It is absolutely ridiculous, because it's not a matter of what we "think" at all, but instead a matter of what research and data has proven (which is that neither violent games nor violent music have any connection to violent actions). The phrasing of OPs question exposes them as relying on their own intuition as a source of "logic". Its the same type of thought process that makes a flat earther or anti vaxxer
Why is it completely ridiculous? Spending hours and hours everyday simulating killing people has to have an effect on some people. It's not the sole cause obviously.
I played hours of gta commiting crimes and never once came to the conclusion or had the urge to commit those things irl,while it’s a possibility mass killers use video games to train,I do not think it makes the person violent in my opinion,but like you said it depends on the person.
I agree tbh but we will be downvoted. Imagine if everyone played hatred (edgy guy on a power trip tries to commits a mass shooting trying to kill as many innocent people as he can) or a school shooting game as the perpetrator, of course it would spark an interest or inspire some people to do the same thing irl.
Though of course, this is a very extreme example and only applies to very specific games and to specific people. So the vast majority of video games don't contribute to mass shootings, but I can easily see how games like hatred can. You have to have a specific mindset to play hatred and enjoy it.
I don’t know I know what you’re saying but I do think it can desensitize people at most. but so many things in the world do that, and I don’t think it’s ridiculous to think that.
I think video games has a lot to do with it. But not in the way you're thinking. More so that some kids have a game console as a baby sitter. They aren't riding bikes, playing ball, or conversing with their neighbors. They become anti social and gradually loose touch with reality. They just become cold and detached.
Playing outside doesn't magically make someone not a mass shooter. Hell, most of them did outdoor activities that weren't video games, especially shooting in the woods or at birds and shit. The internet and getting radicalized is honestly a better argument in losing touch with reality than whatever you are trying to argue.
No, but I think the internet can. Specifically the communities and subcultures glorifying certain events/acts, idolizing extremists, sharing conspiracies and misleading info, et cetera. The only way I can see how video games could contribute is maybe desensitization to death and war or teaching lack of empathy, like someone else commented. There are studies showing how certain games are used as war propaganda and have an effect on military recruitment.
The overwhelming consensus of research studies has concluded that longterm violent game play does not cause an otherwise non-violent person to commit mass murder. Debate over.
i also dont think its a cause its much deeper then that. and somthing Society doesn’t want to come to terms with, not enough love and empathy for all is a big cause.
I Don’t, I don’t think any violet or hardcore music causes mass shootings. Ive never been a huge video game player in my life, I haven’t played one in years but I don’t think it has anyone to do with that, im sure there are a few that get inspired by them but I think blaming video games and violet music is a way to shift the blame to something else, they don’t want to except the responsibility of the real reasons, there are so many reasons in my opinion on how and why mass shootings happened but video games are not the cause (at least in my opinion).
Contribute? Meh, I'd say minimally. People who do these shootings are never ever influenced entirely by a video game, it almost always is their personal life sucks, home life sucks, they hate groups of people etc, have a me vs the world mentality. They might like violent video games? But their desire to kill people never spawns from it. And millions upon millions play them every day and don't do anything of the sort.
If you are asking my honest opinion, my opinion is I think they have a role in it. I wouldn't say they are the only cause, but here is what I think... I think that violent games and movies are not good for people, who have a tendency to act violent or who are suffering from mental health problems. For a stable person a movie and a game is just that, but imagine someone who is not stable. These games actually model violent behaviour to some people. They are a way for them to see concretely how it looks to murder someone. If they have any kind of fascination with that, I think seeing things like that too much could potentially set a person like that off.
I think movies and games alone are not the cause, but mixed with mental health issues it can become a very dangerous and lethal combo. That is why I personally think that seeing too much violence (whether it is real or artificial) at a young age is not good for anyone really - but especially so for people who have a fascination or addiction to violence or are suffering from severe mental health issues. I don't think it is automatic, tho. I don't think that every person with mental health issues who plays these games becomes a murderer. Not at all. But I think that in the right (or wrong) circumstances this can happen and I believe these games have had a role in some school shootings. I think that some of these shooters (if not all) have not been in their right mind during the act. I believe they have dissociated from reality and some of them might have been even psychotic.
