In Praise of the Anecdote or Gaming for Columbine

Abstract

The issue in media studies that concerns me the most is the way in which evidence is marshaled to support claims about games that are fundamentally flawed. Media studies is no stranger to the debates over media effects, and violence and fears about games seems to be particularly acute. Media psychologists are in rough agreement that games are bad for you and cause things like “increased physiological arousal” and “aggressive thoughts” and “aggressive emotions”. Cultural critics contend that most of these studies miss critical insights about media consumption, the transgressive nature of play, and the cultural context of gaming. Indeed, when these things are carefully accounted and rigorously controlled for, the negative effects of videogame violence seem to evaporate. The issue, I contend, is more about methodology than it is about content. And those methodological concerns have everything to do with how we approach game studies in the future.