New Zealand Study Concludes LEGO In Accelerated Arms Race

Researchers at the University of Canterbury concluded from research that examined LEGO catalogues from 1973 to 2015 that weaponry is now included in 30 per cent of kits.

A New Zealand study says, LEGO building kits are becoming increasingly violent as toy manufacturers are engaged in an “arms race” to appeal to children.

In addition, the building block company has seen an increase in scenarios depicting violence in its toy catalogues over the years, the research found.

“Currently around 40 per cent of all pages contain some type of violence – in particular, scenarios involving shooting and threatening behavior”, according to the study.

LEGO, which was founded in 1949, didn’t introduce weapons into its toy sets until 1978, when a castle kit was released which included swords, axes and lances.

“To catch the attention of their customers, toy manufacturers are similarly locked in a metaphorical arms race for exciting new products,” the study said. “Playing out conflict is a natural part of how children play and it helps them learn how to deal with conflicts in their own lives”

Kathrine Bisgaard Vase, LEGO spokeswoman said. A peer reviewed study published on the online journal PLOS ONE found that LEGO “showed significant exponential increases of violence over time”.

LEGO spokeswoman Kathrine Bisgaard Vase said that “weapon-like elements in LEGO sets are part of a fantasy setting and not a realistic daily-life scenario.”

‘Distinction between conflict and violence’, “We make a clear distinction between conflict and violence. Playing out conflict is a natural part of how children play and it helps them learn how to deal with conflicts in their own lives”, she said.

With electronic games threatening the future of the nearly bankrupt company in 2004, LEGO began to embrace popular culture, selling building kits based on movie franchises such as Star Wars, Harry Potter, and Lord of the Rings.

Since then the Danish company has seen 11 years of growth, culminating in 2015’s announcement that net profit for that year had rocketed 31 per cent to $1.4 billion. (£1 billion).