Checkpoints

The science of video gaming.

Christopher J. Ferguson Ph.D.

Peter the Not-So-Great Father

On Father's Day, let's celebrate good dads, by considering the case of one of the worst dads ever.

Six Acts of Skullduggery in the Technology Debate

Want to make people frightened of technology but don't have good evidence? Here's how to get around that small problem.

Did Louis XVI Lose His Head Over a Hunting Addiction?

Did Louis XVI's "addiction to hunting" lead to the French Revolution? Or does his example suggest we need to rethink our modern conceptualization of addiction altogether?

Reevaluating Internet Gaming Disorder

The American Psychiatric Association and World Health Organization have moved forward with diagnoses pathologizing heavy video game play. But is it the right thing to do?

False Links Between Screen Time and Cognitive Development

A new study claimed that screen time is associated with cognitive delays in young children. But does the evidence really support such claims?

No, Hitler Did Not Have Unusually High Self-Esteem

One textbook suggests we learn from Hitler's high self-esteem that self-esteem is no bridge to ethical behavior. But is Hitler's self-esteem just another fable we tell students?

The Overhyped Data on Video Games and Aggression

Did a new Dartmouth study show that violent video games increase youth aggression? Nope. It's the culture of psychological science that is the problem, not video games.

The Relationship Between Video Games and Sexism?

There is little evidence, but findings get hyped anyway.

Video Games and Helping Behavior

Everybody knows violent video games reduce helping behavior. Or do they? A new study from Australia suggests the answer may not be so simple.

Is It the Competition or Violence in Action Games?

We worry so much about violence in our video games. But perhaps we are influenced less by what's in the media than by how we use it. This article examines whether it is truly violence in video games that stokes aggression...or whether it is competitive play and whether action games are much different from competition in sports, debate and elsewhere.

Did Video Games Help Sink Gun Control?

This month, expanded background checks for gun control suffered a surprising defeat in the Senate. Perhaps video games are to blame?

Culture War Games

Politicians, activists and scholars and hotly debating video game violence effects once again. And that's too bad. All of this attention is doing little more than severely damage the credibility of the field.