Media Violence Research Needs to Look Ahead, Not Back: Commentary on Anderson, Bushman, Donnerstein, Hummer, and Warburton (2015)

Abstract

Given that media violence is still a heated debate (and that “motivated science reception” is likely to occur in such debates), reviews like the present one are very helpful. One noteworthy aspect of the present review is that it looks ahead and suggests useful pathways for parents, policy-makers, and the media industry. In all of these pathways, researchers play a key role. Media researchers should now focus on the wealth of research questions that the evolution of (violent and nonviolent) media, especially video games, has opened up.