ABSTRACT
Th is chapter explores the risks involved with playing video games-or, in popular parlance, the potential harmful eff ects of video game play. Th is is an issue that everyone in the industry-and just as many people who have nothing to do with video games-seems to have an opinion about. For angry parents and determined teenagers, for dismissive developers and anxious educators, and seemingly for everyone in between, video games seem to contain an element of danger. Over the years, the question of harm has received massive attention in both public debate and research circles. Although the interest may not be as great as in the last millennium, the area has still regularly received attention, especially from the general media which often looks for causal links between shootings and playing video games.
