Do Video Games Cause Violence? Psychologists Provide New Report On Latest Evidence

The American Psychological Association’s latest report reaffirmed the organization’s stance that there isn’t enough evidence to prove a “causal link” between violent video games and real world violence.

The association released its new report Tuesday after the governing Council of Representatives “seated a task force” to reevaluate its report from August 2015 on video game violence. It was done because of instances where “media or policymakers have cited that resolution as evidence that violent video games are the cause of violent behavior, including mass shootings.”

“Violence is a complex social problem that likely stems from many factors that warrant attention from researchers, policymakers and the public,” said APA President Sandra L. Shullman, PhD. “Attributing violence to video gaming is not scientifically sound and draws attention away from other factors, such as a history of violence, which we know from the research is a major predictor of future violence.”

However, the original 2015 report was amended with a new warning about some aggressive behavior.

“There is a small and reliable relationship between violent video game exposure and aggressive outcomes,” the updated report said. Examples of these “aggressive outcomes” included yelling or pushing, but it was hard to connect these behaviors to “more violent outcomes.”

Video games have been a regular target of government officials and parent groups that blame video game violence for instances of real world violence, especially with mass shootings.

President Trump has been a vocal critic of the “level of violence in video games,” especially after the Parkland Shooting in 2018. In an effort to find a connection, he set up a federal commission in June 2018 to investigate the alleged link between violent media and shootings. However, the commission had little to say on the alleged connection, instead citing how the Entertainment Software Ratings Board rating system was one of the more effective ratings systems in the entertainment industry.