Jelford Doc

What are the effects of computer games on student's academic performance? There are already a lot of computer games emerging, technology just grows... But then, more and more students are playing computer games, I just wonder how it could really affect their studies... In general, it can... but it really depends on the individual. A personal example: When I was in undergrad back in 89-93 (yes, the days before the internet), our campus had a server that was the host for a text based Multiple User Dungeon game. People logged in worldwide to play. The other nickname that MUD was explained in was the Multiple Undergraduate Destroyer... because of students getting so caught up in playing that they would let their coursework slide and end up failing out. A lot of my friends played to varying degrees, and I did know some that did end up failing out. I finally agreed to play and see what all this fuss was about and could a video game really be that bad (yes, it was the psych major in me). In one semester, I went from a brand new player to the highest level a regular player could obtain (apart from advancing to actually programming a section of the game as a writer) and I got a 4.0 that semester. I think individually it comes down to time management and priorities. If you make priority for studying and important things and game time as a fun extra you get to when the important stuff is done... you can schedule in game time and still do well with both. It's when game time is placed on the higher priority and academics is at the bottom that students start to get into trouble.

Violent Video Games Leading to Aggressive Behavior and Poor Academic Performance: The same old media effects saw, or is there really something too this? The thrust of the readings on video games was that the practice or participation in violent video games leads to increased aggressive behavior and lower academic performance especially among men. These are the findings set forth most strongly by Anderson and Dill in their article, “Video Games,

Aggressive Affect, and Cognition.‿ However, the meta analysis conducted by Lee and Peng, also points in that direction. The major caveat that I would like to put forward is that the number of research studies published on the effects of violent video games is rather thin and thus we should wait for additional research before we make definitive conclusions about this particular type of media. Anderson and Dill certainly frame their article strongly in the major effects camp by beginning their article with a story about the Columbine killers and their obsession with a particular type of video game. The question related to these killers and about media violence studies in general is that it is clear that these killers were obsessed with the game, but their pathological behavior suggests that they would have been inspired by something else had it not been for videogames. I guess you could say these games presented a certain type of opportunity. I want to turn from aggression to academic performance. The Anderson and Dill study showed that long term exposure/playing of video games had an impact on academic performance. That impact was negative. Here, I would like to ask the question about whether these gamers would have found some other diversion, e.g., television, if it had not been for video games? Long term exposure to any diversionary activity at a high level will hurt academic performance and gaming is just one of them. How about long-term exposure to the Internet in general? We have seen those “effects.‿ Again, video games is just a means to an end. Sorry for the cliché. I have my own ideas about what violent video games could possibly do to minimize rather than increase violence, but I’m not at all convinced of its effectiveness, especially without the research to test my hypothesis. My idea is not a new one, but rather one put forth by others, including Anderson and Dill and that is the cathartic effect of video games. I argue, as do they, that by participating in violent video games, you are diffusing or minimizing the probability that the gamer would engage in a violently aggressive act. The games would act as a safety valve, as such, to the player.

This active participation in a “virtual‿ and “artificial‿ violent act is in contrast to the more passive viewing of violent acts in television and movies. For those who view violence on television or in the movies, do so passively. Perhaps the rage of viewing the image builds up and/or the programming gives permission to take violent action. Thus making them more likely to act out. But who acts out? Is it a significant proportion of the population? No. Have their numbers increased since the introduction of violent video games? I’m not sure. My point is violence attributed to either television or video is rather limited at this time. Lee and Peng talk state that viewing violent video games leads to a short term aggressive phenomenon. Anecdotally, after my son finishes playing with this WWE wrestling video game, he takes on the personality of the wrestler, miming their moves and pretending his younger sister is a fellow WWE wrestler. He also becomes belligerent for about 15 minutes, then calms down. He does not and is not allowed to play any of the violent games that are out on the market. Henry Jenkins points out in his Senate testimony that banning specific media images will have little or no impact on the problem of youth crime. “…because doing so gets at symbols, not at the meaning these symbols carry and not at the social reality that gives such urgency to teens’ investment in those cultural materials.‿ This supports my earlier point about the pathology. While this is rather rambling, I’d like to conclude by stating that the evidence seems to point that there is potential for widespread aggressive behavior and poor performance as a result of playing the games, but it is still a great deal of research that remains to be done. To those of you who are gamers, please tell me why you play, what has been your reaction to playing violent games as well as sexually oriented games ? Finally, why are violent video games so strongly oriented toward males rather than females? Are males more aggressive in general? Perhaps. Do they have greater animal archetypal fears and constantly need to be challenged to

overcome them? The games seem to be a cartoon caricature of reality? It points to a misogynist world where males rule the world to the point of excluding most of the women who might be minimally interesting. To me this is akin to other male rebellion movements like “Hardcore‿ punk music.

