We produce video games to prevent violence!
Although video games are sometimes blamed for violence in the Media, the truth is that like all forms of media they can be used for a variety of things! Since 2008 our nonprofit charity, Jennifer Ann's Group, has been producing video games to prevent teen dating violence. A few facts about us:
- Jennifer Ann's Group is a registered charity which received its 501(c)(3) status from the IRS in 2006.
- Since 2008 we have produced 22 video games designed to prevent teen dating violence. Our annual Game Design Challenge receives entries from around the world!
- In June 2014 we launched our first ever Summer Game Jam which was held concurrently in Atlanta and Moscow!
- Our video games and apps are available through Google Play, iTunes, BlackBerry World, Windows Phone, and Amazon appstores.
Coverage of our Efforts
We need your help
- In order to continue producing these games - and to properly market them - we need funding.
- We want to localize these games for other markets (more languages + more countries = more prevention!).
- We need help funding our own study showing how our games help prevent abusive relationships.
Wait. Video Games to prevent Violence?
Yes! And why not?
Not only do we know that the vast majority of young people play video games, video games have been shown to be very effective training tools and education resources. We are just using them to increase the knowledge of young people who are new to the world of dating and might not know the distinction between healthy and unhealthy behavior in a relationship.
One of the great aspects of video games is that they have the ability to transport players to alternate realities. For young people this provides an opportunity to experience - and learn from - actions and behaviors that might be dangerous in the real world. Video games provide:
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Experiential learning: Games allow students to experience something, not just read about it.
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Discovery learning: The flexibility of video games provide students the opportunity to explore a topic allowing them to recognize critical aspects of that topic on their own.
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Contextualized learning: Students learn about dating violence within the context in which it applies.
In 2014 we wrote about our use of video games to prevent violence for the Games for Health Journal. The article is called "Gaming Against Violence: A Grassroots Approach to Teen Dating Violence" (subscription required) and you can read more about our efforts in that article.
If you're interested in reading greater detail about the success of video games in this area you should definitely read the study released in April 2014. This study was published by our friends at CAVA, an initiative in the EU that has shown success with this approach as an intervention tool to prevent dating violence: "'It's like you're actually playing as yourself': Development and preliminary evaluation of 'Green Acres High', a serious game-based primary intervention to combat adolescent dating violence" (no subscription required).
Why Teen Dating Violence?
Although the issue of teen dating violence has become better known in the past several years, it is still critical to increase awareness and provide educational information about this serious issue.
- By the time students graduate from college 44% of them will have been in an abusive relationship. [Source: JAMA Pediatrics]
- Adolescents who are in abusive dating relationships are much more likely to become involved in abusive relationships as adults. [Source: American Journal of Preventive Medicine]
- In the U.S. alone, domestic (intimate partner) violence costs exceed $8 billion annually. [Source: CDC]
Other Ways You Can Help
If you can’t contribute, that doesn’t mean you can’t help:
About Jennifer Ann's Group
Jennifer Ann's Group is named in memory of Jennifer Ann Crecente, a high school senior who was killed by her ex-boyfriend on February 15th, 2006. The organization was founded by her father Drew.
Jennifer Ann Crecente
September 9, 1987 - February 15, 2006