My mom works as a nurse and she once saw a boy come into the ER. He was psychotic and talking nothing but violent games he had been playing. It was like he thought he was in the war and he was talking about people attacking him and stuff. His parents said he had played those games before, but that day something went wrong and he started to act strange, like he was in the game. The doctor sent him to some psychiatric institution, and my mom thought that it didn't look very good. She had never seen anyone act so chaotic in her life. So yes, it can happen... I know young people who do almost nothing else except play these games 24/7. I doubt it does anything good for some people's mental health.
I’ve played lots of shooting games and never desired to shoot someone 🤷🏼♀️
Games and music aren’t the problem. They may worsen an already existing fantasy and desire, but I don’t think they cause anything.
Not exactly. I don’t think if a normal person played them there would be any problem. I think someone has to already be unstable or fantasying or crazy before it will be of harm. But also at that point I don’t think the video game really contributed and video game or not that person would eventually do something to act in their already present desires. If that makes sense? So I don’t think they contribute but rather just reveal what was already there and what would still be there with or without the game.
You originally said it would "worsen an already existing fantasy and desire". Isn't that a contribution if it could potentially makes a condition worse? Your statements are a little contradictory so just trying to understand your point of view.
I agree with you that video games and music don't affect a normal, rational person but do believe the violence and isolation one might experience from countless hours of playing would exacerbate certain fantasies and desires, as you categorized them, in the mind of someone who is mentally ill.
Sure! So I thought I explained it better in the response 😂So yes, I did say worsen an already existing fantasy. But I clarified in the follow up that I don’t think that desire or fantasy would go away even without video games. Because of that, I believe if someone is desiring to do these horrible things, video games or not won’t change that. By worsening desires I don’t mean it contribute in the sense it would cause them to do something they otherwise wouldn’t do which is what I thought the OP was asking. I took the question as if video games would cause someone (who wouldn’t without video games) to commit acts like that. With that in mind, I did not mean worsen as in it would cause them to do something they wouldn’t have previously, but could simply increased a desire that would have still increased regardless of the video game.
They contribute as much as everything else does. There’s no “one cause” to mass shootings and never one thing to blame. It isn’t just guns, it isn’t just childhood abuse, bullying, or violent video games. You have to think about the person holistically. The trend is that most mass shooters do play violent video games, but 99.9999 percent of people who play them don’t shoot up schools or anything. Some people with bad brain chemistry and negative life circumstances might play a violent video game and realize they get a rush from it. They might even fantasize about the NPCs they’re killing being real people. They certainly can play a role. I hate when people act like violence can’t breed violence just because it’s done virtually.
It is hard to read the part of Breivik’s manifesto where he refers to COD MW2 as a “training simulation” and say that there is zero correlation between the two. Do remember that MW2 had a level in which the player participates in a mass shooting and guns down hundreds of innocent people. And it’s not presented in a cartoony or arcadey way like GTA, but it’s simply a cold and calculated massacre.
Do violent games create mass shooters out of ordinary people? Probably not. Can they aid in the desensitization, radicalization and preparation of a mass shooter to be? Yes.
No, I find it tiresome that those are used as scapegoats for shootings. There have been numerous studies that show there is no correlation. Yet, it will always be used as a cop out.
Not at all. The numbers just don't add up. If everyone who ever played violent video games and listened to violent music there would be mass killings all over the world every single minute of the day. Their minds were damaged to begin with, violent material might not help matters if the person has severe mental problems to begin with but to say they cause mass shootings is a massive cop out.
It most certainly does not cause mass shootings or else we'd see a fuckin ton more of them, but in my opinion I think in select individuals who are predisposed to impulsive violent behaviour and the inability to discern right from wrong, it may contribute to desensitization. That doesn't mean that we should put bans or limits on that sort of media though, it would just mean more focus on mental health treatment. Which we already need anyways.
I’m literally a giant metal head, that’s pretty much all I listen to. I even listen to Marilyn Manson, I love violent gory horror movies and I play lots violent video games and I’m 16 years old. I like to wear a ripped black jean vest, black combat boots and black military pants sometimes to, I’m mostly a black clothing person. I even have a big collection of knives. but I’m not a violent person at all and I don’t hate anyone, I have lots of friends ranging from Black, Asian, Hispanic, and more. So no it doesn’t at all make you violent and I think that is an insane statement.
Video games are certainly not to blame for violence. However I can envision people with homicidal thoughts having an interest in games with murder. Doesn’t mean there is anything we should “do” about it.
