scholarly journals Finding Common Ground in Meta-Analysis “Wars” on Violent Video Games

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maya B Mathur ◽  
Tyler VanderWeele
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Common Ground ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Point Estimate ◽  
Violent Video Games ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Meta Analyses

Independent meta-analyses on the same topic can sometimes yield seemingly conflicting results. For example, prominent meta-analyses assessing the effects of violent video games on aggressive behavior have reached apparently different conclusions, provoking ongoing debate. We suggest that such conflicts are sometimes partly an artifact of reporting practices for meta-analyses that focus only on the pooled point estimate and its statistical significance. Considering statistics that focus on the distributions of effect sizes and that adequately characterize effect heterogeneity can sometimes indicate reasonable consensus between “warring” meta-analyses. Using novel analyses, we show that this seems to be the case in the video-game literature. Despite seemingly conflicting results for the statistical significance of the pooled estimates in different meta-analyses of video-game studies, all of the meta-analyses do in fact point to the conclusion that, in the vast majority of settings, violent video games do increase aggressive behavior but that these effects are almost always quite small.

scholarly journals Finding Common Ground in Meta-Analysis “Wars” on Violent Video Games

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 705-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maya B. Mathur ◽  
Tyler J. VanderWeele
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Common Ground ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Point Estimate ◽  
Violent Video Games ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Meta Analyses

Independent meta-analyses on the same topic can sometimes yield seemingly conflicting results. For example, prominent meta-analyses assessing the effects of violent video games on aggressive behavior have reached apparently different conclusions, provoking ongoing debate. We suggest that such conflicts are sometimes partly an artifact of reporting practices for meta-analyses that focus only on the pooled point estimate and its statistical significance. Considering statistics that focus on the distributions of effect sizes and that adequately characterize effect heterogeneity can sometimes indicate reasonable consensus between “warring” meta-analyses. Using novel analyses, we show that this seems to be the case in the video-game literature. Despite seemingly conflicting results for the statistical significance of the pooled estimates in different meta-analyses of video-game studies, all of the meta-analyses do in fact point to the conclusion that, in the vast majority of settings, violent video games do increase aggressive behavior but that these effects are almost always quite small.

scholarly journals Beyond Overall Effects: A Bayesian Approach to Finding Constraints Across A Collection Of Studies In Meta-Analysis

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Rouder ◽  
Julia M. Haaf ◽  
Clintin Stober ◽  
Joseph Hilgard
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Bayesian Approach ◽  
Model Comparison ◽  
Bayes Factor ◽  
Factor Model ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Violent Video Games ◽  
Underlying Distribution ◽  
Means Testing ◽  
Meta Analyses

Most meta-analyses focus on meta-analytic means, testing whether they are significantly different from zero and how they depend on covariates. This mean is difficult to defend as a construct because the underlying distribution of studies reflects many factors such as how we choose to run experiments. We argue that the fundamental questions of meta-analysis should not be about the aggregated mean; instead, one should ask which relations are stable across all the studies. In a typical meta-analysis, there is a preferred or hypothesized direction (e.g., that violent video games increase, rather than decrease, agressive behavior). We ask whether all studies in a meta-analysis have true effects in a common direction. If so, this is an example of a stable relation across all the studies. We propose four models: (i) all studies are truly null; (ii) all studies share a single true nonzero effect; (iii) studies differ, but all true effects are in the same direction; and (iv) some study effects are truly positive while others are truly negative. We develop Bayes factor model comparison for these models and apply them to four extant meta-analyses to show their usefulness.

scholarly journals Pengaruh Perilaku Bermain Video Game Berunsur Kekerasan Terhadap Perilaku Agresi Remaja

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 261
Author(s):  
Nadia Itona Siregar ◽  
Pudji Muljono
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Visual Media ◽  
Game Playing ◽  
Personal Factors ◽  
Violent Video Games ◽  
Significance Level ◽  
Video Game Playing ◽  
Violent Video Game

