Shoot-to-kill video game study could help reform violent criminals

An Australian research into the brain activity of shoot-to-kill video game players could explain why people can easily kill others without feeling bad about it and help reform violent criminals.

A team from Monash University found the activity in the player' s brain changed depending on whether they were shooting enemy soldiers or innocent civilians.

Pascal Molenberghs from the university's social neuroscience laboratory said the study showed why people could be violent.

"In normal everyday situations people wouldn't go out and harm other people," he told Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Thursday. "But in certain situations, like, for example, during war, they have often no problems with just killing other people."

"People can quite easily switch off this brain area which allows them to commit violence without feeling bad about it," he added.

The players had more activity in the lateral orbitofrontal cortex, a region of the brain associated with unconscious moral decision-making, when they believed the killing was justified.

"When they were shooting innocent civilians, this brain area became very active. But whenever they were shooting the soldiers, this area was not active at all," he said.

Most players could easily switch between a justified reaction and an unjustified reaction.

Molenberghs said the study also shed light on the potential of rehabilitating violent criminals.

"One of the goals of this study is to train people to become more empathetic and more morally sensitive to specific types of situations," he said.

"So you can imagine that people who commit extreme violence, through therapy and through training, can become more moral over time." Endi