Why do people play violent video games? Demographic,status-related,and mating-related correlates in men and women

The numerous negative and positive consequences of playing violent video games are well-documented. Specifically, violent games improve many aspects of cognition and attention but can also increase aggression. Compared to these established effects of exposure to violent video games, very little is known about who plays violent video games and why they play them. Taking an evolutionary psychological approach to address this gap, in two studies we surveyed 1000 men and women who reported playing video games in the past 30 days. We assessed three classes of predictors of violent video game exposure: demographic, status-related, and mating-related. In both studies, women who played the most violent video games reported feeling a greater sense of mate value than women who played fewer violent video games. Women also reported being motivated to play violent video games because doing so enhanced their sense of attractiveness to romantic partners. In both studies, men reported playing more violent video games than women as did both men and women who reported higher sexual interest. These findings highlight the counterintuitive and complex motivations underlying violent video game exposure. We discuss the need for more research on who plays violent video games and why they play them.     

The effects of reward and punishment in violent video games on aggressive affect, cognition, and behavior

Three experiments examined the effects of rewarding and punishing violent actions in video games on later aggression-related variables. Participants played one of three versions of the same race-car video game: (a) a version in which all violence was rewarded, (b) a version in which all violence was punished, and (c) a nonviolent version. Participants were then measured for aggressive affect (Experiment 1), aggressive cognition (Experiment 2), and aggressive behavior (Experiment 3). Rewarding violent game actions increased hostile emotion, aggressive thinking, and aggressive behavior. Punishing violent actions increased hostile emotion, but did not increase aggressive thinking or aggressive behavior. Results suggest that games that reward violent actions can increase aggressive behavior by increasing aggressive thinking.     

暴力游戏中射杀动作和血腥成分对玩家和观看者攻击倾向的影响

通过实验考察游戏中的射杀动作成分和血腥成分对玩家和观看者攻击性行为和攻击性认知的影响。被试为72名男性大学生, 选用第三人称45度角的射击类游戏, 将游戏中的射杀动作成分和血腥成分进行分离, 采用竞争反应时任务范式考察攻击性行为, 采用EAST内隐认知范式考察内隐攻击性认知, 结果表明: (1) 玩家比观看者表现出更强的攻击性, 玩家表现出的攻击性行为和攻击性认知均显著强于观看者; (2) 视频游戏中的射杀动作成分导致观看者有更高的游戏卷入, 血腥成分对被试的攻击性影响强于射杀动作成分, 并使被试倾向于将攻击性进行他人归因。     

Is basic personality related to violent and non-violent video game play and preferences?

Based on the uses and gratifications perspective, personality was expected to relate to violent video game play frequency and game preferences. Participants completed measures of personality and frequency of violent video game play, and identified their most frequently played video games. Results indicate that individuals higher in openness but lower in agreeableness played violent video games more frequently. In addition, more open and extroverted but less agreeable and neurotic individuals generally preferred to play video games that are more violent. Results suggest personality may be more predictive of violent video game use than traditional media use, though the predictive personality dimensions may be consistent across media types.     

Experimental study of the differential effects of playing versus watching violent video games on children's aggressive behavior

There is great concern about the effects of playing violent video games on aggressive behavior. The present experimental study was aimed at investigating the differential effects of actively playing vs. passively watching the same violent video game on subsequent aggressive behavior. Fifty-seven children aged 10-13 either played a violent video game (active violent condition), watched the same violent video game (passive violent condition), or played a non-violent video game (active non-violent condition). Aggression was measured through peer nominations of real-life aggressive incidents during a free play session at school. After the active participation of actually playing the violent video game, boys behaved more aggressively than did the boys in the passive game condition. For girls, game condition was not related to aggression. These findings indicate that, specifically for boys, playing a violent video game should lead to more aggression than watching television violence.     

