reason and need parental supervision.
But violence in video games may be less harmful than violence inmovies or on the evening news. It seems reasonable but virtually acting out a murder is worse than watching one. But there is no research supporting this, and one could say that interactivity makes games less harmful: the player controls the action, and can stop playing if she or he feels overwhelmed or upset. And there is much better evidence to support psychological harm from exposure to violence on TV news. In fact, such games (in moderation) may actually have some positive effects on developing minds.
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The best way to complete the blank I in the text is
