So, social psychologist Albert Bandura performed a couple of experiments in the 1960s, and he proposed that aggressive behaviour can be learnt. Basically, in experimental group he had kids watch an adult physically and verbally assault a Bobo doll. Kids in control group watched an adult play with other toys while the Bobo doll was left untouched. Then, kids from both groups played with some toys from a different room, until they were no longer allowed (this was done to build up frustration). Instead they were offered to play with toys in a room, where the Bobo doll and some other toys were. The results concluded that kids in experimental group showed more aggressive behaviour towards the Bobo doll. In a different experiment he also concluded that aggressive behaviour can be learnt trough cartoons or movies. [Here’s](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobo_doll_experiment) a link to a more detailed explanation.
So my question is, how is it possible that there are apparently no newer and stronger links between violent games/movies and violent behaviour, especially since games/movies are getting more realistic?
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There are several aspects to consider here.
The first is that Bandura manipulated the groups in an odd way: that deprivation of toys for frustration is a weird step that may play a particular role in eliciting certain responses.
Secondly, watching an adult, who is an authoritative figure, act aggressively is not the same thing as playing a game on one’s own terms. Would Bandura have gotten similar results if the adults had thrown other toys around the room instead of simply directing their anger at the Bobo dolls?
Thirdly, TV and video games are different from a Bobo doll. They aren’t (primarily) a physical object to punch or kick, they are various types of software played on a console. This lends itself to certain physical actions and helps keep a barrier between the subject matter and what is real life. People that play fantasy video games aren’t presumed to think magic is real anymore than people that read the Lord of the Rings think Ents exist, why do we assume playing a game will make a person think they need to act the same way in real life?
Finally, to really test these barriers between real life and fake toys, a better experiment would have tried to see if the children were more likely to argue, yell, or fight with their peers instead of a Bobo doll. Essentially all this experiment did was show children *one way* they can vent energy and direct it at a safe inanimate object, a Bobo doll. The difficulties of designing an experiment like that illuminate part of the reason why TV and video games are just different: even kids know what fake is, and real attacks are unquestionably unethical.
This is somewhat open to speculation. My personal observation in people that I know who really like violent video games (but are some of the sweetest people I know irl) is that they are clearly aware of the fact that the violence in these games is no more harmful than the competition found in sports. Blood in gore in a game is simply not real, and it does not feel real. Meanwhile, witnessing real and genuine violence, as well as its outcomes (which are rarely depicted in violent games) could accustom a person to further real violence.
Banduras study was quite standardised and conducted on young, impressionable children. They were at an age where secondary socialization has just begun so are more prone to imitate these new behaviours. Most parents also teach children at a young age that violence is wrong so violent video games will do little to override something drilled into them from such an early age. This question came up in my psychology class and these were some of the arguments thrown around that I can remember, not sure how accurate they are but they made sense to me.
Oh, there have been so many studies on this. For an overview from the APA’s perspective, see https://www.apa.org/about/policy/violent-video-games
Violence in video games and TV seems too removed from the actual act to me. You can’t just twiddle your thumbs and have your enemies drop dead in front of you. You can’t just lay on your couch and eat popcorn to stop the evil empire. Even if your brain sees violence, this is what your body is learning.
There is a difference between seeing something play out in real life, even if the object of violence is not a real living thing (people are disturbed by violence against robots), and fantasy. We *know* that video-games are not real, therefore it doesn’t inform our actions nearly as much. Having said that, there is a de-sensitization effect that goes on AND people begin to mistake what real violence is for what they see in the movies. Neither of those are good things. Real violence is gritty and harsh while televised violence is glorified. If you actually portrayed violence in a realistic manner people wouldn’t watch your movie or play your game. If you portrayed sex the way it actually happens people would be bored by sex scenes.
TLDR – most humans are good at recognizing what is real and what is not
IMHO, The experiment was very different from movie-to-behavior link.
In experiment, young children see an adult play with a toy in a certain way, and then end up playing with same toy in the same way.
The way the child looks at an adult is very different from how a teen looks at character in movie or videogame. Playing with a toy is very different from acting in a real world, especially since Bobo doll is designed so it is fun to hit it, and it does not look like a human or animal.
There are also boring criticism of their scientific methods:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobo_doll_experiment#Criticisms
In the bobo experiment the person is observing violence. In video games a person is an active participant in violence.
I believe the key difference is the fact that it’s an adult (therefore a potential role model) making the aggression versus a video game creating an image of aggression.
Kids see an adult act violently, they see that it’s ok to do so in a real life scenario. Their role model did the action, so it must be fine!
On the other hand, even kids can tell the difference between a video game and real life. They know that the acts of aggression aren’t real, and they. certainly aren’t being conducted by a real role model.
This is not ELI5 in any way but you might be interested to look at Huessmann & Taylor (2006) review of behavioral studies like this. TLDR is: there’s a link between violence in games and tv and violence in real life. It’s real.
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