'Violent video games lead to health related behavior' - Study

Krish Apr 11 2006

Grand Theft Auto III

Young men after spending good amount of time playing violent video games are likely to think that it's quite okay to smoke marijuana or drink alcohol. Brady and her colleague Dr. Karen A. Matthews at the University of Pittsburgh after conducting a study on the phenomenon found out that excessive exposure to violent video games negatively effect health related behavior.

the simpsons hit and run

The researchers have studied a group of 100 undergraduates who are aged between 18 and 21 who either have been playing Grand Theft Auto III or The Simpsons: Hit and Run consistently.

In the Simpsons game, players took the role of Homer Simpson and their task was to deliver daughter Lisa's science project to school before it could be marked late. In Grand Theft Auto III, players took the role of a criminal, and were instructed by the Mafia to beat up a drug dealer with a baseball bat.

The study has said that playing violent video games boosted respondents' blood pressure and left more serious effect on those who have come from more violent families or communities.

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