GTA causes violence? & Question for parents. - The Grimm Train

[Mr. Grimm]

So, while I was playing GTA4 yesterday, driving on the sidewalk, running over hookers, a thought occured... Does Grand Theft Auto cause violence in the real world? Of course, I already have Intermittent Explosive Disorder, so there isn't much to make me more violent. But what do you guys think? I've been playing GTA for awhile and I don't think it's rubbed off on me any, I keep it all in the game.

 

There is an article explaining how an 8 year old murdered his grandmother, and it's blamed on GTA: http://guardianlv.com/2013/09/grand-theft-auto-drives-8-year-old-to-murder-his-grandmother/

 

As well, a question for parents or people pretending to be parents. Would you let your kids play GTA / At would age would it be acceptable for them to play?

 

~Mr. Grimm, The Grimm Train

[Vanaraud]

I think its like with any other medium(even books) and in the end it comes down to parenting. I mean I coulnd´t imagine reading for bedtime story some horror book, same applies to games also, isn´t healthy to introduce "Dead Space" as the first game ot kids. Comes to common sense and there are PRG ratings for it, no need to go down the "lets ban all medium containing any violence to all population" road. And when I´m talking about medium I don´t see a reason to differentiate books, movies or games.

There are lots of fun and not so violent games like pacman, supermario etc... Also there are challenging and educational games. I remember one which taught words with magical worm appearing and giving clues, don´t remember the name though, was 90s\early 2000 game. Was fun and challenging despite its simple nature.

[SunLight]

Cases of kids (accidentally or not) killing people probably existed long before videogames, just nobody talked about them.

I wouldn't let a little kid play with or watch something violent, but I think it's not enough to trigger violent behaviour without other factors.

 

Just because I played Doom I am not going to attack someone with a chainsaw, unless I am already crazy... lol even some old fairytales have some kind of violence in them.

 

Jack the ripper didn't play videogames I guess... I virtually killed tons of ppl in videogames and I wouldn't hurt a fly in real life, so imho it's just the usual pseudoscientific and overgeneralized bs you have in newspapers/web/tv/low quality books for morons etc.etc.

 

Today it's videogames, in the future it will be something else when videogames will be out of fashion or just because even 100yrs old researchers will have played them in their childhood.

 

If it's a factor I would say it's a small one. But that's what game ratings are for. If it's not for kids, don't let the kid play it.. as simple as that.

 

By the way, I bet my ballz that if he wasn't playing a game they would have said it was an accident or invented another story

[gibson66]

Old people always blame problems on things they don't understand. First it was comic books, then it was rock n roll, then it was metal, now it's video games. They speak from a position of ignorance. 

 

On a scientific note: you can't take one incident and say it's a pattern. You need to look at all the facts and specifically broad statistics that span generations. If there really has been a rise in violence among youths since the advent of video games and you can rule out all other potential factors (economic, environmental, psychological, etc.), than you can say with certainty that there is a correlation. Until then, you can't.

[=Death Hunter=]

Video games can be blamed for violence about as much as you can blame spoons for making people fat.

[BnBChumMaster]

Old people always blame problems on things they don't understand.

 

 

Same Old people said technology will kill us, well their right. I'm old and totally understand video games are not to blame. ya right......lol 

 

I'm still waiting for UFO's to land and freak out the religious people. Then its chaos!