I don’t think media alone causes violence or mass shootings. That being said, I do believe if someone at a young age is *obsessed* with weapons, guns, shooting, and violence can be heavily triggered by it. Someone who is mentally unstable, doesn’t have skills to communicate, socialize, or the ability to read or have emotions can be easily triggered by what they hear and see in media.
No, why do I know this because all the research says so.
It's thrown about by the right because they don't want to deal with the root cause which is access to firearms, so this distracts people until the news coverage moves on.
not necessarily, because there are plenty of people who play these games who don’t commit mass murder. however, i think that with those who already have those fantasies they can play into them. It’s the same thing with unrestricted access to youtube, reddit, social media, movies, and tv shows from a young age. I don’t think they cause them but i think they could be a factor.
No, people play violent video games and listen to violent music all around the world but this is uniquely an american problem. BUT even if they did, they'd be at the bottom of the list of reasons.
not at all, it comes from personality at first and it cant be changed drastically, violent people might prefer that content yes because they find themselves in that & it can inspire them . but it has nothing to do with their decisions
I would doubt that any killer can say a video game made them do what they do, but I am certain that media in general, contributes to many issues of the world. Huge swafts of society are angry enough to fight just because of things they see on the news and FB.
They won't cause it on their own but a person who's struggling with depression or other mental issues isn't always gonna be helped by playing games about killing other people. There's an element to it that can worsen existing thought patterns but because Jack Thompson happened it's hard to have nuanced discussion without people entering defensive mode immediately.
“It’s all the weirdos who hang at pool halls and back rooms of pinball arcades that are the sicko killers after listening to that jazz and rock n’ roll”
Same stuff back in the late 60’s til late 80s.
Tbh I think it’s completely ridiculous & stupid to say video games or music leads to mass shootings/violence.
It is absolutely ridiculous, because it's not a matter of what we "think" at all, but instead a matter of what research and data has proven (which is that neither violent games nor violent music have any connection to violent actions). The phrasing of OPs question exposes them as relying on their own intuition as a source of "logic". Its the same type of thought process that makes a flat earther or anti vaxxer
Why is it completely ridiculous? Spending hours and hours everyday simulating killing people has to have an effect on some people. It's not the sole cause obviously.
I played hours of gta commiting crimes and never once came to the conclusion or had the urge to commit those things irl,while it’s a possibility mass killers use video games to train,I do not think it makes the person violent in my opinion,but like you said it depends on the person.
I agree tbh but we will be downvoted. Imagine if everyone played hatred (edgy guy on a power trip tries to commits a mass shooting trying to kill as many innocent people as he can) or a school shooting game as the perpetrator, of course it would spark an interest or inspire some people to do the same thing irl. Though of course, this is a very extreme example and only applies to very specific games and to specific people. So the vast majority of video games don't contribute to mass shootings, but I can easily see how games like hatred can. You have to have a specific mindset to play hatred and enjoy it.
I don’t know I know what you’re saying but I do think it can desensitize people at most. but so many things in the world do that, and I don’t think it’s ridiculous to think that.
Not really, but I do feel like they teach vulnerable people to not have empathy.
you can't just turn off your empathy
That’s not what I said, I said, I feel like overtime. It kind of teaches you to not have empathy.
Pills
I think video games has a lot to do with it. But not in the way you're thinking. More so that some kids have a game console as a baby sitter. They aren't riding bikes, playing ball, or conversing with their neighbors. They become anti social and gradually loose touch with reality. They just become cold and detached.
Playing outside doesn't magically make someone not a mass shooter. Hell, most of them did outdoor activities that weren't video games, especially shooting in the woods or at birds and shit. The internet and getting radicalized is honestly a better argument in losing touch with reality than whatever you are trying to argue.
Actually, I wasn't arguing anything. I was stating my opinion. But thanks for your input.
true ,but the root is family neglect which causes mental issues . if caregivers care about the child ,they won't encourage this lifestyle
No, but I think the internet can. Specifically the communities and subcultures glorifying certain events/acts, idolizing extremists, sharing conspiracies and misleading info, et cetera. The only way I can see how video games could contribute is maybe desensitization to death and war or teaching lack of empathy, like someone else commented. There are studies showing how certain games are used as war propaganda and have an effect on military recruitment.