High Versus Low Aggressive Priming During Video‐Game Training: Effects on Violent Action During Game Play,Hostility, Heart Rate,and Blood Pressure1

Playing violent video games is related to increased negative affect and cardiovascular reactivity. We examined the influence of high and low aggressive priming during video‐game training on violence during game play (e.g., shooting, choking), hostility, frustration with game play, blood pressure, and heart rate. Male undergraduates (N= 36) were assigned to a high aggressive or low aggressive video‐game priming condition. After training, they played Metal Gear Solid^(tm), which allows players to advance by using stealth, violence, or both. Participants in the high aggressive priming condition used significantly more violent action during game play and reported more hostility than those in the low aggressive priming condition. Heart rate was correlated with feelings of hostility. These findings indicate that both aggressive priming and use of game violence influence arousal and negative affect and might increase behavioral aggression.     

Correlates and consequences of exposure to video game violence: hostile personality, empathy, and aggressive behavior

Research has shown that exposure to violent video games causes increases in aggression, but the mechanisms of this effect have remained elusive. Also, potential differences in short-term and long-term exposure are not well understood. An initial correlational study shows that video game violence exposure (VVE) is positively correlated with self-reports of aggressive behavior and that this relation is robust to controlling for multiple aspects of personality. A lab experiment showed that individuals low in VVE behave more aggressively after playing a violent video game than after a nonviolent game but that those high in VVE display relatively high levels of aggression regardless of game content. Mediational analyses show that trait hostility, empathy, and hostile perceptions partially account for the VVE effect on aggression. These findings suggest that repeated exposure to video game violence increases aggressive behavior in part via changes in cognitive and personality factors associated with desensitization.     

The effect of justified video game violence on aggressive behavior and moderated immersion: An experimental approach

The effect of violent video games on aggressive behavior is an important topic in the field of game research. Recently, growing evidence suggests that justified game violence decreases feelings of guilt caused by in-game immoral behavior. However, little is known about the impact on aggressive behavior, and whether other factors moderate this effect. In a two-factor experiment, we tested the impact of justification of video game violence on aggressive behavior, and whether this effect would be enhanced by game immersion. Pilot experiment 1 (N = 60) and pilot experiment 2 (N = 40) demonstrated that the justification of violence and game immersion was successfully controlled by avatar and graphics quality. In the Main experiment, 123 participants played one of four conditions of a video game (2 [justification: justified vs. unjustified violence] × 2 [immersion: high vs. low immersion]) and it was found that participants who played in the justified violence condition reported greater aggressive behavior than those in the unjustified violence condition. In addition, participants who played in high immersion reported greater aggressive behavior than those in low immersion. However, game immersion did not moderate the effects of justified violence. This unexpected effect is likely due to participants' distancing themselves from and identifying less with their violent avatars.     

Media violence and the self: The impact of personalized gaming characters in aggressive video games on aggressive behavior

A recent development in video games is that players can design and personalize their own in-game characters. It was predicted that this innovation could lead to elevations in the intensity of the psychological effects of video games. The present study confirmed this hypothesis, revealing that participants who played an aggressive video game using their own, personalized character exhibited higher levels of aggressive behavior than participants who played an aggressive game with a non-personalized character. The aggressive behavior levels of the own-character players also exceeded those of individuals who played a non-aggressive game, regardless of whether or not they used a personalized character. Process analyses revealed that participants playing a violent video game with a personalized game character experienced more arousal and self-activation than they did when playing with an impersonal, default game character, which in turn increased aggressive responses.     

College Students’ Video Game Participation and Perceptions: Gender Differences and Implications

As growing numbers of youth in the United States play video games, potential effects of game playing are being considered. We focused on gender-related aspects of gaming in a study of 206 college students. Men were significantly more likely than women to play video games two or more hours a week and to indicate that video game playing interfered with sleeping and with class preparation. A greater proportion of women than men complained about the amount of time their significant other played video games. Participants rated female video game characters as significantly more helpless and sexually provocative than male characters and as less likely to be strong and aggressive. Gender differences in participation and character portrayals potentially impact the lives of youth in a variety of ways.     

