Abstract
Interactive media such as video games and virtual reality (VR) provide users with lived experiences that may be dangerous or even impossible in daily life. By providing interactive experiences in highly authentic, detail-rich contexts, these technologies have demonstrated measurable success in impacting how people think, feel, and behave in the physical world. At the same time, violent interactive media content has been historically connected with a range of antisocial effects in both popular press and academic research. Extant literature has established a small-but-statistically significant effect of interactive media violence on aggressive thoughts and behaviors, which could serve as a risk factor for interpersonal violence. However, left unexplored is the seemingly paradoxical claim that under some conditions, interactive media experiences might protect against interpersonal violence. Drawing on advances in media theory and research and the evolution of interactive media content and production practices, the current manuscript suggests ways in which interactive media violence may be leveraged to lower the likelihood of real-world violence experiences. For example, research on both violent and non-violent games has found that players can (a) express guilt after committing violent acts, (b) report reflective and introspective emotional reactions during gameplay, and (c) debate the morality of their actions with others. Regarding VR, studies have demonstrated that (a) witnessing physical violence in immersive spaces led participants to take the perspective of victims and better understand their emotional state and (b) controlled exposure to traumatic or violent events can be used for treatment. Broadly, studies into video games and VR demonstrate that the impact of actions in virtual worlds transfer into the physical worlds to influence (later) attitudes and behaviors. Thus, how these experiences may be potentially harnessed for social change is a compelling and open consideration, as are side-effects of such interventions on vulnerable groups. The current manuscript summarizes emerging research perspectives (as well as their limitations) to offer insight into the potential for interactive media violence to protect against real-world violence victimization and perpetration.
Highlights
Violence, such as interpersonal violence, is preventable, has lasting impacts on physical and mental health, and is among the leading global causes of death and injury (World Health Organization, 2002, 2014)
The paper concludes with suggestions for future research by expanding the scope of violence prevention programs to consider the use of interactive media violence that can be safely simulated in gaming and virtual reality (VR) applications
Experiences with video games and VR can foster both cognitive skills and emotional skills that might serve as protective factors for violence prevention
Summary
Violence, such as interpersonal violence, is preventable, has lasting impacts on physical and mental health, and is among the leading global causes of death and injury (World Health Organization, 2002, 2014). We acknowledge the extant empirical record associating media violence with some forms of aggression and seek to explore future and emerging research paths based on recent advances in media psychology (Oliver and Raney, 2011; Oliver et al, 2015; Hemenover and Bowman, 2018; Tamborini et al, 2018) These advancements support the seemingly paradoxical claim that exposure to mediated violence, especially through environments in which one has to both perpetrate violence and witness their actions and aftermath in rich contextual details, may potentially influence perceptions and behaviors that serve as protective factors for reducing interpersonal violence by influencing how players perceive, understand, and respond to violence. The paper concludes with suggestions for future research by expanding the scope of violence prevention programs to consider the use of interactive media violence that can be safely simulated in gaming and VR applications
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