Literature Review

Literature Review

The subject of this essay is computer games and the violence associated with it. Computer games have often been associated with an increase in aggressive tendencies in players of games encouraging violence and have been linked to crimes as severe as murder. There have been many studies that investigate why such violence happens and they have generally found that people who play video games with violent content are generally more aggressive individuals than those who do not.

The sources associated with this essay are generally investigative papers that reflect the results of experiments used to determine whether or not violent games do exacerbate human violence. There are those that suggest that the gamer is fuelled by a desire to see the plot of the game through to the end, creating an addiction [Selfe, 2007)] while others suggest that increased user input increases violent tendencies [Markey, 2009]. There have been contradictions to the latter however [Williams & Skoric, 2005] but there have usually been notable differences between one investigation and another; for example the type of game used. The only real exception to using an investigation as a research method is to obtain a personal experience of the life of a gamer and report on the ground level [Hattenstone, 2009].

There may be a general bias in favour of computer games contributing to the violence of minors because of both the content of the game and the addictiveness of such games and the effects it has on people. The plan is to study the aspects of different game types to conclude whether gaming violence increases teenager aggression.

Reference:

(Dmitri Williams & Marko Skoric) Communication Monographs Vol. 72, No. 2, , pp. 217–June 2005. 233 Internet Fantasy Violence: A Test of Aggression in an Online Game. [Online]

Available at http://dmitriwilliams.com/CMWilliamsSkoric.pdf [Accessed 18 October 2009]

Selfe, Cynthia L,. 2007,. Gaming Lives in the Twenty-First Century. [E-Book] New York: Palgrave.

Available at University Library/Digital Library/e-books http://libweb.anglia.ac.uk/E-books

[Accessed 18 October 2009]

Markey, Patrick M., 2009. An examination of psychoticism and motion capture controls as moderators of the effects of violent video games. Computers in Human Behavior, March, v25 i2, p407(5)

Hattenstone, H., 2009. Weekend: Teenage kicks: What do we really know about Britain's teen boys beyond all the negative headlines?

The Guardian

From My Mind Map ...

From my mind map, I can draw a conclusion that computer gaming-related violence has no specific catalyst but is rather a culmination of several things composed by both the game(s) played by the gamer and issues affecting the gamer themselves; mainly whatever makes them so dependent on computer games and what they get from it. I am aiming my essay away from the gamer side to lean more on the game itself. I will attempt to find out why modern games can be so violent. My question is:

'Computer Games: Does Excessive Violence Sell A Title?'

Mind Map of My Essay

Reflection on my VARK Questionnaire

After examining my results on the questionnaire, I discovered that I am a strong visual learner. Essentially, this means that I benefit more from learning through diagrams or graphs than I would though any other learning process such as aural, where people listen to something being said. I also tend to be loud and at times annoying. I do not believe this to be true of me; given my quiet nature.

Personally, I am not surprised by these results as I did a similar test in college, where I obtained the same result. However, I do not believe that it reflects my true learning personality. I believe that I prefer different styles based on the subject being taught. For example, in school I preferred have the kinesthetic touch-and-feel approach to things like science and physical education because I found it quite hard to follow the formulae and diagrams on those subjects. In mathematics, I actually liked the aural approach, where I was able to do each sum step by step based on the instructions of the teachers.

Because I prefer to learn through visual aids, I do not enjoy the reading and writing styles of learning as much as other people would. In order to get around this difficulty, I am just going to have to do everything I can to keep myself focused on reading. A lot of work I do during my time at university will be referenced by any sort of source. Therefore, it is important to find the right bit of information and cite my source appropriately. I think that having the right external influence, such as listening to music could help me move past my learning problems.

Daniel Foucher's SWOT Analysis

Strengths

Being a university student allows you got get ahead of a lot of the competition on the future job market. Having a degree shows that you are a very hard worker prepared to give up a lot of your own time in order to see something through to the end. This trait is highly valued by employers of all companies.

The university will test my common knowledge and mental skill unlike any previous educational undertaking. Before now, I have found work in educational establishments relatively easy. Even if I do not pass the course, I will leave the university knowing that I have been challenged to a sufficient level and I can learn from this experience alone.

I am also a well organised person. I can take note of deadlines and attempt to stick to them as much as I can. I try to prepare for events such as lectures beforehand by gathering up sufficient equipment and arriving earlier than scheduled to make sure that I am on time.

I like to see myself as a good mediator in conflicts. I’m a good listener and possessive of an open mind; because of this, I can voice an even and unbiased opinion on just about any topic. This can also work in reverse that I am hardly offended by a person’s social standing or religious views or anything that might force individuals to have second opinions about certain people’s traits or beliefs.

I am also proficient at note taking and have a high amount of self-awareness or conscience.

Weaknesses

Perhaps my biggest weakness is that fact that I am extremely socially introverted. I find it hard to initiate conversations or even maintain a normal flow of dialogue. This could hinder the progress of group work, especially a module that may require a lot of communication among the peers of the group for whatever reason.

I have low-self esteem and confidence. This can hurt not just my progress in modules but also my happiness at other parts of the university and my life in general.

I tend to bottle up my problems and emotions and the resulting stress of it can affect me to the point where I become a different person. This will most certainly stop me from achieving the grades I need because of the effects of this stress.

Opportunities

The experience I gain from doing the work set for me in university will help me cope with the level of work expected from paid jobs, especially those in an IT environment.

I hope that being at university will allow me to boost my lacklustre social skills by asking for help or even just saying hello to people.

It may seem like a pettier opportunity, but having access to a cheap gym should allow me to gain some more self-confidence.

Threats

As I commute to university, I need to make sure that it does not interfere with my attendance.

As I have a physically-intensive extra-curricular activity, I need to make sure that it does not cause me physical injury to the point where I cannot attend the university.

Reflection on my Learning Experiences

I have many experiences outside of learning outside of schools on my learning line. I believe that this because school cannot teach you everything and there are some things you need to find out in other ways. For example, I consider the Sea Scouts a great learning experience because even though I was in primary school at the time, it taught me a lot of valuable life skills such as raising a tent or the most basic of survival skills. After this, while I was still in primary school, the annual District Athletics tournaments showed me a strong competitive instinct first-hand. It also spoke to me about losing and how to take those defeats. Perhaps this alone is the most important thing that I learned before secondary school. Gifted and Talented Summer Schools held in my secondary school really pushed my learning boundaries and as well as raise awareness of problems on a massive picture such as global warming, it became the first real test of how much I know and what I can do in a given day. Overall, it is my opinion that school can teach me so much but the best lessons are learned outside of it.