Is teen violence influenced by TV and video games?
Even though this study was done with children, I still feel that it is the most valid of any study done in regards to the effect of video games. Researches measured the anger levels of 125 kids (average age 14) and had them take personality tests. Then, they had them play Quake II, a violent video game, for 20 minutes. The test was completed with another measurement of anger level. The results showed that 77 subjects had anger levels that were the same as or close to the anger levels they had before playing Quake. About 20 of the subjects’ anger levels doubled, and 8 of them actually dropped from anger to “normal” level. When the subjects’ anger levels were compared to the personality tests, a pattern became obvious: Those children who seemed to have a stable personality were unaffected by the game. Those with unstable personalities either were angered or calmed by the game.