Posted by NotthatKen on November 25, 2006 12:21 AM | Permalink

Comments (3) y39: The catharsis hypothesis is a part of one of my favorite ASC moments: Dr. Cappella taking Jib Fowles book on TV, violence, and catharsis systematically apart. In fact, I'm pretty sure Dr. Cappella only assigned the book so that he could shred it. Basically, his point is: thousands of studies of TV violence have been done and, cumulatively, 99% seem to find evidence of deleterious effect while only 1% show catharsis. At some point, you just have to accept the cultivation, negative effects perspective. I agree, to some extent, that if catharsis really existed it would've been more apparent--but that doesn't mean I accept the alternative. For catharsis to exist, violent urges must exist as well. In contrast, for TV/videogames/media to cause violence, more evidence than some pupil dilation is necessary as well. Basically, it sort of seems like a whole lot of malarkey--not to say that media have no effect. Certainly, people derive certain, different outcomes from playing Doom than they do from playing the piano. But to pinpoint violent or anti-social tendencies on a media message? Missing the big picture... Posted by y39 | November 26, 2006 8:57 PM

Posted on November 26, 2006 20:57 NotthatKen:

I've heard Cappella on catharsis, too. He always laughs when he tears apart other theories. I know the evidence is weak on that one. But I threw it out there for some reaction. Posted by NotthatKen | November 26, 2006 9:32 PM

Posted on November 26, 2006 21:32 Y14: I agree with your statements that “video games is just a means to an end.” And I want to add: video games are not so effective means to an end. That is, the relationship between games and performance must be scrutinized under two perspectives: (1) the effectiveness of games and the other means; (2) longterm vs. short-term. I do not know much about the concrete results, but I am pretty sure games are not more effective both in short-term and long-term period. If this is true, why do researchers try to find out the (positive) effects of games that are minimal? In the case of violent games, no or limited effects of violence/aggressiveness does not mean we do not have to regulate the game contents. Small effects or potential (not existing) effects can influence the society. If there is true (even small) relationship between violent contents and violent actions, the social consequences cannot be simply neglected because even small scale of violent actions do kill or do hurt real people. Posted by Y14 | November 27, 2006 12:39 PM

Posted on November 27, 2006 12:39

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Students blame Internet, TV for poor grades By KIMONE THOMPSON Observer senior reporter [email protected] Thursday, October 30, 2008

MORE than 60 per cent of second form students at Glenmuir High school in Clarendon blame a preoccupation with media devices, particularly computers and televisions, for their average academic performance. This is according to research conducted by upper sixth former Tsahai Thomas, 17, between October 2007 and January this year which showed that when it came to academic performance, exactly half of the 30 students who participated got averages of between 70 and 79 per cent on their last report cards. Those who got above average grades (80-89 per cent) totalled 13, while two got between 60 and 69 per cent.

Seventeen-year-old Tsahai Thomas of Glenmuir High is the Outstanding Child Researcher for 2008.

"All the students received passing averages but the majority of them were merely performing at the average level. Less preoccupation with the media could have alleviated this," the researcher said.

Her conclusion was based on patterns brought out by the study which was titled: 'Does preoccupation with the media affect the academic achievement of second form students at Glenmuir High School?' It showed that for 76.1 per cent of 24 respondents aged 12-14, the most popular use of the Internet was to play online games, send e-mails and instant messages, participate in chatrooms and surf entertainment sites. Only 23.8 per cent said they used the Internet for doing homework. The longest time spent doing homework on any given day was between one and two hours while the longest spent watching TV was more than four. "The majority of the students confessed that they thought that the media was a hindrance to their academic performance," she added, pointing to the 63.3 per cent who said they thought so. In order to bring grades to above average levels and to reduce TV and Internet time, Thomas recommends an incorporation of media devices into the learning process and sustained monitoring by parents of the time students spend using the devices. The research paper, which was one of eight presented by high school students at the third annual Caribbean Child Research Conference at the

Jamaica Pegasus last week, won Tsahai the title of Outstanding Child Researcher 2008. She also took the prizes for best methodology and best written paper. Among her prizes were a laptop computer and a mobile phone. Schoolmate Janeth Diggs-White was awarded best oral presentation for her paper on the effects of early sexual relations on the social behaviour of sixth formers at Glenmuir while Colin Banton of Balaclava High walked away the top male presenter. His work looked at some effects of poverty on the rights of the child. The theme of the conference this year was 'Promoting child rights through research: Building a region fit for children'. It is an annual two-day event.

