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Dylan Adkins Instructor: Malcolm Campbell English 1102 September ! 201" Topic Proposal: Do Shooter Games Increase Violence or Aggression in Young People? Introduction/Overvie #he topic that I am interested in pursuing ho$ %iolent %ideo games can a&&ect beha%ior' I can not help but $onder i& the increase in %iolence $e ha%e seen in the (nited States and across the globe could be caused by a%ailability o& %iolent %ideo games in the past couple decades' I kno$ that the increase in %iolence can also be &rom %iolence sho$n in the ne$s! tele%ision sho$s! and e%en music in some cases! but I belie%e it is di&&icult to argue that %ideo games aren)t a large &actor in %iolence' *esearch &rom a 2000 Senate hearing about +#he Impact o& Interacti%e ,iolence on Children- stated that 1".22/ o& a %ariance in %iolent beha%iors $as related to %iolent %ideo games e0posure' #his beha%ior did not ha%e to go as &ar as committing a %iolent crime but simple actions! such as pushing or yelling at someone' #his research also should that people $ho played %iolent %ideo games $ere nearly 20/ more likely to react aggressi%ely $hen pro%oked' 1http:22$$$'psychology'iastate'edu2&aculty2caa2abstracts22000.2003200senate'pd&4 In a biological psychology study produced by the (ni%ersity o& 5onn! located in 6ermany! scientists $ere able to disco%er that certain parts o& the brain may react di&&erently in people $ho play %iolent %ideo games and those $ho do not' #he research $as based on a group o& 30 people bet$een the ages o& 20 and "0! hal& o& $hich played 1 hours $orth o& %ideo games a $eek and hal& $ho had no contact $ith %iolent games at all' #he te0t consisted o& pictures o&

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disasters or terrible accidents being sho$n to the participants' 5oth groups) brains reacted similarly $hen it came to strong negati%e emotions! ho$e%er! the %ideo playing game sub7ects) brains barely responded in the part o& the brain that controls &ear and aggression' +8irst.person shooters do not respond as strongly to the real! negati%e image material because they are used to it &rom their daily computer acti%ities' 9ne might also say that they are more desensiti:ed than the control group!- said lead author o& this 7ournal Dr' Christian Montag' 1http:22$$$'psypost'org220112102%iolent.&irst.person.shooter.%ideo.games.emotionally. desensiti:ing.; 2"4 Initial In!uir" #uestion$s% Do %iolent %ideo games actually make young people more aggressi%e or %iolent< Does age matter $hen determining ho$ %iolent a %ideo game can make someone< I& it has been pro%en that %ideo games can cause %iolence $hy are so many still being produced< Is there a $ay that action packed %ideo games could make people less %iolent than they already are< Is there any biological e%idence to help support or illustrate ho$ %iolent games make us &eel or think< &" Interest in this Topic I am interested in this topic because I am both a Criminal =ustice and >sychology ma7or and this topic can and $ill be help&ul &or both &ields o& study' Since I am planning on 7oining the 85I it $ill be %ery use&ul to kno$ $hy some young people do the things they do' Another reason that I am interested in this topic is because I am a young person $ho plays %iolent %ideo

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games' I am usually a %ery calm and controlled person! but I ha%e noticed that $hen I play %ideo games my patience goes do$n dramatically and my ability to control my anger also decreases' It $ill be %ery interesting to me i& I can &ind a solution to my anger $hile playing %ideo games! or i& there is an alternati%e acti%ity I can do to satis&y my gaming desires' I do not kno$ much on this sub7ect other than the &act that there has been research done to see i& there is a link bet$een %iolent games and increased %iolence in young people' ?o$e%er! I am interested to &ind out i& there are any opposing sides to this debate! such as %ideo game de%elopers! and i& the correlation bet$een games and beha%ior is actually enough to try to come up $ith a solution' 'e(t Steps I am planning on going to the library to &ind academic 7ournals that contain more statistical data on the sub7ect! because so &ar my research has said there is e%idence but not backed it up $ith data' I $ill also be looking into more online maga:ine sources such as Time Magazine or The New York Times, to &ind some o& the more publici:ed $orks' I& I am able to get a response I am going to email one o& the ma7or makers o& %iolent %ideo games! not sure $hich company yet! to see $hat their opinion is on the sub7ect'

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http:22$$$'pcc'edu2library2sites2de&ault2&iles2%iolent.%ideo.games'pd& http:22$$$'psychologytoday'com2blog2get.psyched22012012do.%iolent.%ideo.games.increase. aggression<channel@EloAuaBelACmid@"22 BelACcid@