Video games and aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behavior in the laboratory and in life

Two studies examined violent video game effects on aggression-related variables. Study 1 found that real-life violent video game play was positively related to aggressive behavior and delinquency. The relation was stronger for individuals who are characteristically aggressive and for men. Academic achievement was negatively related to overall amount of time spent playing video games. In Study 2, laboratory exposure to a graphically violent video game increased aggressive thoughts and behavior. In both studies, men had a more hostile view of the world than did women. The results from both studies are consistent with the General Affective Aggression Model, which predicts that exposure to violent video games will increase aggressive behavior in both the short term (e.g., laboratory aggression) and the long term (e.g., delinquency).     

The Effect of Advances in Video Game Technology and Content on Aggressive Cognitions,Hostility, and Heart Rate

Two studies were conducted that tested the moderating role of video game graphics quality in the relationship between video game content and aggression-related variables. In both studies, participants played either a violent or nonviolent video game on one of three video game systems with differing technological computing power (which contributes to the realism depicted in these video games). In Study 2, the moderating and mediating role of immersion was also tested. Results showed that video game violence exposure was related to aggressive cognitions and state of hostility. Video game technology did not moderate this relationship. Finally, immersion, as an individual difference variable, did not moderate or mediate this relationship. This suggests that aggressive cognitions and feelings occur independent of how technologically advanced the graphics are and the extent to which one feels as though they are immersed in a violent video game. Implications and future research are discussed.     

Causal effects of violent sports video games on aggression: Is it competitiveness or violent content?

Three experiments examined the impact of excessive violence in sport video games on aggression-related variables. Participants played either a nonviolent simulation-based sports video game (baseball or football) or a matched excessively violent sports video game. Participants then completed measures assessing aggressive cognitions (Experiment 1), aggressive affect and attitudes towards violence in sports (Experiment 2), or aggressive behavior (Experiment 3). Playing an excessively violent sports video game increased aggressive affect, aggressive cognition, aggressive behavior, and attitudes towards violence in sports. Because all games were competitive, these findings indicate that violent content uniquely leads to increases in several aggression-related variables, as predicted by the General Aggression Model and related social-cognitive models.     

暴力视频游戏接触对大学生网络攻击行为的影响：一个有中介的调节模型

以946名大学生为被试进行问卷调查,探讨暴力视频游戏接触对大学生网络攻击行为的影响机制。结果表明：(1) 暴力视频游戏接触正向预测大学生网络攻击行为;(2) 特质愤怒在大学生暴力视频游戏接触与其网络攻击行为及暴力态度的关系中均具有调节作用;(3) 暴力态度不仅部分中介了大学生暴力视频游戏接触对其网络攻击行为的影响,而且部分中介了特质愤怒与暴力视频游戏接触的交互作用对大学生网络攻击行为的影响。     

Grand Theft Auto IV comes to Singapore: effects of repeated exposure to violent video games on aggression

Given the increasingly dominant role of video games in the mainstream entertainment industry, it is no surprise that the scholarly debate about their impact has been lively and well attended. Although >100 studies have been conducted to examine the impact of violent video games on aggression, no clear consensus has been reached, particularly in terms of their long-term impact on violent behavior and aggressive cognitions. This study employs a first-ever longitudinal laboratory-based experiment to examine longer-term effects of playing a violent video game. One hundred thirty-five participants were assigned either to the treatment condition where they played a violent video game in a controlled laboratory setting for a total of 12 hours or to the control group where they did not play a game. Participants in the treatment group played Grand Theft Auto IV over a period of 3 weeks and were compared with a control group on the posttest measures of trait aggression, attitudes toward violence, and empathy. The findings do not support the assertion that playing a violent video game for a period of 3 weeks increases aggression or reduces empathy, but they suggest a small increase in proviolence attitudes. The implications of the findings are discussed.     

