Barlett, Christopher, et al. “Video Game Effects–Confirmed, Suspected, and Speculative: A Review of the Evidence.” Simulation & Gaming, vol. 40, no. 3, 2009, pp. 377-403.
According to Barlett et al., when it comes to discussing the potential effects of playing video games, it is important to understand how they can be properly categorized. The authors suggest that the effects of playing video games can be classified as confirmed, suspected and speculative.
Given the fact that there is indeed a logically sound rationale to such a suggestion, throughout the course of conducting my study, I remained thoroughly observant of the article’s classification-related suggestions, in regards to the effects of people’s exposure to video games.
De Lisi, Richard and Jenifer Wolford. “Improving Children’s Mental Rotation Accuracy with Computer Game Playing.” Journal of Genetic Psychology, vol. 163, no. 3, 2002, pp. 272-282.
In their study, De Lisi and Wolford aimed to test the hypothesis that children’s continual exposure to video games helps them to address mental tasks, associated with the spatial arrangement of two-dimensional and three-dimensional objects. After having conducted a number of field experiments over the sampled participants, the authors concluded that, as opposed to what it is being the case with video game non-players, game players appear more effective in tackling these tasks. De Lisi and Wolford succeeded in ensuring the study’s methodological soundness, and their conclusions can be referred to as such that represent an objective scientific value.
Gentile, Douglas and Ronald Gentile. “Video Games as Exemplary Teachers: A Conceptual Analysis.” Journal of Youth and Adolescence, vol. 37, no. 2, 2008, pp. 127-141.
In their study, Gentile and Gentile strived to identify the possible predictors of children’s violent behavior, in regards to the qualitative subtleties of their exposure to pro-social video games, on the one hand, and to violent video games, on the other.
According to the authors, there is indeed a dialectical link between children’s tendency to exhibit violent attitudes and the strength of their commitment to playing violent video games. Nevertheless, given the fact that Gentile and Gentile addressed the subject matter in question from a clearly behaviorist perspective, their study’s conclusions cannot be regarded ideologically neutral.
Golden, Bernard. Healthy Anger: How to Help Children and Teens Manage Their Anger. Oxford UP, 2003.
The foremost thesis of Golden’s book can be formulated as follows. In order for children to be able to grow into psychologically stable individuals, they must be provided with an opportunity to learn how to release their anger in a socially appropriate manner.
Golden considers the activity of playing video games as such that is being thoroughly consistent with the basic provisions of the majority of anger management strategies. Given the fact that, throughout the book’s entirety, Golden succeeded in supporting his line of reasoning logically, this book can be indeed considered as such that contains a number of valuable clues, as to what may account for the beneficial effects of playing video games.
Green, Shawn and Daphne Bavelier. “Action Video Game Modified Visual Selective Attention.” Nature no. 423, 2003, pp. 534-537.
In their study, Shawn and Bavelier performed the empirical testing of the hypothesis that the activity of playing video games enhances people’s ability to successfully address a variety of different visual tasks. According to the study’s empirical findings, this hypothesis can indeed be considered thoroughly legitimate.
As opposed to the study’s participants that were required not to play video games for duration of two weeks, the study’s partakers that were encouraged to indulge in playing these games for the same period of time, did exhibit a considerable improvement to their ability to cope with the tasks of visual recognition.
Given the fact that, while conducting their study, the authors did succeed in ensuring the methodological appropriateness of the hypothesis-testing; the obtained data can be referred to as being implicationally objective.
Griffith, Jerry, et al. “Differences in Eye-Hand Motor Coordination of Video-Game Users and Non-Users.” Perception and Motor Skills vol. 57, 1983, pp. 155–58.
In his study, Griffith wanted to test the validity of the hypothesis that video game-players have better hand-eye coordination, as compared to their non-playing peers. After having evaluated the sampled participants’ (31 game-players and 31 non-players) motor skills, Griffith confirmed the legitimacy of the study’s initial hypothesis.
Because Griffith’s study does not contain any speculative statements, while being methodologically sound, there can be very little doubt as to the fact that it does contain a number of discursively relevant analytical insights.
Levin, Diane and Nancy Carlsson-Paige. “Marketing Violence: The Special Toll on Young Children of Color.” The Journal of Negro Education, vol. 72, no. 4, 2003, pp. 427-437.
