Response Week 11

(Coming from the perspective of one with very little personal gaming experience)

1.) Several years ago, news of child armies were reaching our headline.  We learned how armies were desensitizing children to violence and death in order to make them good child soldiers. The United States was in an uproar about this.  Is desensitizing children to violence and death in a virtual environment any different (except for the obvious fact that people aren’t dying in the process)?

This week, I want to focus on my first question.  Firstly, in relation to the desensitization of kids to violence via videogames, I don’t think there can be a concrete answer.  I do think those who play violent videogames, specifically the newer, graphic ones, become less sensitive to the violence, however, I don’t think that people will act on these new, desensitized ideas.

For example, I have a few friends who are avid COD players.  One in particular plays for several hours each day.  This particular individual even went to the midnight launch of the new “Black Ops” edition of the game.  This new edition is not necessarily more violent than the previous COD4 or Modern Warfare 2, but it is more graphic.  When my friend saw one of these first graphic scenes, (one where the hand of a man in the game was stabbed, and the player saw blood dripping from the wound) and thought it was amazing.  I, who am not as exposed to this type of game, was disturbed.  In conversation, this friend makes comments about violence in a joking fashion.  I don’t think these comments would be made if this individual were not desensitized to the violence through video games.

However, even though this player has been desensitized to the violence, I know for a fact this desensitization would never cause this individual to commit similar, violent actions.  This example, while only profiling one person, outlines how complicated the answer to this question is.  It is impossible, even though the courts are trying, to make a absolute statement that video games cause people to be more violent.

Being less sensitive to, and acting upon violence are two very different things.  The only thing that I believe is absolute about this subject is that video games causes desensitization.