Originally posted by PawnokeyholeWell, you are quite right that there are ways of getting round the cause and effect conundrum. I was just pointing out that the kind of evidence people were putting forward didn't really stand up to scrutinty. You're also right that I'm not familiar with the research in this area, but it's interesting if there is a causal effect.
You methodological insights are astute. However, there are some neat research designs that can disambiguate the direction of causality.
Here is an example of what is known as a "cross-lagged panel design".
One study in the 70's, by Aron and colleagues, measured how much TV kids watched and how aggressive kids were, and then measured how much ...[text shortened]... terested in the references.
http://www.psychology.iastate.edu/faculty/caa/
Bests,
Aiden
Rich.
Originally posted by richhoeyHi Rich,
Well, you are quite right that there are ways of getting round the cause and effect conundrum. I was just pointing out that the kind of evidence people were putting forward didn't really stand up to scrutinty. You're also right that I'm not familiar with the research in this area, but it's interesting if there is a causal effect.
Rich.
I wasn't, of course, singling out *you* for being unfamiliar with the research in this area; I was merely asserting that to claim that violent video games and TV are irrelevant to aggressive behaviour would be wrongheaded in view of the extant evidence.
More difficult to establish methodologically, but of great potential relevance, would be existence of vicious circles, such that an aggressive disposition leads to violent video playing which in turn reinforces that aggressive disposition, as so on. Here's is not simply a question of the direction of causality, as both directions are involved in increasing aggression over time.
I also wonder whether the mere act of spending a lot of time alone playing games could itself contributes to aggression indirectly by weakening social bonds in at least some people.
Finally, I wonder whether comedies on TV do have the effect of increasing prosocial behaviour, and of partly neutralizing the effects of violence. I also wonder whether it would be possible to make an exciting prosocial video games, where altruism under dangerous conditions was called for.
Aiden
I just love it how TV, film and gaming violence is always knocked.
'They [the kids] don't read any more. They don't play outside with their friends' etc etc.
There's violence in books too, sometimes even more graphic than in video or game media. Anyone who has ever lived themselves into a good book knows that your own imagination can conjure up much worse than any film ever could - hence 'no ways dude, the book was waaayyy better than the movie'.
I'm sure a classical symphony could be able to 'trigger' violent behaviour, just as watching TV or playing games can trigger epileptic episodes.
When playing outside, they're bound to try something stupid - like jump off the roof, although they probably saw something on TV that made them want to do that, didn't they?
Bull.
What about if they get bullied at school. This has nothing to do with games etc. Things turn violent because they want to merely defend themselves.
Kids will be kids.
They want to explore and push the boudaries.
Originally posted by CrowleyCrowley is absolutely right.
I just love it how TV, film and gaming violence is always knocked.
'They [the kids] don't read any more. They don't play outside with their friends' etc etc.
There's violence in books too, sometimes even more graphic than in video or game media. Anyone who has ever lived themselves into a good book knows that your own imagination can conjure up much ...[text shortened]... merely defend themselves.
Kids will be kids.
They want to explore and push the boudaries.
I can say that the only activity that manages to induce violence in me is reading some of the posts in these forums.
I will now go and kill some ppl with a baseball bat in GTA SA to relax.
Originally posted by gumbieOr take a shotgun, get a 4 star wanted level and see how long you can last against the swat....
Crowley is absolutely right.
I can say that the only activity that manages to induce violence in me is reading some of the posts in these forums.
I will now go and kill some ppl with a baseball bat in GTA SA to relax.