Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/48154 
Year of Publication: 
2011
Series/Report no.: 
ZEW Discussion Papers No. 11-042
Publisher: 
Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung (ZEW), Mannheim
Abstract: 
Psychological studies invariably find a positive relationship between violent video game play and aggression. However, these studies cannot account for either aggressive effects of alternative activities video game playing substitutes for or the possible selection of relatively violent people into playing violent video games. That is, they lack external validity. We investigate the relationship between the prevalence of violent video games and violent crimes. Our results are consistent with two opposing effects. First, they support the behavioral effects as in the psychological studies. Second, they suggest a larger voluntary incapacitation effect in which playing either violent or non-violent games decrease crimes. Overall, violent video games lead to decreases in violent crime.
Subjects: 
Video Games
Violence
Crime
JEL: 
D0
K14
L86
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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