Mass shootings: are violent video games real killers?

Introduction

This opinion piece is about whether violent video games are real factors that cause mass shootings.  

America is a country with frequent mass shootings, and the impact of violent video games on the tragedies has been widely debated for a long while. As a media student, I found a great number of studies demonstrating that there is no relation between violent video games and mass shootings. However, many ordinary people and politicians still believe that playing violent video games increases aggressive and anti-social behaviours of players. 

In this opinion piece, I provided updated scientific evidence to prove violent video games as ‘guiltless’. I aimed to persuade the public to stop blaming violent video games but face the real issue of mass shootings in America, which is ‘gun control’. As an opinion piece delivers studies and perceptions of scholars in a concise voice without using jargons and complex expressions, I believe my work below is precise for the public to understand and follow. 

Content

America witnessed mass shootings at El Paso, Texasand Dayton, Ohio on August 3^rdand 4^th, 2019, causing 31 dead and dozens injured. The tragedies once again sparked debate among the public and politicians: violent video games lead to the massacres. Until now, violent video games have been the ‘scapegoat’ of social violence for a long time. We should stop blaming them.

After the series of shootings, President Donald Trump condemned violent video games that created “a culture that celebrates violence”, on Monday morning’s White House address. Kevin McCarthy, the Republican House Minority Leader expressed similar response: video games “dehumanize individuals”. And the Lieutenant Governor of Texas Dan Patrick blamed the video game industry in an interview on Fox News that “teaches young people to kill.” 

It’s not rare that violent video games attract politicians’ concern. Video games have received substantial attention by politicians and news media since the Columbine High School mass shooting in 1999. Two Doom players killed one teacher and 12 students.  

What does the scientific research show

So does the exposure to violent video games indeed trigger aggressive actions in our society? I was a media student. I had studied the effect of media content including games and movies on youth social behaviours in the past three years. In our filed, many recent and longitudinal studies proved that there is no link between violent video games and violent behaviours. 

In a relevant research, Scott Cunningham and his colleagues found that violent video games contributed to the decrease in aggression and crime. They explained the role of violent video games – Catharsis. Playing aggressive games may help people release frustration and aggression, therefore, the actual violent actions will be reduced. 

What’s more? Video games like Red Dead Redemption which contains much violent content do not increase players’ aggressive behaviours but teach them spatial skills, that is our capacity to decipher 3D objects, maps, and diagrams. 

Some short-term studies indicated a rise in youth’s combative feelings and thoughts after playing violent video games. However, these results failed to prove whether a temporary aggression will increase to the level of an actual crime. Studying the influence of media content needs long-term experimental control. 

The stereotype of violent video games 

Are you curious why does recent evidence show violent video games are innocent while politicians still blame them for mass shootings? There are two essential reasons. 

The first refers to the ‘problematic history’ of video game study. 

In the early 2000s, many researchers together with professional organizations such as American Psychological Association (APA) started to investigate video game violence effects on a large scale. Abundant studies told the public that violent video games were the main factors that caused anti-social behaviours.

Nevertheless, Christopher J. Ferguson, the Professor of Psychology at Stetson University exposed the fact. At that early stage, experimental research which found no effects of violent video games gained much less publishing opportunities than studies that found impacts. This bias misleads people’s perception of violent video games.  

Another problem is that if the shooters are white men, media is more likely to mention the connection between violent video games and mass shootings in news reports. The media try to use video games as an excuse for massacres, aiming to avoid discussing real issues. It’s a good way to frame the positive image of white America. 

The early research and media reports have been shaping thoughts and ideologies of the public for a long time. Many people have constructed the stereotype of violent video games as a ‘monster’. So, until today, once mass shootings happen, people are inclined to condemn violent video games based on their prior beliefs. 

For politicians, blaming violent video games is an easy way to create emotional resonance with the public. 

Further solutions 

Blaming violent video games for mass shootings veils the real problem-gun control. The author Keith Boykin tweeted that adults’ maximised freedom to buy a gun plays a central role in causing gun violence in America. 

Let’s think: if violent video games trigger mass shootings, why does China have the worldwide lowest rates of gun crime? Compared to America, China develops bigger video game communities, where have more game consumers. 

The key is that China has thestrict regulation of firearms while in America, the number of civilian guns is more than that of residents. David Hemenway, the director of the Harvard Injury Control Research Centre stated that “more guns mean more gun death.” 

So politicians should face the real problem of mass shootings instead of blindly blaming violent video games. Lawmakers can implement firearm regulation policies to reduce public access to guns. For the media, news reports about mass killings should not focus on violent video games but addressing real causes. 

Violent video games are not monsters. It’s time for us to change the stereotype. 

Reflections

I found it was difficult for me to write an opinion piece because I primarily developed academic writing skills in the university. For composing an opinion piece, I have to understand how do paragraphs be structured, what are appropriate words and expressions, how to cite recourses, and so forth. Therefore, I analysed many articles from the Conversation and summarised the typical writing style of opinion pieces. For example, my expected audience was ordinary people, so that I constructed the paragraphs and sentences as short as possible, which were easy for the public to follow. I simplified the complicated explanation of scientific research by using simple words and hyperlinks as citations. In doing so, the audience could clearly understand the real issue. I believe the practice of writing an opinion piece improves my competence in analysing and constructing texts for professional purposes, which is useful for my future career.