The issue of violence in gaming, and specifically how it impacts the young and impressionable children who play these games, has been and will continue to be hotly debated. Many believe that childrens' behavior is directly influenced by exposure to violent media, and that the level to which behavior will be influenced is directly coorelated to the level of interactivity between the child and the media. So playing violent games is more detremental to a child's development than, say, watching a movie or television show. Granted, this opinion is generally held by people who, by and large, don't actually play video games or really know a whole lot about them. Sadly, lack of knowledge does not preclude people from becoming vocal and motivated.

Many studies have been conducted to determine, once and for all, whether or not children should be allowed to play these games. Not surprisingly, the results of the various studies have been inconclusive and inconsistent. For every "expert" that claims games are damaging, there seems to be another "scientist" who can show you why they are not. The latest entry in this field of research comes to us from the U.K. in the form of The Immersion Project.

The Immersion Project, started by filmmaker Robbie Cooper, turns the attention of a film camera to kids as they play violent games. The children, ages 9-16, were filmed as they played Halo 3, Call of Duty 4, GTA 4, Tekken and Star Wars Battlefront. Their reactions run the gamut of emotions, from blank expressionless stares (mostly seen while playing GTA IV) to lip-biting intensity (which is nearly universally seen on kids play COD4).

Take a look:

According to the Telegraph, Cooper plans to study 75 children during the course of 18 months to see how they react to a variety of different violent media, including games, online videos, news coverage, television programming, and films. Cooper will then turn the footage over to both a psychologist and a sociologist who will attempt to translate the kids' faces.

Although this seems like an interesting idea, the relative scientific merit of The Immersion Project is suspect. When asked if he was doing this as a social experiment or an art project, Cooper replied, "Both."

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