Violent Video Games Cure Combat Stress?
By Andrew on Wednesday, August 8th, 2007 at 11:45 AM PST In Game Related Science, Gamer Life
War is hell, and apparently violent video games can help you deal with it. So the army is getting into it.
This is all according to an article on The Strategy Page, an obvious pro-military site which, oddly, does not cite any specific sources for the information. But if indeed it’s accurate, the army has been increasingly using violent video game to help soldiers deal with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, a common stress-related reaction to being in combat.
The article states that troops have been playing violent video games after going into combat to help them unwind, and it evidently helps them relax. And historically, soldiers have sought stressful entertainment to help them cope with the battles.
Assuming that violent video games successfully treat PTSD, it would help to open up a new way of dealing with and studying the psychological effects of violent video games. The traditional thinking is that there are certain children who are, without a doubt, psychologically unbalanced and should be kept away from violence. But maybe there’s a necessity in playing them which helps people deal with it.
This has been suggested many times before this article was published.
I think this is true. But i am no psychologist. Video games do help me releive stress. It gives my mind a challenge and allows me to get out frustrations in the game world, not in my everyday life. I dont enjoy realy violent games with gore, but i do enjoy War strategy games and fisrt person shooters. These are violent enough. The tactics and ability so unload a few rounds in someones head makes it worth it.
Could part of it be a reson why the solders are releived from stress because when they are exposed to violence in the game, its less tramatic when they see bad situations in there everyday life. if a person sees horrible images regularly it becomes less of a shock to see it after. Again i am no psychologist.
I think it may have to do with people facing their fears. Playing violent games kind of freaked me out a little after the shootings here at VT, but I have started to really get back into them.
In my experience, video games do help me relieve stress. When I got frustrated in the real world, I play strategy games. When I need someone to talk and no one is available to talk to me, I play MMORPG. Sometimes if I’m not in a mood to think or having a hard time to find a solution in my projects, I play strategy games to warm up my mind. I’m no psychologist also but video games does help.