Download full text
(426.3Kb)
Citation Suggestion
Please use the following Persistent Identifier (PID) to cite this document:
https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-63779-8
Exports for your reference manager
Comparing apples and oranges? Evidence for pace of action as a confound in research on digital games and aggression
[journal article]
Abstract Most studies investigating the effects of violence in digital games on aggression and physiological arousal feature two groups of participants either playing a violent or a nonviolent game. However, violent content is usually not the only dimension on which the games used in these studies differ. Th... view more
Most studies investigating the effects of violence in digital games on aggression and physiological arousal feature two groups of participants either playing a violent or a nonviolent game. However, violent content is usually not the only dimension on which the games used in these studies differ. This raises the issue of possibly confounding variables. We conducted a study in which the displayed violence and the pace of action of a first-person shooter game were manipulated systematically through game modifications (modding), whereas other variables were controlled for. Dependent variables were physiological arousal (autonomic and behavioral) during play, and postgame aggressive behavior. Aggressive behavior was not influenced by either of the two variables. Although both violence and pace of action did not affect autonomic arousal, there was an interaction effect of these variables on behavioral measures of arousal. Playing a fast-paced game inhibited participants’ body movement, particularly when the game was nonviolent. A higher pace of action and displays of violence also caused players to exert greater pressure on the input devices. The findings of our study support the assumption that research on the effects of digital games should consider more variables than just violent content. In sum, our results underline the importance of controlling potentially confounding variables in research on the effects of digital games.... view less
Keywords
computer game; violence; propensity to violence; physiological factors; behavior; aggression; experiment; student; activation; influenceability; behavior modification
Classification
Social Psychology
Free Keywords
digital games; violence; arousal; pace of action; stimulus selection
Document language
English
Publication Year
2015
Page/Pages
p. 112-125
Journal
Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 4 (2015) 2
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000010
ISSN
2160-4142
Status
Postprint; peer reviewed
Licence
Deposit Licence - No Redistribution, No Modifications