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Violent and non-violent virtual reality video games: influences on affect, aggressive cognition, and aggressive behavior. Two pre-registered experiments

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Abstract
Immersive Ambulatory Virtual Reality (IA-VR) video games are relatively new and highly immersive. Given speculation that immersion may increase psychologicaleffects of playing games, we examined whether violent IA-VR (cf. flat-screen) games increase aggression. Here, we report the first experimental studies to assess theeffects of violent and non-violent IA-VR (cf. flat-screen) games on affect, aggressive cognition, and behavior. In Study 1, 200 participants played violent or nonviolentIA-VR or flat-screen games in a pre-registered protocol. IA-VR was associated with slightly higher positive affect, but no higher aggression than comparableflat-screen games. Although violent games (IA-VR and flat-screen) increased aggressive cognition, this did not translate to hostile affect or aggressive behavior. InStudy 2, 96 participants played a violent IA-VR or flat-screen video game. Again, no effects of IA-VR were observed on aggressive cognition, behavior, or hostileaffect. In both studies, the relationship between aggressive cognitions, behavior and hostile affect was virtually nil. Though further replications are required with agreater variety of stimulus games, our studies provide early evidence against the notion that IA-VR increase aggression compared to flat-screen games. The lack ofrelationship between aggressive cognition and behavior suggests potential weaknesses in fundamental assumptions of the General Aggression Model.
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: | Drummond, A and Sauer, JD and Ferguson, CJ and Cannon, PR and Hall, LC |
Keywords: | videogames, violence, virtual reality |
Journal or Publication Title: | Journal of Experimental Social Psychology |
Publisher: | Academic Press Inc Elsevier Science |
ISSN: | 0022-1031 |
DOI / ID Number: | 10.1016/j.jesp.2021.104119 |
Copyright Information: | Copyright 2021 Elsevier Inc. |
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Item Statistics: | View statistics for this item |
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