Grand Theft Childhood? Real Data on Violent Video Games and Youth

From TechSource Gaming Symposium

Presenter: Dr. Lawrence Kutner (co-author of author of Grand Theft Childhood: The Surprising Truth about Violent Video Games )

Description: Are the politicians and pundits accurate when they say violent video games lead children to act violently in the real world? How can we cut through the hype? A two-year, $1.5-million study funded by the U.S. Department of Justice looked at why, when, where and how teenagers played video games, what they liked and disliked about them, and which children were at greatest risk of having real-world behavioral problems. The results were published in numerous scientific papers as well as the popular book, Grand Theft Childhood: The Surprising Truth About Violent Video Games and What Parents Can Do (Simon & Schuster, 2008). Dr. Lawrence Kutner, one of the researchers and authors, will share what they found and put those findings into historical and practical context.

About the presenter: Lawrence Kutner, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist and the co-director of the Center for Mental Health and Media at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. He also has extensive experience as a journalist, having been an internationally syndicated "Parent & Child" columnist for the New York Times, the lead columnist for Parents magazine, and an Emmy award-winning television reporter and documentary producer. In 2008, the American Psychological Association gave him its Award for Distinguished Lifetime Contribution to Media Psychology.

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