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Nicko Mabanta
Professor Rodrick
English 115
29 September 2018
As technology improve over time, it helps us in many ways. Online calendars helps us
organize our schedules everywhere, online payments make paying bills more convenient, and
online documents reduce paper use. Video games reduce boredom and let players interact and
play with or against other players through wireless servers. Technology has also improved our
health. X-ray machines, ultrasound, MRI, and CT scanners help doctors in diagnosis, medicine
cures our illnesses, and vaccines keep us protected from diseases. Technology is both convenient
and necessary in our lives. While technology makes our lives much easier and more convenient,
it also shapes us in a bad way through video games. Video games can increase aggression,
change the way our brain functions, which results in addiction, and reduce physical activity and
Shooting games, racing games, fighting games, and sport games are some of the types of
games that involve competition. If a player loses a game to another player or computer, it can
cause frustration or even anger. Players feel this way because they feel that they have no control
over the outcome of the game. Paul Adachi, author of the article “The Association Between
Competitive Video Game Play and Aggression Among Adolescents and Young Adults,” believes
that exposure to competitive video games for long periods of time can increase aggressive
behavior. Adachi States, “Playing competitive games… may lead to elevations in trait levels of
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aggressive affect, and in turn, people with elevated trait levels of aggressive affect may be more
likely to behave aggressively.” Adachi’s point is that if a person plays a competitive game for a
long period of time, he/she will have a more aggressive affect. Once the aggressive affect
becomes elevated, it will eventually result to an aggressive behavior. For example, if a player
gets killed in a shooter game, the player may become frustrated. If that same player gets killed
over and over again, it would cause the player to rage and probably shout obscenities to the
player who killed him. This aggressive affect also applies to non violent competitive games. For
example, if another player bumps you and made you spin out in a racing game, that player would
be very angry. This kind of situation happened to me too. I was in the first place in a racing
game. There was a slow corner ahead, so I naturally had to brake. The other player behind me
decided to not brake at all. My car went off the road because of the hit, and it make me really
angry. Non competitive video games, such as puzzles, story driven, and platform, can also cause
aggressive behavior but not as much as competitive games. Adachi said “Consistent with the
induce anger and hostility than noncompetitive video games, because only competitive games
involve the threat of deliberate goal blocking from one's opponents (e.g., other vehicles trying to
overtake the player in a race), which may feel like a personal attack. Aggressive behavior caused
by video games can negatively shape one’s identity because not only it makes the player behave
Video games can be addicting. If someone plays video games most of the time, that
person could become addicted. Repetitive use of video games can change the way someone
thinks. The article “GAME OVER: HOW VIDEO GAMES AFFECT A CHILD’S BRAIN AND
BEHAVIOR” by Vibrant Life explains how video games can manipulate a child to become
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addicted. “When we pursue a hard-won goal, the brain is flooded with dopamine, the reward
neurochemical, and serotonin, the self-confidence neurochemical.” These chemicals in our brain
are the sources of our happiness and satisfaction. The problem with this is that video games only
give children small amounts of dopamine and serotonin. “The desire for more quick, pleasurable
hits of dopamine and serotonin and unlimited access to gaming ultimately primes the brain for
addiction.” In other words, children will want more and more small doses of serotonin and
dopamine by playing video games because it makes them feel happy. Dopamine and serotonin
can be obtained in many ways. You could go on a hike, go to amusement parks, play with
friends, watch movies, go on a date, eat your favorite food, or play mini golf. These types of
activities makes us feel happy, and we want to feel happy. However, these activities are not
easily accessible. Hiking takes time, amusement parks cost money, friends might always be
available to play, movies cost money, dating costs money, and mini golf cost money. If we don’t
do these types of activities, our dopamine and serotonin levels will go down. Video games,
however, is easily accessible. Easy access to video games keeps our serotonin and dopamine
levels from going down. It works the same way as alcohol or drugs. When someone drinks
alcohol or uses drugs, they will become psychologically dependent to that alcohol or drug. They
think that they need to drink more alcohol or use more drugs because if they don’t, they will not
feel good. Video games can shape one’s identity in a bad way by manipulating their brain and
Video games can also shape our identities literally. When someone plays video games all
of the time, his/her personal time of interaction with the world is greatly reduced. Gamers would
often skip any physical activity, sleep, and even human to human interactions. This means that
the amount of sleep is reduced also. As they play more and more video games, their personal
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time will be reduced more because video games steals that time. Reduced physical activity and
sleep can cause someone to become overweight or obese. This kind of situation happened to me
too. I used to run and play outside when I was a kid. Then, my parents bought me a gaming
console. As I play more and more video games, my time to play outside has been replaced by
video games. Because of that, my physical activity is greatly reduced also, and I soon became
overweight. However, I have corrected myself and restricted my time to play video games to
make up for any physical activity that I lost. I’m not overweight anymore. Targeted News
Service’s article, “Can Video Games Make Adolescents Obese?,” believes that video games can
cause obesity through lack of sleep. The article states, “links between video game addiction and
reduced sleep, and from sleep to obesity and its associated metabolic issues were found. This
may manifest itself as elevated blood pressure, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high
triglycerides and high insulin resistance ... that can lead to heart disease, hardening of the arteries
and diabetes.” In other words, video game addiction can reduce sleep, and lack of sleep can
cause obesity. There is no direct link between video game addiction and obesity. You can’t
become obese by playing video games, however, video game addiction can cause lack of sleep,
While technology can make our lives more convenient and safe, it can also shape us
badly through video games. Video games can shape us to become aggressive, addicted,and
obese. Repeatedly losing to a competitive video game match can cause aggressive behavior.
Video games make our brains want more and more serotonin and dopamine, causing addiction.
And, video games can reduce sleep, which is linked to obesity. Although video games can be fun
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and interactive, they can cause aggressive behavior, addiction, and obesity.
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Works Cited
"GAME OVER: HOW VIDEO GAMES AFFECT A CHILD'S BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR."
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A547989021/ITOF?u=csunorthridge&sid=ITOF&xid
Adachi, Paul JC, and Teena Willoughby. “The Longitudinal Association Between Competitive
Video Game Play and Aggression Among Adolescents and Young Adults.” Child
Development., vol. 87, no. 6, 2016, pp. 1877–1892. Accessed 21 Sept. 2018.
"Can Video Games make Adolescents Obese?" Targeted News Service, May 18, 2016.
ProQuest,
http://libproxy.csun.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1789708999?acc
“The Real Story About Video Game Addiction.” Ashwood Recovery Blog, 8 Nov. 2017,