Essay Sample on Simulated Violence

Simulated violence does not cause actual violence. Simulated violence is defined as being an imitation of physical aggression in the form of games and television. There is a lot of evidence to support this claim that violent games are not bad. Violence comes more from the kids’ mental state rather than if they are involved in simulated violence, simulated violence may cause a mood change better or worse but it will not cause violence, simulated violence allows for better hand-eye coordination which is crucial life skill.

Firstly, violence in kids comes more from their mental state rather than simulated violence. If kids are not in a good mental state such as being depressed or having high-stress levels they are more likely to be violent because of this and less so from simulated violence. A Psychology Today review of the study titled “Aggressive Video Games Are Not a Risk Factor for Mental Health Problems in Youth: A Longitudinal Study'' states “Consistent with many previous studies, mental health symptoms at the beginning of the study were predictive of symptoms two years later. In short, no connection was found between video games and the mental health functioning of youth.” This is important because it is showing that violent actions in kids are often linked to mental health issues. Next, the study “Growing Up with Grand Theft Auto: A 10-Year Study of Longitudinal Growth of Violent Video Game Play in Adolescents' ' put kids ages 10-13 into a room to play video games. They found out that the kids who had violent behavior had this behavior beforehand and also had mental health issues. This shows how simulated violence does not cause actual violence but poor mental health does.

Furthermore, simulated violence may cause a mood change better or worse but it will not cause violence. Just because someone sees a sad movie that might make them cry doesn't make them clinically depressed, so if someone plays a video game that might put them in a bad mood doesn't make them an overall violent person. As Patrick Markey, Ph.D., Psychology Professor at Villanova University, stated: “The general story is people who play video games right after might be a little hopped up and jerky but it doesn’t fundamentally alter who they are.” This is highly important because it shows that simulated violence does not cause violence. In addition, video games and simulated violence allow for an escape. Everyone needs an escape sometimes. These escapes can allow for a break from stress and tension. This proves that having these escapes will lead to less stress and aggression.

Lastly, simulated violence allows for better hand-eye coordination which is a crucial life skill. As raiseagoodkid.com says “In shooting games, the character could be running and shooting at the same time. This requires the real-world player to keep track of the position of the character, where he/she is heading, his speed, where the gun is aiming if the gunfire is hitting the enemy, and so on. All these factors need to be taken into account, and then the player must then coordinate the brain’s interpretation and reaction with the movement in his hands and fingertips. This process requires a great deal of eye-hand coordination and visual-spatial ability to be successful.” This shows how simulated violence does not cause more violent behavior in kids but can improve hand-eye coordination. Next, hand-eye coordination is a crucial skill that lies at the core of many academic, sports, and life skills. This is a skill that is vital for sports, learning, and everyday activities. This shows how playing simulated violent games will lead to improvement in sports, academics, and many more things because it allows for better hand-eye coordination.

They say that simulated violence can cause violent behavior. While this may be somewhat true, as I mentioned earlier just because someone sees a sad movie that might make them cry doesn't make them depressed, so if someone plays a video game that might put them in a bad mood doesn't make them an overall violent person. Thus, simulated violence does not cause actual violence. 

In conclusion, video games often have a bad reputation and are considered damaging and brain rot. However, we are able to see that simulated violence does not result in violent behavior and can actually be good. I used to believe that simulated violence was too violent and a waste of time, now I see that simulated violence is good and can teach many vital life skills. Overall, the violence in kids comes more from their mental state rather than simulated violence, simulated violence may cause a mood change better or worse but it will not cause violence, simulated violence allows for better hand-eye coordination which is a crucial life skill. As it is clearly demonstrated, simulated violence is not as bad as we have been led to believe and has been shown to have positive outcomes.