Reflection

I have learned how to pick a good question to do research. The question I picked was very difficult to find any sources about, and as a result did not lead to a very good answer at the end. I still do not really know what Pokémon has done to our generation. This is annoying, because I am sure that it has done something to us.

I learned that social media influences way more than we think. We think that video games are just a hobby we do occasionally, but in reality they affect us in strange ways. We become obsessed with them and do strange things to ensure that we play them or get further in them. They take over our lives.

Recommendations

Further Research

Did playing the Pokémon games affect how much we play video games today?

What has Pokémon done?

Social Change

Nothing should change. My research has not taught me that Pokémon has influenced us badly in anyway. Video game use, while it has been increased because of the Pokémon fad, does not ned to change.

Conclusions

According to our survey, video games are played by most students. Most students, however, do not play video games a lot, having classified themselves as playing them 'sometimes.' 85% of students play video games.

As far as the Pokémon games are concerned, 59% of our pool played them at some point, with the largest period of play coming between the ages of 6 and 11.

Survey Data

In a survey of 118 high-school freshman, 14% of them said that they played video games very often, while 29% percent of them said that they sometimes played video games. 15% said they never played video games.

In the same survey, 41% of those surveyed said they never played the Pokémon games, while 16% said that they still today play them. Most people played between the ages of 6-11,  with over 30% of the pool each.

Of those surveyed, 41% were male and 59% were female. Racially, the pool was 40% black and 46% white.

Published Source

"Under Pokémon Fad's Influence, Some Turn to Violence" is an article by Chris Brennan of the Philidelphia Daily News. It talks about the Pokémon fad in regards to the trading card game.

Two kids climbed into a sewer to retrieve a card after another kid had thrown it into its depths. They retrieving kids had proudly proclaimed that it was still in good condition. That is crazy. It is insane that someone would be so obsessed with a card game to climb into a sewer to retrieve one of their cards. This is yet another example of what the Pokémon fad has done to influence the children of our generation.

In the article, Chris details stories about kids getting beat up about rare cards. One kid got stabbed due to a disagreement about one particular card. This shows just how extreme the Pokémon phenomenon has become and what it has led to. This is, however, perhaps the largest extreme. Although these types of things did not or do not happen in most neighborhoods. But it is important to realize that this does happen. It is important to realize that a simple children's card game can lead to extremely violent acts of crime.

Brennan, Chris, and Philadelphia Daily News. "Under Pokemon Fad's Influence, Some Turn to Violence." EBSCOhost. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2010. .

Research Question

How did the Pokemon fad change those born between 1991-1995?

The Pokémon Generation

There was the G.I. Generation, the Silent Generation, the Boomers Generation, and Generation X. Then, there is me. What generation am I? Well, what influences us most? The Internet, perhaps? Or just media in general. It could even be Harry Potter, the biggest book series and the biggest movie series ever. But no, I do not think it is any of these. The thing I see as our greatest influence is Pokémon.

When we were growing up, Pokémon was the thing. They were the games everyone was playing on their Game Boys. It was the cartoon everyone was watching on Saturday mornings. And they were the cards everyone was eager to buy, trade, and collect. In one way or another, Pokémon influenced all of the people born between 1980 and 1995. What did this do to us? I do not know. I can guess, but I would much rather just find out.