Multiplayer online games can be a magnet for crass, bullying behavior. Players, particularly females, frequently are harassed and demeaned. While some believe such behavior is an unavoidable part of competitive environments where the players are given almost complete anonymity, others aren’t so sure.

Author Rosalind Wiseman and actor Ashly Burch believe the games themselves—filled with stoic, unemotional protagonists such as Halo’s Master Chief—fuel antisocial behavior.

“These heroes’ coldness isn’t necessarily the source of any bad behavior, but Wiseman argues that when boys lack other solid role models, game characters’ emotional distance can serve as an example to follow,” writes The Atlantic‘s Patrick Stafford. “That in turn allows boys to default to hurtful expression online: racism, homophobia and misogyny. If feelings aren’t cool, you’re not worried about hurting them, right?” (The Atlantic)

Paul Asay has written for The Washington Post, Christianity Today, Beliefnet.com and The (Colorado Springs) Gazette. He writes about culture for PluggedIn and wrote the Batman book God on the Streets of Gotham (Tyndale). He recently collaborated with Jim Daly, president of Focus on the Family, on his book The Good Dad. He lives in Colorado Springs with wife, Wendy, and his two children. Follow him on Twitter.