<p><a href="https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/a/648/43717">An answer to the same question in Skeptics.SE</a>, states that the scientific community is heavily divided on the subject and no clear consensus has been reached.</p>

<p>The information on Wikipedia has been updated with a new article since the Skeptics answer, but the result has not changed.  <strong>ALL linked articles below have links to further reading backing the claims</strong></p>

<blockquote>
  <p>A common hypothesis is that playing violent video games increases aggression in young people. Various studies claim to support this hypothesis. Other studies find no link. Debate among scholars on both sides remains contentious and, as of yet, no clear consensus has been reached either for or against effects, whether positive or negative.<br>(Source: <a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_controversies" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Wikipedia</a>)</p>
</blockquote>

<p>In 2005, the APA even got involved and <a href="https://www.apa.org/about/policy/interactive-media.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">released an official statement</a> referencing numerous articles backing their claims, saying:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>there appears to be evidence that exposure to violent media increases feelings of hostility, thoughts about aggression, suspicions about the motives of others, and demonstrates 
  violence as a method to deal with potential conflict situations.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Some scholars however suggested that the APA's policy statement ignored discrepant research and misrepresented the scientific literature. (<a href="http://onmediatheory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/four-respond-to-228-responding-to-apa.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Bowman, 2014</a>)(<a href="http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2013-04752-001" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Ferguson, 2013</a>)</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>In 2015, the American Psychological Association released another review (<a href="http://www.apa.org/pi/families/review-video-games.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">APA, 2015</a>) that found that violent video games caused aggressive behavior, with Mark Appelbaum, the chair of the task force that conducted the review, saying that "the link between violence in video games and increased aggression in players is one of the most studied and best established in the field." The same review found insufficient evidence of a link between such video games and crime or delinquency. However, controversies erupted over the task force conclusions, with concerns about perceived conflicts of interest among task force members, and methodological limitations of their review. (<a href="http://www.newsweek.com/apa-video-games-violence-364394" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Wofford, 2015</a>)</p>
</blockquote>

<h2>References</h2>

<p>APA. (2015) <a href="http://www.apa.org/pi/families/review-video-games.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>Technical Report on the Review of the Violent Video Game Literature</em></a> [PDF Online]<br>Available at: <a href="http://www.apa.org/pi/families/review-video-games.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://www.apa.org/pi/families/review-video-games.pdf</a></p>

<p>Bowman, N. (2014) <a href="http://onmediatheory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/four-respond-to-228-responding-to-apa.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>UPDATE: Four Respond to 228, Responding to the APA: Dissent Within the Academy Regarding Media Violence (#ECA14 Panel)</em></a> [Online]<br>Available at: <a href="http://onmediatheory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/four-respond-to-228-responding-to-apa.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://onmediatheory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/four-respond-to-228-responding-to-apa.html</a></p>

<p>Ferguson, C. J. (2013). <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030597" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Violent video games and the Supreme Court: Lessons for the scientific community in the wake of Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association.</a> <em>American Psychologist, 68</em>(2), 57-74.<br>DOI: <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030597" rel="nofollow noreferrer">10.1037/a0030597</a></p>

<p>Wofford, T. (2015) <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/apa-video-games-violence-364394" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>APA Says Video Games Make You Violent, but Critics Cry Bias</em></a> [Online]<br>Available at: <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/apa-video-games-violence-364394" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://www.newsweek.com/apa-video-games-violence-364394</a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2018-02-11T01:23:21.830Z
2018-02-11T01:23:21.830Z
Chris Rogers
<p>So I've heard many people say watching violent videos affect your behaviour. But I myself don't observe any change in me.</p>

<p><strong>So does it truly affect anyone and if yes how exactly?</strong></p>

<p>Some of the sites that indicate this are:</p>

<ol>
<li><a href="http://www.apa.org/action/resources/research-in-action/protect.aspx" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Violence in the Media</a>
Psychologists Study Potential Harmful Effects - American Psychologigal Association</li>
<li><a href="http://web.missouri.edu/segerti/capstone/Violent%20and%20Nonviolent%20Video%20Games.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Violent and nonviolent video games produce opposing effects on aggressive and
prosocial outcomes</a> - Journal of Experimental Social Psychology</li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-08-06T13:35:52.563Z
Hello and welcome! First off: this is a debated topic, with some contradictory research. Secondly: all of these studies are on statistical averages (or case studies), so it may or may not be applicable for you. IMHO we are aways away from being able to answer "does it truly affect anyone", though the mechanism for the effect seems to have a common theme of [desensitization](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desensitization_(psychology)). May I ask what you want beyond your citations? They seem to present a clear answer to this question.
mflo-ByeSE
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-08-06T17:08:41.827Z
The University of Missouri article seems well articulated to answer both questions. May I ask: what else are you looking for?
mflo-ByeSE
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-07-16T20:48:18.010Z
Also see: [Do we still not know whether violent video games negatively affect players?](https://psychology.stackexchange.com/q/24236/7001)
Arnon Weinberg
<behaviorism><behavior>
Do violent videos and video games affect your behaviour?
Sonic Splasher
# Do violent videos and video games affect your behaviour?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2017-08-06)

So I've heard many people say watching violent videos affect your behaviour. But I myself don't observe any change in me.

