Should the government control violent video games? There’re two points of view on this situation. Concerned parents think that governmental control over the video game industry can decrease its negative influence. However too many restrictions on this industry can result on the profit of video games companies. So how do you find the golden mean? To find a solution on this problem let’s take a look on this problem.
There’s a possibility of inputting governmental control over the production of violent video games. Government could control the content of this product in several ways. They could ban violence in all games however this is unrealistic. Special department for violent video games can be created to evaluate the new products. Another possibility is to implement restrictions which could control violent scenes, their amount and intensity. Limiting accessibility can be restricted according to the age. Changing the attitude towards violent video games in general can make them less popular for the young mind. One of the most effective ways can be limiting advertisement of violent video games so that kids won’t be attracted by enormous bright billboards promoting cruelty. Financially, government could input taxes so that children could not afford violent video games on their pocket money. This would also have a positive effect on the budget of the country.
As we all know we live in the country of freedom. Every person has a freedom of choice, beliefs and preferences. Every single child, adult or parent has a right to decide whether to play violent video games or not. Many people believe that restriction of any business can harm the profit of the company and the economy in general. Forbidden fruit is sweet and the restriction of violent video games can raise the interest of children towards them instead. Such control can lead to disappointment of population. However we must keep in mind that safety and well-being of our youth must be on the first place.
Middle school girls play about 5.5 hours a week and boys – 13 hours per week. (Gentile 2011). These numbers increase day by day. Video games were invented as a type of entertainment for children and became popular even for adults. No doubt that video games can have a positive effect on children. “Video games are natural teachers” (Gentile 2011). They can form the personality of the children, develop their skills and coordination. Children are a lot more eager to do anything in a game form and video games can be used during the studies. “It teaches them some essential skills like strategic thinking, innovative thinking and co-operation. It also creates investigative skills amongst children” (Missimer 2011).As “the amount of time spent playing video games is increasing, but not at the expense of television viewing which has remained stable at about 24 hours/week” (Gentile 2011). This leads to direct impact on the health of children, the cut back of outdoor activities, other hobbies and time spent with friends and family. As the amount of time children spend on the video games encompasses the significant part of their life we should pay more attention to their content.
Video games are designed in a way that they cause addiction to the user. Teens that playing these games for a definite part of their life become more aggressive, they argue more with their teachers, fight with their classmates and fall behind in shool. Some video games encourage violence by rewarding the players for the crimes and not showing the punishments for crimes committed. The correlation can be attributed to the fact that naturally violent young adults would prefer violent video gaming as a form of entertainment. A study conducted by Iowa State showed that students who played violent video games ended up committing violent actions or crimes in real life. The line between reality and game becomes blurry for them. They cannot estimate the harm and pain of their actions; moreover, they believe that the things that happen in the games can also be applied in real life situations. Children are used to violent and brutal scenes in the video games and lack empathy in real life. Hurting people in real life will seem normal to them and they will enjoy inhumane acts because they are already used to such scenes in video games. In the recent years the question of violent video games impact has been raised many times by the public.
Books and articles have been published. So that’s why the government must take a step forward and protect the young generation. Children are the most vulnerable to physiological pressure. Their minds and beliefs are still developing. That’s exactly why the violent video games should be controlled. Only the government possesses the capacity to restrain the video game companies and protect kids. The modern society is too much involved in business and profit. Responsibility to the community and citizens has been put aside. Parents and teachers are not powerful enough to shield their children from violence and evil of the video games. Government should be in charge of this.
In conclusion, government should control violent the video games by restricting the amount of violent scenes, implementing violent scenes and controlling the advertisement input. Violent video games should not be affordable for children. Society should not approve playing violent video games. The government should undertake this feat and control violent video games issue.
References
1. Gentile, A. (2011, May 30). The effects of video games on children: what parents need to know. Retrieved from http://www.afim.org/effects1.pdf
2. Missimer, R. (2011, May 30). The impact of video games on children.
Retrieved from http://www.healthguidance.org/entry/11051/1/The-Impact-of-Video-Games-on-Children.html
3. Rees, P. (2008, October 30). Do violent video games contribute to youth violence? Retrieved from ProCon.org: http://videogames.procon.org/#Background
