Institute for Social Research

Effects of Violent Video Games on Aggressive Behavior, Helping Behavior, Aggressive Thoughts, Angry Feelings, and Physiological Arousal

Violent video games exert a measurable negative influence on human behavior and psychological states.

• Exposure to violent video games consistently correlates with increased aggressive behavior and a measurable reduction in prosocial, helping behaviors.
• The findings are based on a meta-analysis of 85 distinct studies, confirming that these psychological impacts affect both children and adults across all genders.
• A dose-response relationship exists where the intensity of depicted violence directly correlates with the strength of the observed aggressive thoughts, angry feelings, and physiological arousal.