 The development of today's technology so rapidly, this development affects the audio-visual media one of which is video games. The aim of this study are: 1) to analyze the differences influence the level of violent video game playing element to the level of adolescent aggressive behavior, 2) to analyze the influence of personal factors as differences in behavior-forming element violent video games to the level of adolescent aggressive behavior, 3) to analyze differences in the effect of factors situational as forming behavior of violent video game playing element to the level of adolescent aggressive behavior. The analysis in this study uses cross tabulation, the statistical test Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis with a 5% significance level. The results showed that there are differences in the level of situational and gender differences on the level of play behavior element violent video games; and there are differences in the level of playing video games behavioral element of violence against adolescent aggressiveness level.Keywords: audio-visual media, development of technology -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ABSTRAKPerkembangan teknologi saat ini begitu pesat, perkembangan ini mempengaruhi media audio-visual salah satunya adalah video game. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah: 1) untuk menganalisis perbedaan yang memengaruhi elemen tingkat kekerasan bermain video game ke tingkat perilaku agresif remaja, 2) untuk menganalisis pengaruh faktor pribadi sebagai perbedaan dalam elemen perilaku pembentuk video game kekerasan untuk tingkat perilaku agresif remaja, 3) untuk menganalisis perbedaan pengaruh faktor situasional sebagai pembentuk perilaku bermain video game unsur kekerasan ke tingkat perilaku agresif remaja. Analisis dalam penelitian ini menggunakan tabulasi silang, uji statistik Mann-Whitney dan Kruskal-Wallis dengan tingkat signifikansi 5%. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa ada perbedaan dalam tingkat perbedaan situasional dan jenis kelamin pada tingkat perilaku bermain elemen video game kekerasan; dan ada perbedaan dalam tingkat bermain video game unsur perilaku kekerasan terhadap tingkat agresivitas remaja.Kata kunci: media audio-visual, perkembangan teknologi

scholarly journals Estimating publication bias in meta-analyses of peer-reviewed studies: A meta-meta-analysis across disciplines and journal tiers

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maya B Mathur ◽  
Tyler VanderWeele
Keyword(s):  
Publication Bias ◽  
Developmental Psychology ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Open Data ◽  
Scientific Discipline ◽  
Point Estimate ◽  
Medical Journals ◽  
Lower Tier ◽  
Meta Analyses

Selective publication and reporting in individual papers compromise the scientific record, but are meta-analyses as compromised as their constituent studies? We systematically sampled 63 meta-analyses (each comprising at least 40 studies) in PLOS One, top medical journals, top psychology journals, and Metalab, an online, open-data database of developmental psychology meta-analyses. We empirically estimated publication bias in each. Across all meta-analyses, “statistically significant” results in the expected direction were only 1.17 times more likely to be published than “nonsignificant” results or those in the unexpected direction (95%CI: [0.94, 1.47]), with a confidence interval substantially overlapping the null. Comparable estimates were 0.83 for meta-analyses in PLOS One, 1.02 for top medical journals, 1.54 for top psychology journals, and 4.70 for Metalab. The severity of publication bias did differ across individual meta-analyses; in a small minority (10%; 95% CI: [2%, 21%]), publication bias appeared to favor "significant" results in the expected direction by more than 3-fold. We estimated that for 89% of meta-analyses, the amount of publication bias that would be required to attenuate the point estimate to the null exceeded the amount of publication estimated to be actually present in the vast majority of meta-analyses from the relevant scientific discipline (exceeding the 95th percentile of publication bias). Study-level measures (“statistical significance” with a point estimate in the expected direction and point estimate size) did not indicate more publication bias in higher-tier versus lower-tier journals, nor in the earliest studies published on a topic versus later studies. Overall, the mere act of performing a meta-analysis with a large number of studies (at least 40) and that includes non-headline results may largely mitigate publication bias in meta-analyses, suggesting optimism about the validity of meta-analytic results.

Video Game Violence and Interactivity: Effect or Equivalence?

2020 ◽  
Vol 70 (2) ◽  
pp. 219-244
Author(s):  
René Weber ◽  
Katharina M Behr ◽  
Jacob T Fisher ◽  
Chelsea Lonergan ◽  
Christian Quebral
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Game Play ◽  
Violent Video Game ◽  
Video Game Violence ◽  
Violent Content ◽  
Meta Analyses ◽  
Player Skill ◽  
Game Violence

Abstract The effect of exposure to violent video game content on aggression is intensely debated. Meta-analyses have produced widely varying estimates as to the effect (or non-effect) of violent video games on subsequent aggressive thoughts and behaviors. Recent work suggests that interactivity and player skill may play key roles in moderating the effects of violent content in video games on aggression. This study investigates the effects of violence, interactivity, and player skill on mild aggressive behavior using a custom-developed first-person shooter game allowing for high levels of experimental control. We conduct effect and equivalence tests with effect size assumptions drawn from prominent meta-analyses in the video game violence literature, finding that aggressive behavior following violent video game play is statistically equivalent to that observed following non-violent game play. We also observe an interaction between violent game content, player skill, and interactivity. When player skill matched the interactivity of the game, violent content led to an increase in aggressive behavior, whereas when player skill did not match the interactivity of the game, violent content decreased aggressive behavior. This interaction is probed using a multiverse analysis incorporating both classical significance testing and Bayesian analyses.