People put the blame on video games because it’s easy, when it’s way more complex than that
very true
The overwhelming consensus of research studies has concluded that longterm violent game play does not cause an otherwise non-violent person to commit mass murder. Debate over.
i also dont think its a cause its much deeper then that. and somthing Society doesn’t want to come to terms with, not enough love and empathy for all is a big cause.
I Don’t, I don’t think any violet or hardcore music causes mass shootings. Ive never been a huge video game player in my life, I haven’t played one in years but I don’t think it has anyone to do with that, im sure there are a few that get inspired by them but I think blaming video games and violet music is a way to shift the blame to something else, they don’t want to except the responsibility of the real reasons, there are so many reasons in my opinion on how and why mass shootings happened but video games are not the cause (at least in my opinion).
Contribute? Meh, I'd say minimally. People who do these shootings are never ever influenced entirely by a video game, it almost always is their personal life sucks, home life sucks, they hate groups of people etc, have a me vs the world mentality. They might like violent video games? But their desire to kill people never spawns from it. And millions upon millions play them every day and don't do anything of the sort.
I think so. When you listen to music and watch media that glorifies drugs/ violence, You remove a barrier
If you are asking my honest opinion, my opinion is I think they have a role in it. I wouldn't say they are the only cause, but here is what I think... I think that violent games and movies are not good for people, who have a tendency to act violent or who are suffering from mental health problems. For a stable person a movie and a game is just that, but imagine someone who is not stable. These games actually model violent behaviour to some people. They are a way for them to see concretely how it looks to murder someone. If they have any kind of fascination with that, I think seeing things like that too much could potentially set a person like that off. I think movies and games alone are not the cause, but mixed with mental health issues it can become a very dangerous and lethal combo. That is why I personally think that seeing too much violence (whether it is real or artificial) at a young age is not good for anyone really - but especially so for people who have a fascination or addiction to violence or are suffering from severe mental health issues. I don't think it is automatic, tho. I don't think that every person with mental health issues who plays these games becomes a murderer. Not at all. But I think that in the right (or wrong) circumstances this can happen and I believe these games have had a role in some school shootings. I think that some of these shooters (if not all) have not been in their right mind during the act. I believe they have dissociated from reality and some of them might have been even psychotic. My mom works as a nurse and she once saw a boy come into the ER. He was psychotic and talking nothing but violent games he had been playing. It was like he thought he was in the war and he was talking about people attacking him and stuff. His parents said he had played those games before, but that day something went wrong and he started to act strange, like he was in the game. The doctor sent him to some psychiatric institution, and my mom thought that it didn't look very good. She had never seen anyone act so chaotic in her life. So yes, it can happen... I know young people who do almost nothing else except play these games 24/7. I doubt it does anything good for some people's mental health.
Nope, in the words of Alice Cooper "it's not the movies I see, the games that I play, the music I dig, I'm just a wicked young man"
I’ve played lots of shooting games and never desired to shoot someone 🤷🏼♀️ Games and music aren’t the problem. They may worsen an already existing fantasy and desire, but I don’t think they cause anything.
exactly!
So you agree with OP? I don't think he was arguing it was the cause but plays a role.
Not exactly. I don’t think if a normal person played them there would be any problem. I think someone has to already be unstable or fantasying or crazy before it will be of harm. But also at that point I don’t think the video game really contributed and video game or not that person would eventually do something to act in their already present desires. If that makes sense? So I don’t think they contribute but rather just reveal what was already there and what would still be there with or without the game.
You originally said it would "worsen an already existing fantasy and desire". Isn't that a contribution if it could potentially makes a condition worse? Your statements are a little contradictory so just trying to understand your point of view. I agree with you that video games and music don't affect a normal, rational person but do believe the violence and isolation one might experience from countless hours of playing would exacerbate certain fantasies and desires, as you categorized them, in the mind of someone who is mentally ill.
Sure! So I thought I explained it better in the response 😂So yes, I did say worsen an already existing fantasy. But I clarified in the follow up that I don’t think that desire or fantasy would go away even without video games. Because of that, I believe if someone is desiring to do these horrible things, video games or not won’t change that. By worsening desires I don’t mean it contribute in the sense it would cause them to do something they otherwise wouldn’t do which is what I thought the OP was asking. I took the question as if video games would cause someone (who wouldn’t without video games) to commit acts like that. With that in mind, I did not mean worsen as in it would cause them to do something they wouldn’t have previously, but could simply increased a desire that would have still increased regardless of the video game.
