The Effect of Violent Videogame Playtime on Anger |
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| Authors: | Grant James Devilly Patch Callahan Grenville Armitage |
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| Affiliation: | 1. School of Psychology and Griffith Health Institute, Griffith University and;2. Orygen Youth Health – Research Centre, Department of Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, and;3. Centre For Advanced Internet Architecture, Swinburne University |
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| Abstract: | Studies have found evidence that, after playing violent videogames for 20 min, people experience a mean short‐term increase in aggression, hostility, and anger. The current research investigated whether or not players habituate during longer, more realistic lengths of play. Participants (N = 98) were randomly assigned to play the game Quake III Arena for either 20 or 60 min. Participants in the long condition showed a smaller change in state anger (CSA) from pre‐ to post‐gameplay than those in the short condition, although this did not reach significance. Change in scores for gamers (not novice players) showed that short gaming led to a larger increase in anger ratings than long gaming. When the results for violent videogame players were analysed separately, there was no significant increase in anger post‐gameplay—irrespective of length of time playing. Results also supported the hypotheses that females would show a significantly larger CSA than males and that participants previously unexposed to violent videogames would show a significantly larger CSA than exposed participants. |
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| Keywords: | affect anger violent videogame |
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