The (Not So) Evil Within? Agency in Video Game Choice and the Impact of Violent Content

2016 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-337 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher J. Ferguson ◽  
Kay Colon-Motas ◽  
Carolin Esser ◽  
Connor Lanie ◽  
Skylar Purvis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Young Adult ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Scientific Community ◽  
Violent Video Games ◽  
Violent Content ◽  
Game Condition ◽  
Ice Water ◽  
The Impact

Background. The degree to which violent video games do, or do not contribute to aggressive behavior and hostility remains controversial in the scientific community, with scholars not yet having come to a consensus about effects. Recent studies have examined whether other issues such as frustration or competition might explain some video game influences that were previously thought to be due to violent content. Aim. The current study examines whether player agency in determining choice of game played influences aggressive outcomes. Methods. Young adult players were randomized either to play a violent game, a non-violent game, or to be given the choice between several violent and non-violent games. Players were examined for subsequent aggressive behavior using the ice water task as well as for stress levels and hostility. Results. Game condition did not influence hostility, stress, or aggressive behavior, whether with randomized or chosen games. Conclusion. The present study provided no evidence that violent video games contribute to aggressive behavior. Lack of influence for agency in game choice can be understood given the lack of any aggression effect for violent game exposure.

Violent Video Games, Mass Shootings, and the Supreme Court

2014 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 553-586 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher J. Ferguson
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
The United States ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Violent Video Games ◽  
Mass Shootings ◽  
Legal Cases ◽  
Video Game Violence ◽  
Game Violence

The issue of video game violence continues to attract attention from the legal and policy communities, particularly in the wake of mass shootings. However, focusing on video game violence has generally not resulted in successful legal or public policy. In part this is because the science upon which beliefs of “harm” in video game violence are based remains inconsistent and heavily disputed. The current article examines several issues. First, the article examines the current evidence about video game violence influences on negative outcomes in players. Second, the article concerns itself with the application of video game science to several recent legal cases, involving both criminal prosecutions and attempted regulation/censorship of video game violence in the United States. Finally, the manuscript addresses several common talking points used in legal cases and by policy makers and examines whether these talking statements survive careful scientific scrutiny. It is advised that, consistent with the legal decisions and government reviews in the United States, Sweden, Australia, and elsewhere, current evidence does not support the regulation of violent video games, and legal or policy attempts to connect video game violence to specific crimes are unlikely to survive careful scrutiny.

scholarly journals Incidence of Respiratory Symptoms for Residents Living Near a Petrochemical Industrial Complex: A Meta-Analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (7) ◽  
pp. 2474
Author(s):  
Wen-Wen Chang ◽  
Hathaichon Boonhat ◽  
Ro-Ting Lin
Keyword(s):  
Respiratory Symptoms ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Random Effect ◽  
Study Groups ◽  
Industrial Complex ◽  
Residential Exposure ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Subgroup Analyses ◽  
Meta Analyses

The air pollution emitted by petrochemical industrial complexes (PICs) may affect the respiratory health of surrounding residents. Previous meta-analyses have indicated a higher risk of lung cancer mortality and incidence among residents near a PIC. Therefore, in this study, a meta-analysis was conducted to estimate the degree to which PIC exposure increases the risk of the development of nonmalignant respiratory symptoms among residents. We followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to systematically identify, select, and critically appraise relevant research. Finally, we identified 16 study groups reporting 5 types of respiratory symptoms: asthma, bronchitis, cough, rhinitis, and wheezing. We estimated pooled odds ratios (ORs) using random-effect models and investigated the robustness of pooled estimates in subgroup analyses by location, observation period, and age group. We determined that residential exposure to a PIC was significantly associated with a higher incidence of cough (OR = 1.35), wheezing (OR = 1.28), bronchitis (OR = 1.26), rhinitis (OR = 1.17), and asthma (OR = 1.15), although the latter two associations did not reach statistical significance. Subgroup analyses suggested that the association remained robust across different groups for cough and bronchitis. We identified high heterogeneity for asthma, rhinitis, and wheezing, which could be due to higher ORs in South America. Our meta-analysis indicates that residential exposure to a PIC is associated with an increased risk of nonmalignant respiratory symptoms.

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