Do videogames cause violence? : investigating the views of the Maltese population

Abstract

The debate on whether violence in videogames is a causation for real violent behaviour and crime has been on the forefront of news media and academic research for the past 40 years, with an abundance of academic literature debating whether this is the case or not. Research proving that videogames are a causation of real violence cite Bandura’s Social Learning Theory and the General Aggression Model as the basis for this argument. While much experimental research claim in establishing a causation between videogames and violence, other research shows no relationship between videogames and real violence. Scholars even criticise how publication bias in videogame violence causation research skew results to show a possible causation where there is none, or completely exclude results with no proof of any causation. While research on media use does exist, little to no research explores the societal lay understandings on this alleged causation of violence by videogames. This research aims to bridge the gap by exploring the Maltese perceptions on the subject.