The effect of video game violence on physiological desensitization to real-life violence

Past research shows that violent video game exposure increases aggressive thoughts, angry feelings, physiological arousal, aggressive behaviors, and decreases helpful behaviors. However, no research has experimentally examined violent video game effects on physiological desensitization, defined as showing less physiological arousal to violence in the real world after exposure to video game violence in the virtual world. This experiment attempts to fill this gap. Participants reported their media habits and then played one of eight violent or nonviolent video games for 20 min. Next, participants watched a 10-min videotape containing scenes of real-life violence while heart rate (HR) and galvanic skin response (GSR) were monitored. Participants who previously played a violent video game had lower HR and GSR while viewing filmed real violence, demonstrating a physiological desensitization to violence. Results are interpreted using an expanded version of the General Aggression Model. Links between desensitization, antisocial, and prosocial behavior are discussed.     

Macbeth and the Joystick: Evidence for moral cleansing after playing a violent video game

The “Macbeth effect” denotes the phenomenon that people wish to cleanse themselves physically when their moral self has been threatened. In this article we argue that such a threat to one's moral self may also result from playing a violent video game, especially when the game involves violence against humans. The cleansing effect should be particularly strong among inexperienced players who do not play video games on a regular basis, because frequent players may apply other strategies to alleviate any moral concerns. Seventy students played one of two violent video games and were then asked to select 4 out of 10 gift products, half of which were hygiene products. Inexperienced players reported more moral distress when the game involved violence against humans (compared to violence against objects), and selected more hygiene products in this condition than frequent video game players. Frequent players, on the other hand, reported less moral distress, irrespective of the game they played.     

Technological advancements and Internet sexuality: does private access to the Internet influence online sexual behavior?

The aim of this study was to investigate whether demographic characteristics and sexual behavior online and offline were associated with private, respectively, nonprivate access to the Internet in a Web sample of people who use the Internet for sexual purposes. A total of 1,913 respondents completed an online questionnaire about Internet sexuality, and 1,614 reported using the Internet for sexual purposes. The majority of these respondents reported having access to an Internet-connected computer no one else had access to (62 percent women and 70 percent men). The results showed that it is possible to differentiate between those who have access to an Internet-connected computer no one else has access to and those who have shared access to an Internet-connected computer. Not only did they differ in demographic characteristics, but also in the sexual activities they engaged in on the Internet. Different patterns were found for women and men. For example, men who had private access to Internet-connected computers were more likely than those who had shared access to seek information about sexual issues. Thus, having access to Internet computers no one else has access to may promote sexual knowledge and health for men. The results of this study along with the technological development implies that in future research, attention should be paid to where and how people access the Internet in relation to online behavior in general and online sexual behavior in particular.     

Sex Differences and Similarities in Video Game Experience,Preferences, and Self-Efficacy: Implications for the Gaming Industry

As computer technology continues to pervade every facet of life, the study of video game playing becomes more relevant. Studies show that sex differences continue to exist between men and women, boys and girls, in video game experience, favoring males. Few studies show any overlap in preferences between young men and women in their video gaming choices. The current study surveyed over 2,000 college undergraduates for video game experience, preferences, and self-efficacy. Although it was found that men play video games more often, have had more experience, and feel more confident in their game playing ability, a moderate female gaming population was found to exist, who also play video games regularly. Almost as many similarities as differences were found between men and women in their gaming preferences. Suggestions and implications for the video game industry are discussed.     

The difference between playing games with and without the computer: a preliminary view

The authors address the question of whether associations between video games and cognitive and metacognitive variables depend either on the features of the computer or on the content of the game that the computer allows one to play. An experiment to separate these two kinds of effects was carried out by using a traditional version and a computer-supported version of Pegopolis, a solitaire game. The two versions were exactly the same except that they were played by moving pieces either on a real board or on a virtual computer-presented board. The performance levels and strategies followed during the game by the 40 undergraduates who took part in the experiment were not significantly different in the real and virtual conditions. None of the participants transferred playing strategies or practice from one version of the game to the other. Scores were not affected by gender or by the studies pursued by participants, the habit of playing games in the traditional manner or playing video games, or intelligence. Retrospective reports did not support differences in the subjective experience between the two versions. Results showed that video games, when they do not make much use of the computer's special features, produce effects because of the situations they simulate rather than because of features of the computer itself.