**So does it truly affect anyone and if yes how exactly?**

Some of the sites that indicate this are:

1. [Violence in the Media](http://www.apa.org/action/resources/research-in-action/protect.aspx)
   Psychologists Study Potential Harmful Effects - American Psychologigal Association
2. [Violent and nonviolent video games produce opposing effects on aggressive and
   prosocial outcomes](http://web.missouri.edu/segerti/capstone/Violent%20and%20Nonviolent%20Video%20Games.pdf) - Journal of Experimental Social Psychology

**Tags:** behaviorism, behavior

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Hello and welcome! First off: this is a debated topic, with some contradictory research. Secondly: all of these studies are on statistical averages (or case studies), so it may or may not be applicable for you. IMHO we are aways away from being able to answer "does it truly affect anyone", though the mechanism for the effect seems to have a common theme of [desensitization](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desensitization_(psychology)). May I ask what you want beyond your citations? They seem to present a clear answer to this question.  
> **username_1**: The University of Missouri article seems well articulated to answer both questions. May I ask: what else are you looking for?  
> **username_2**: Also see: [Do we still not know whether violent video games negatively affect players?](https://psychology.stackexchange.com/q/24236/7001)  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2018-02-11. Score: 1 | Accepted answer

[An answer to the same question in Skeptics.SE](https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/a/648/43717), states that the scientific community is heavily divided on the subject and no clear consensus has been reached.

The information on Wikipedia has been updated with a new article since the Skeptics answer, but the result has not changed. **ALL linked articles below have links to further reading backing the claims**

> A common hypothesis is that playing violent video games increases aggression in young people. Various studies claim to support this hypothesis. Other studies find no link. Debate among scholars on both sides remains contentious and, as of yet, no clear consensus has been reached either for or against effects, whether positive or negative.  
> (Source: [Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_controversies))

In 2005, the APA even got involved and [released an official statement](https://www.apa.org/about/policy/interactive-media.pdf) referencing numerous articles backing their claims, saying:

> there appears to be evidence that exposure to violent media increases feelings of hostility, thoughts about aggression, suspicions about the motives of others, and demonstrates
> violence as a method to deal with potential conflict situations.

Some scholars however suggested that the APA's policy statement ignored discrepant research and misrepresented the scientific literature. ([Bowman, 2014](http://onmediatheory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/four-respond-to-228-responding-to-apa.html))([Ferguson, 2013](http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2013-04752-001))

> In 2015, the American Psychological Association released another review ([APA, 2015](http://www.apa.org/pi/families/review-video-games.pdf)) that found that violent video games caused aggressive behavior, with Mark Appelbaum, the chair of the task force that conducted the review, saying that "the link between violence in video games and increased aggression in players is one of the most studied and best established in the field." The same review found insufficient evidence of a link between such video games and crime or delinquency. However, controversies erupted over the task force conclusions, with concerns about perceived conflicts of interest among task force members, and methodological limitations of their review. ([Wofford, 2015](http://www.newsweek.com/apa-video-games-violence-364394))

## References

APA. (2015) [*Technical Report on the Review of the Violent Video Game Literature*](http://www.apa.org/pi/families/review-video-games.pdf) [PDF Online]  
Available at: <http://www.apa.org/pi/families/review-video-games.pdf>

Bowman, N. (2014) [*UPDATE: Four Respond to 228, Responding to the APA: Dissent Within the Academy Regarding Media Violence (#ECA14 Panel)*](http://onmediatheory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/four-respond-to-228-responding-to-apa.html) [Online]  
Available at: <http://onmediatheory.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/four-respond-to-228-responding-to-apa.html>

Ferguson, C. J. (2013). [Violent video games and the Supreme Court: Lessons for the scientific community in the wake of Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association.](https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030597) *American Psychologist, 68*(2), 57-74.  
DOI: [10.1037/a0030597](https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030597)

Wofford, T. (2015) [*APA Says Video Games Make You Violent, but Critics Cry Bias*](http://www.newsweek.com/apa-video-games-violence-364394) [Online]  
Available at: <http://www.newsweek.com/apa-video-games-violence-364394>


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