In their article, Levin and Carlsson-Paige argued that one of the reasons why American society is becoming ever more violent is that, ever since their early years, Americans (especially the people of color) never cease being exposed to graphically portrayed media-violence. In particular, both authors emphasize the socially dangerous effects of playing video games with a violent content.
Nevertheless, even though Levin and Carlsson-Paige’s article does contain a number of valuable observations, relevant to our study’s subject matter, the overall line of argumentation, deployed throughout the article’s entirety, does not stand much ground, due to its an essentially speculative nature. The fact that, in their article both authors had made a point in utilizing a pretentiously sophisticate politically correct terminology, undermines the extent of their discursive argumentation’s credibility even further.
Michael, David and Sandra Chen. Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform. Course Technology, 2005.
In their book, Michael and Chen strived to promote the idea that, whereas, playing pro-social video games can indeed be considered thoroughly beneficial to the concerned individuals’ psychological well-being, the same cannot be said about the activity of playing violent video games.
Even though that both authors did succeed in presenting their line of argumentation in a thoroughly analytical manner, they nevertheless failed at understanding the simple fact that people are being primarily motivated to play video games for entertainment-related purposes and not for the purpose of becoming more educated.
Walker, Jesse. “Birth of a Medium.” Reason, vol. 35, no. 3, 2003, p. 57.
In his article, Walker aimed to expose the growing popularity of video games as such that has been predetermined by the very laws of history. Therefore, according to the author, it is specifically the lessened extent of some people’s intellectual advancement, which causes them to adopt a strongly defined negative attitude towards the activity of playing video games.
The Walker article’s foremost feature is the fact that, along with being thoroughly analytical, this article also represents a high rhetorical value. Moreover, the reading of Walker’s article reveals what may account for the discursive significance of video games in the future. This is the reason why I think this particular article should be recommended for reading by just about anyone who wants to gain a better understanding of the video games’ phenomenological essence.
Williams, Dmitri, et al. “Can you hear me now? The impact of voice in an online gaming community.” Human Communication Research, vol. 33, no. 4, 2007, pp. 427-449.
In their article, Williams et al. argued that people’s exposure to video games does teach them how to socialize. The authors explore the validity of this suggestion in regards to the fact that, as of today, the overwhelming majority of modern video games allow players to use voice, while communicating with each other.
In its turn, this naturally causes players to strengthen the integrity of their communicational skills. Given the fact that, while presenting readers with their line of argumentation, in this respect, William et al. had referred to a number of discursively relevant academic studies, their article’s conclusions can be considered scientifically legitimate.
Works Cited
Barlett, Christopher, et al. “Video Game Effects–Confirmed, Suspected, and Speculative: A Review of the Evidence.” Simulation & Gaming, vol. 40, no. 3, 2009, pp. 377-403.
De Lisi, Richard and Jenifer Wolford. “Improving Children’s Mental Rotation Accuracy with Computer Game Playing.” Journal of Genetic Psychology, vol. 163, no. 3, 2002, pp. 272-282.
Gentile, Douglas and Ronald Gentile. “Video Games as Exemplary Teachers: A Conceptual Analysis.” Journal of Youth and Adolescence, vol. 37, no. 2, 2008, pp. 127-141.
Golden, Bernard. Healthy Anger: How to Help Children and Teens Manage Their Anger. Oxford UP, 2003.
Green, Shawn and Daphne Bavelier. “Action Video Game Modified Visual Selective Attention.” Nature no. 423, 2003, pp. 534-537.
Griffith, Jerry, et al. “Differences in Eye-Hand Motor Coordination of Video-Game Users and Non-Users.” Perception and Motor Skills vol. 57, 1983, pp. 155–58.
Levin, Diane and Nancy Carlsson-Paige. “Marketing Violence: The Special Toll on Young Children of Color.” The Journal of Negro Education, vol. 72, no. 4, 2003, pp. 427-437.
Michael, David and Sandra Chen. Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform. Course Technology, 2005.
Walker, Jesse. “Birth of a Medium.” Reason, vol. 35, no. 3, 2003, p. 57.
Williams, Dmitri, et al. “Can you hear me now? The impact of voice in an online gaming community.” Human Communication Research, vol. 33, no. 4, 2007, pp. 427-449.