Relationships Among Violent and Non-Violent Video Games, Anxiety, Self-Esteem, and Aggression in Female and Male Gamers

Author(s):  
Cristina Cabras ◽  
Maria Laura Cubadda ◽  
Cristina Sechi

This study examines the differences in anxiety, self-esteem, and aggression levels between players of violent and non-violent video game and its connection to gender and age. This survey-based research utilizes survey data from 851 video gamers. The study included 61% men and 39% women. The ages of the participants ranged from 18 to 45. Participants were administered an anonymous survey including demographics, a questionnaire for video game habits, Rosenberg's self-esteem scale, a state anxiety inventory (STAI-S), and the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ). The results revealed significant differences between males and females, as well as between younger and older gamers. Despite the majority of research showing a positive relationship between violent video game exposure and aggression levels, the results suggest that of the preference for a violent video game over a non-violent one is not, in itself, a cause for increased anxiety, self-esteem, and aggression levels.

Author(s):  
Kristen B. Miller

This chapter reports the findings of two surveys taken by players of the video game Rock Band. The purpose of the surveys was to determine what differences, if any, exist between the ways that males and females learn to play the game, are motivated to improve, interact with other players both online and in real life, and interact with other players in online communities for the game. This study suggests that while females do not appear to learn to play this game much differently from males, they are motivated differently and interact with other players differently, and ultimately they have a harder time than males finding a place in the affinity groups that exist for the game, and these findings provide starting points for teachers who intend to use video games and virtual worlds for educational purposes in guarding against creating a “gender gap” between males and females.


Author(s):  
Kathy Sanford ◽  
Timothy Frank Hopper ◽  
Jamie Burren

This chapter explores the intertextual nature of video games. Video games are inherently intertextual and have utilized intertextuality in profound ways to engage players and make meaning. Youth who play video games demonstrate complex intertextual literacies that enable them to construct and share understandings across game genres. However, video game literacy is noticeably absent from formal education. This chapter draws from bi-monthly meetings with a group of youth video gamers. Video game sessions focused on exploring aspect of video game play such as learning and civic engagements. Each session was video recorded and coded using You Tube annotation tools. Focusing on intertextuality as an organizing construct, the chapter reports on five themes that emerged that were then used to help explore the use of video games as teaching tool in a grade 11 Language Arts class. A critical concept that emerged was the idea of complex intertextual literacy that frames and enables adolescents' engagement with video games.


2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (5) ◽  
pp. 653-665
Author(s):  
Karlie A. Krause ◽  
Chelsie Smyth ◽  
Kate L. Jansen

Background. The prevalence of video game play has continued to increase. Previous literature has suggested negative emotional consequences related to violent video game play, such as an increase in aggression and decrease in empathy. Healthcare providers require high levels of empathy to effectively work with patients. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of video games on empathy on a sample of graduate-level healthcare trainees. Methods. A sample of 81 students on a healthcare campus completed a 30-item survey assessing video game habits and empathy levels. Participants were then placed into two groups (violent and non-violent) based on the amount of video game violence they are exposed to. Results. The results revealed no differences between healthcare trainees on overall empathy. A follow-up analysis examining individual subscales that comprise the overall empathy score, indicated the violent video game players had lower scores on the Personal Distress scale. Conclusion. Findings suggest that healthcare trainees who play violent video games do not experience decreased Empathic Concern or Perspective Taking, compared to individuals who do not play violent games. However, healthcare trainees who play violent video games indicated lower levels of Personal Distress. Given the intensity in healthcare settings, findings suggest violent video game play may be adaptive to healthcare trainees, as lower personal distress can lead to better decision-making and potentially prevent burnout. Further research is necessary to determine the role of video game play in healthcare professionals.


Author(s):  
Lavinia McLean ◽  
Mark D. Griffiths

Previous research has indicated that playing violent video games may be associated with an increase in acceptance of violence and positive attitudes towards perpetrators of crime. This study is the first to investigate the relationship between playing violent video games and attitudes towards victims of crime. A total of 206 young people (aged 12-24 years) completed measures of attitudes towards victims and violent video game exposure. The results suggest that exposure to violent video games is associated with less concern being reported for victims of crime. Young people who play more violent video games reported less concern for general victims and for culpable victims, and these effects cannot be explained by gender or age differences. The results are discussed in relation to relevant research in the area, along with recommendations for future research.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federica Pallavicini ◽  
Alessandro Pepe