Rock star glory: Guitar Heroes and academic failures EVAN HOLT - Arts & Life Editor

Video gaming anonymous: for some students, video games become an addiction that hinder grades.

The clicks and booms students hear coming from adjacent dorm rooms and apartments at all hours aren't the sounds of a pen-wielding student on the brink of a psychotic episode after remembering that they have a major exam the next day. Rather, it's one of many students diligently embroiled in a fierce battle to achieve rock stardom glory in Guitar Hero III. While a 1,000-note streak in Guitar Hero is impressive, a greater achievement is found when a self-proclaimed rock star knows how to strike a balance between work and play so that their academic performance goes unharmed. This feat is rare for students addicted to video gaming. According to the National College Health Assessment conducted by UB during Spring 2007, 18 percent of a 2,000-student sample responded that Internet use or computer games negatively affect their individual academic performance. "College students are at a higher risk of becoming addicted to video games due to increased access to the Internet and unrestricted free time," said Marla McBride, assistant director of Health Promotion and Risk Reduction for Wellness Education Services. Addiction can be defined as having an uncontrollable urge to do a particular behavior, accompanied by a loss of control and continued use, despite personal and social consequences, McBride said.

"Based on the literature I've read, there is still controversy as to the element of addictiveness in video gaming," McBride said. "It appears to me that there would be a lack of physical addiction and more of a focus on the psychological motivations behind excessive online game use." Like video gaming itself, the science involved in researching gaming addiction is still young, with very little known about the psychological and physical addictive components of video game use, according to McBride. In 1998, 58 percent of students were found to have suffered from poor study habits, low grades, or have failed in school due to excessive Internet use, according to research done by internationally recognized psychologist Dr. Kimberly Young. According to Young, possible triggers of gaming addiction include free and unlimited Internet access, huge blocks of unstructured time, newly experienced freedom from parental control, and no monitoring or censoring, as well as full encouragement from schools to use technology that can ultimately be abused. Excessive video game use could possibly obstruct the pursuit of academic excellence as well as decrease motivation for students, according to Young. "There was one time [I was playing] Halo 3 where I skipped class, but that was it," said Robert Schenkel, a sophomore undecided major. "If you give into the game, you dumb yourself down, but if you know how to control yourself, you'll be okay." According to Schenkel, who on average plays about 4-5 hours on the weekdays and around 67 hours a day on the weekend, gaming serves as both a social networking skill and stress reducer. "I play [video games] with friends to relieve stress, primarily academic stress," Schenkel said. "I almost had a 3.0 GPA playing video games and doing work this semester, so it's fair to say I know how to balance my time." Michael Lamb, a junior undecided major, believes there is such a thing as video gaming addiction, which includes certain risks for the addicted. "Excessive gaming, similar to alcohol or drugs, can hinder academic performance if there is no clear distinction between time to work and play," Lamb said. "I feel anything that can be used as an escape from outside stressors can be cause for addiction." Whether video gaming has physically or mentally addictive components is still up for debate. However, in regards to the use of video games, potentially addictive agents such as drugs could share a similar purpose for means of recreational use or coping, according to McBride. "You can compare [gaming] to the need of escapism," McBride said. "I would compare gaming more to gambling than substance abuse. There's reinforcement through intermittent rewards and an element of competition between players." Some video gaming can have physical consequences on those who abuse them. According to the New England Journal of Medicine, gaming, and in particular, using a Nintendo Wii, can lead to actual physical pain and sore muscles. The physical symptoms caused by overuse have been

given the names "Nintendinitis" and "Wiiitis." A combination of excess playing and gamers who are out of shape are believed to be the cause for such injuries. Coupled with the possibility of physical pain comes the more realistic threats of loss of motivation and sleep deprivation due to excessive gaming and other things that prevent a student from effectively finishing their work, according to Lamb. Lamb has experienced some of these physical and psychological effects, but does not attribute them to excessive time spend behind a controller. "I have an inconsistent sleep rhythm, but I don't attribute it to gaming," Lamb said. "Sometimes I want to watch Star Trek and don't want to go to sleep."