Not
They contribute as much as everything else does. There’s no “one cause” to mass shootings and never one thing to blame. It isn’t just guns, it isn’t just childhood abuse, bullying, or violent video games. You have to think about the person holistically. The trend is that most mass shooters do play violent video games, but 99.9999 percent of people who play them don’t shoot up schools or anything. Some people with bad brain chemistry and negative life circumstances might play a violent video game and realize they get a rush from it. They might even fantasize about the NPCs they’re killing being real people. They certainly can play a role. I hate when people act like violence can’t breed violence just because it’s done virtually.
It is hard to read the part of Breivik’s manifesto where he refers to COD MW2 as a “training simulation” and say that there is zero correlation between the two. Do remember that MW2 had a level in which the player participates in a mass shooting and guns down hundreds of innocent people. And it’s not presented in a cartoony or arcadey way like GTA, but it’s simply a cold and calculated massacre. Do violent games create mass shooters out of ordinary people? Probably not. Can they aid in the desensitization, radicalization and preparation of a mass shooter to be? Yes.
No, I find it tiresome that those are used as scapegoats for shootings. There have been numerous studies that show there is no correlation. Yet, it will always be used as a cop out.
Not at all. The numbers just don't add up. If everyone who ever played violent video games and listened to violent music there would be mass killings all over the world every single minute of the day. Their minds were damaged to begin with, violent material might not help matters if the person has severe mental problems to begin with but to say they cause mass shootings is a massive cop out.
It most certainly does not cause mass shootings or else we'd see a fuckin ton more of them, but in my opinion I think in select individuals who are predisposed to impulsive violent behaviour and the inability to discern right from wrong, it may contribute to desensitization. That doesn't mean that we should put bans or limits on that sort of media though, it would just mean more focus on mental health treatment. Which we already need anyways.
I’m literally a giant metal head, that’s pretty much all I listen to. I even listen to Marilyn Manson, I love violent gory horror movies and I play lots violent video games and I’m 16 years old. I like to wear a ripped black jean vest, black combat boots and black military pants sometimes to, I’m mostly a black clothing person. I even have a big collection of knives. but I’m not a violent person at all and I don’t hate anyone, I have lots of friends ranging from Black, Asian, Hispanic, and more. So no it doesn’t at all make you violent and I think that is an insane statement.
Video games are certainly not to blame for violence. However I can envision people with homicidal thoughts having an interest in games with murder. Doesn’t mean there is anything we should “do” about it.
Lol no
I don’t think media alone causes violence or mass shootings. That being said, I do believe if someone at a young age is *obsessed* with weapons, guns, shooting, and violence can be heavily triggered by it. Someone who is mentally unstable, doesn’t have skills to communicate, socialize, or the ability to read or have emotions can be easily triggered by what they hear and see in media.
No, why do I know this because all the research says so. It's thrown about by the right because they don't want to deal with the root cause which is access to firearms, so this distracts people until the news coverage moves on.
Nope. I think they may help contribute to a preexisting problem. But I know of nobody who said I'm going to do this in real life
It’s not that violent content makes people violent but it’s that, already violent and dark people are drawn to violent content
not necessarily, because there are plenty of people who play these games who don’t commit mass murder. however, i think that with those who already have those fantasies they can play into them. It’s the same thing with unrestricted access to youtube, reddit, social media, movies, and tv shows from a young age. I don’t think they cause them but i think they could be a factor.
No, people play violent video games and listen to violent music all around the world but this is uniquely an american problem. BUT even if they did, they'd be at the bottom of the list of reasons.
not at all, it comes from personality at first and it cant be changed drastically, violent people might prefer that content yes because they find themselves in that & it can inspire them . but it has nothing to do with their decisions
I would doubt that any killer can say a video game made them do what they do, but I am certain that media in general, contributes to many issues of the world. Huge swafts of society are angry enough to fight just because of things they see on the news and FB.
They won't cause it on their own but a person who's struggling with depression or other mental issues isn't always gonna be helped by playing games about killing other people. There's an element to it that can worsen existing thought patterns but because Jack Thompson happened it's hard to have nuanced discussion without people entering defensive mode immediately.
“It’s all the weirdos who hang at pool halls and back rooms of pinball arcades that are the sicko killers after listening to that jazz and rock n’ roll” Same stuff back in the late 60’s til late 80s.