The debate over whether violent video games contribute to violent behavior is one thing that has been prevalent for decades, but the American Psychological Association recently confirmed that there is no link between violent video games and the behavior of those exposed to them.
While its revised decision on the issue acknowledges that there is little connection between video games and "tragic consequences" such as pressing and raising voices, it does say the revised paper "should not be misinterpreted or misused to portray violence, such as mass shootings, for use of violent video."
The mass shooting in America was often blamed for violent video games – an indication of how much the industry is bigger than anything else – but APA president Sandra Shullman says policymakers should look for other reasons for these critical events:
Violence is a complex social problem that can be caused by many factors that warrant attention from researchers, policy makers and the public. Giving violence to video games is unscientific and draws attention away from other things, such as the history of violence, which we know from research that is very predictive of future violence.