BACKGROUND In the last few years, the introduction of immersive technologies, especially virtual reality, into the gaming market has dramatically altered the traditional concept of video games. Given the unique features of virtual reality in terms of interaction and its ability to completely immerse the individual into the game, this technology should increase the propensity for video games to effectively elicit positive emotions and decrease negative emotions and anxiety in the players. However, to date, few studies have investigated the ability of virtual reality games to induce positive emotions, and the possible effect of this new type of video game in diminishing negative emotions and anxiety has not yet been tested. Furthermore, given the critical role of body movement in individuals’ well-being and in emotional responses to video games, it seems critical to investigate how body involvement can be exploited to modulate the psychological benefits of virtual reality games in terms of enhancing players’ positive emotions and decreasing negative emotions and anxiety. OBJECTIVE This within-subjects study aimed to explore the ability of commercial virtual reality games to induce positive emotions and diminish negative emotions and state anxiety of the players, investigating the effects of the level of body involvement requested by the game (ie, high vs low). METHODS A total of 36 young adults played a low body-involvement (ie, <i>Fruit Ninja VR</i>) and a high body-involvement (ie, <i>Audioshield</i>) video game in virtual reality. The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Form-Y1 (STAI-Y1) were used to assess positive and negative emotions and state anxiety. RESULTS Results of the generalized linear model (GLM) for repeated-measures multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) revealed a statistically significant increase in the intensity of happiness (<i>P</i>&lt;.001) and surprise (<i>P</i>=.003) and, in parallel, a significant decrease in fear (<i>P</i>=.01) and sadness (<i>P</i>&lt;.001) reported by the users. Regarding the ability to improve anxiety in the players, the results showed a significant decrease in perceived state anxiety after game play, assessed with both the STAI-Y1 (<i>P</i>=.003) and the VAS-anxiety (<i>P</i>=.002). Finally, the results of the GLM MANOVA showed a greater efficacy of the high body-involvement game (ie, <i>Audioshield</i>) compared to the low body-involvement game (ie, <i>Fruit Ninja VR</i>), both for eliciting positive emotions (happiness, <i>P</i>&lt;.001; and surprise, <i>P</i>=.01) and in reducing negative emotions (fear, <i>P</i>=.05; and sadness, <i>P</i>=.05) and state anxiety, as measured by the STAI-Y1 (<i>P</i>=.05). CONCLUSIONS The two main principal findings of this study are as follows: (1) virtual reality video games appear to be effective tools to elicit positive emotions and to decrease negative emotions and state anxiety in individuals and (2) the level of body involvement of the virtual video game has an important effect in determining the ability of the game to improve positive emotions and decrease negative emotions and state anxiety of the players.


2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-48
Author(s):  
Rahmawan Jatmiko

Assassin’s Creed is a historical fiction video game developed and published by Ubisoft. This video game has been so far considered as one of the most violent video games. Assassin’s Creed III is the third sequel of which plot is set in a fictional history of real world events and follows the centuries-old conflict between the Assassins and the Templars. Based on this study, the plot, characters, characterization, and scenes in Assassin’s Creed III are deemed to be able to give positive teachings to the young generation, despite the fact that there are violent and sadistic scenes in the story. Haytham Kenway, who is “evil” protagonist in Assassin’s Creed Forsaken, is portrayed as an expert in using weapons, since he was kid. Separated from his family, Kenway was taken by mysterious mentor, who trained him to be the most deadly killer. Comparisons with classic characters such as Oedipus, Hamlet, or Indonesian legendary character Sangkuriang are intentionally made to sharpen the analysis. The finding of this study is that heroic value might be found in either protagonist or antagonistic characters, whose roles involved numerous violent actions. Comments from the official website and social media which claim that Assassin’s Creed has brought negative impacts on the consumers might not be totally true.


Author(s):  
Nadia Itona Siregar ◽  
Pudji Muljono

 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


2008 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 256-268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristine L. Nowak ◽  
Marina Krcmar ◽  
Kirstie M. Farrar

The level of presence is likely to influence the effect of media violence. This project examines the causes and consequences of presence in the context of violent video game play. In a between subjects design, 227 participants were randomly assigned to play either a violent or a nonviolent video game. The results are consistent with what would be predicted by social learning theory and are consistent with previous presence research. Causal modeling analyses reveal two separate paths to presence: from individual differences and condition. The first path reveals that individual differences (previous game use and gender) predict presence. Those who frequently play video games reported higher levels of presence than those who play video games less frequently. Males play more games but felt less presence than women. The second path is related to perceived violence: those who perceived the game to be more violent felt more presence than those who perceived less violence in the game. Both of these paths were influenced by frustration with the game, which reduced presence. Those who felt more presence felt more hostility and were more verbally aggressive than those who felt lower levels of presence. Higher levels of presence led to increased physically aggressive intentions. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
María José Cano-Mañas ◽  
Susana Collado-Vázquez ◽  
Javier Rodríguez Hernández ◽  
Antonio Jesús Muñoz Villena ◽  
Roberto Cano-de-la-Cuerda

Purpose. To determine the effects of a structured protocol using commercial video games on balance, postural control, functionality, quality of life, and level of motivation in patients with subacute stroke. Methods. A randomized controlled trial was conducted. A control group (n = 25) received eight weeks of conventional rehabilitation consisting of five weekly sessions based on an approach for task-oriented motor training. The experimental group (n = 23) received conventional rehabilitation + video-game based therapy for eight weeks with commercial video games using the Xbox 360° video games console and the Kinect® device with the same total treatment time for both groups. The Modified Rankin Scale, Barthel Index, Tinetti scale, Functional Reach test, Get Up and Go test, Baropodometry, EuroQoL 5D (EQ-5D), satisfaction, adherence, and motivation were used as outcome measures. Results. In the between-group comparison, statistically significant differences were observed in the Modified Rankin scores (p<0.01), the Barthel Index (p=0.05), the Tinetti gait assessment (p=0.02), the Functional Reach test (p<0.01), the Get Up and Go test (p=0.05), the pain/discomfort dimension (p<0.01), and anxiety/depression dimension (p<0.01) of the EQ-5D and the VAS (visual analog scale) (p<0.01) on the perceived health status based on the EQ-5D questionnaire. Regarding the scale of motivation, self-esteem, and adherence, statistically significant differences were achieved in motivation (p<0.01), self-esteem (p<0.01), and adherence (p<0.01) variables. Conclusion. A protocol of semi-immersive video-game based therapy, combined with conventional therapy, may be effective for improving balance, functionality, quality of life, and motivation in patients with subacute stroke. This trial is registered with NCT03528395.


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