Video Games and Youth Violence: A Prospective Analysis in Adolescents

The potential influence of violent video games on youth violence remains an issue of concern for psychologists, policymakers
and the general public. Although several prospective studies of video game violence effects have been conducted, none have
employed well validated measures of youth violence, nor considered video game violence effects in context with other influences
on youth violence such as family environment, peer delinquency, and depressive symptoms. The current study builds upon previous
research in a sample of 302 (52.3% female) mostly Hispanic youth. Results indicated that current levels of depressive symptoms
were a strong predictor of serious aggression and violence across most outcome measures. Depressive symptoms also interacted
with antisocial traits so that antisocial individuals with depressive symptoms were most inclined toward youth violence. Neither
video game violence exposure, nor television violence exposure, were prospective predictors of serious acts of youth aggression
or violence. These results are put into the context of criminological data on serious acts of violence among youth.