Video games Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Video games - Essay Example Infamous events have created widespread debates regarding the negative consequences of video game violence. For example, a national discussion began regarding what connection video games may have had to the 1999 Columbine High School massacre. Though many motivations were likely involved, it is not reasonable to identify precisely what motivated these teenagers to shoot their schoolmates and teachers but violent video games were mentioned as a contributing reason. With enhanced realism and the increasing tendency towards greater amounts of graphic aggression in games, people who play violent video games should be educated to the possible consequences. When video games first appeared around 35 years ago, they were simple and seemingly harmless. Atari introduced Pong during the 1970’s, a video game version of table tennis. Arcade games such as Pac-Man and Asteroids were popular in the 1980’s. The seemingly harmless nature of video games noticeably evolved to cartoon-like ghost chomping to blatant violence in the 1990’s. Mortal Kombat, the most popular game of 1993, featured accurate portrayals of human-like characters fighting bloody battles. The purpose of the player in the game, as the name suggests, was to kill the enemy. Violent games even more brutal than Mortal Kombat dominate the video game market today. Near the end of that 1980’s, a study tested 33 of Sega and Nintendo’s most popular video games determined nearly 80 percent were violent. (Dietz, 1998). The study also revealed that a troubling one-fifth of the games portrayed violence towards women. It has also been demonstrated that playing violent video games encourages the tendency of experiencing hostile thought patterns by means of the ‘semantic priming process.’ Current studies reveal that hostile behaviors occur during controlled studies using independent scientific methods and in daily life circumstances as well. The playing of violent video games un questionably was associated with an increase of violent behavior. Other studies were conducted which considered the video game patterns of university students throughout their four year career which demonstrated that when in a normal, dorm-room surroundings, playing violent video games over a four year period was the initiating factor in incidences of aggressive behavior. This increase happened, not just when playing of the game but during other aspects of their lives too. Both studies revealed that violent video games negatively affected a person’s current emotional condition and increases feelings of hostility. The similar findings of these studies give added credibility to the contention that exposure to violent video games promotes aggressive behavior. Though the inclination for increased violent behaviors cannot be scientifically proven on the basis of two studies, this evidence corroborates the results of similar research. (Calvert & Tan, 1994). When playing a video gam e that uses ‘first person’ interaction, the player typically chooses a character whose personality the player identifies with. By manipulating the action of their character a player usually tries to visualize the game from their character’s perspective. The player ‘becomes’ that character, which enhances the players enjoyment of the game. Anyone who has seen two teen boys, or their fathers, playing video games has witnessed them envisioning they are the character that they are controlling. The second rationale entails the

Evidence Base Practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Evidence Base Practice - Essay Example Evidence based practice refers to straight utilization of the results of scientific research findings to professional practice (Wall, 2008). The adaptation of this method plays a milestone in the history of nursing because through evidence-based nursing practice, nursing will no longer be deemed as a practice based on instincts but will rather a practice backed up with scientific studies that imply steps and procedures that are evidently proven to be effective obtained from the actual phases of study. Embracing Innovations The application of evidence-based practice paves way for a more rational decision making. It presents a basis for a nursing action to be executed. Prior to its integration in the nursing process, nurses must first be completely aware regarding evidence-based practice and the importance of its use. A collaborative effort to solicit adoption of evidence-based practice is in effect presently (Wall, 2008). In a study by Chang et al. (2011), knowledge, skill perception and attitude of nurses regarding evidence-based practice were determined. The study involved nurses from two public hospitals in Singapore which garnered responses from three fourth of the staff census (Chang et. al., 2011). Most of the respondents claimed that they possess moderate skills in terms of research (Chang et. al., 2011). ... As always, with the introduction of change in the conventional methods, it is questioned and opposed by several views. The introduction of something new cannot be totally coined as innovation without challenges and barriers. In his book, Cody (2006) implied the aspect of subjectivity and individuality of the nursing process. He stated the â€Å"nurse-person process† wherein he emphasized that the practice itself cannot be guided by evidence alone. There are certain factors prior to that decision making, like values and principles (Cody, 2006). On the contrary, the study of Chang et al. (2011) focused on resolvable issues like inadequate resources for research. It will be an imperative for hospitals and facilities to establish well equipped libraries and to provide staff opportunities for enhancement of their research skills. The study reflected the positivity of nurses to do research; however, it also highlighted the awareness that there is not enough understanding of statisti cal knowledge in research (Chang, et al., 2011). Assimilation into Practice Evidence-based practice has become a dominant method of thinking in the past two decades (Wall, 2008). Several of the conventional methods used by nurses ten years ago are found to be not applicable anymore overtime due to a number of statistical and factual researches. If given adequate literature and source of valid researches, nurses can start integrating these studies into the practice (Chang, et al., 2011). The main key point in incorporation of evidence into practice is for the nurses to be adept in gathering and analyzing statistical data from researches. As a nurse the integration of evidence based nursing practices is important especially in