Passage 1

Question

Violence in video games is unavoidable. More than half of the top video games contain some element of violence. Does this lead to violence in the real world? Logical people know the answer, and the facts prove it. Between 1994 and 2004, video game sales increased by 204 percent. During that same time period, the arrest rate for juveniles committing violent crimes decreased by 63 percent. These facts make it obvious that video games are not a problem.

Passage 2

The majority of video games contain violence. Children playing these games leads directly to acts of violence. Several studies, including a 2014 study by the Journal of the American Medical Association, have shown a correlation between persistent video game use and aggressive behavior. While my own children play video games, they do not play games labeled "Mature.” Simply avoiding these games and allowing children to play the thousands of other available games is a logical way to avoid a potential problem.

Which passage provides the more effective argument, and why?

Passage 1 is more effective because passage 2 relies on personal anecdotes as the main evidence.
Passage 1 is more effective because it uses overstatement for extra emphasis, and passage 2 does not.
Passage 2 is more effective because it contains logical and anecdotal, while passage 1 contains a bandwagon appeal and a false dilemma.
Passage 2 is more effective because it presents data as empirical evidence, and passage 1 does not.

Answer 1

Passage 2 is more effective because it presents data as empirical evidence, and passage 1 does not.

While both passages discuss the relationship between video game violence and real-world violence, Passage 2 references specific studies and provides a basis for its claims. The mention of a study conducted by the Journal of the American Medical Association adds credibility to the argument. In contrast, Passage 1 relies on statistics about juvenile arrest rates in correlation with the increase in video game sales, but it does not provide empirical evidence linking video game violence specifically to real-world violence or address counterarguments effectively. This lack of data makes Passage 1 less persuasive overall.