Violent Games Research Articles

White-Collar Criminality Within the Video Game Industry

Edwin Sutherland’s concept of white-collar crime remains incredibly influential in contemporary criminological research and thought. Sutherland’s work was critical of several of the most influential industries in the United States, highlighting both their criminal and unethical conduct. Today, the video game industry has garnered tremendous influence over society and until recently, has seemed to escape criminological critique (other than for that of the potential negative effects of violent games) and white-collar crime theoretical inquiry. This study aims to change that, as we analyze the video game industry for its involvement in many traditional (and some more contemporary) forms of white-collar crime. More specifically, we discuss overpromising, broken games, and price gouging.

The interplay of parenting style and family rules about video games on subsequent fighting behavior.

Due to ongoing concerns about adolescent interpersonal aggression and debates surrounding violent media, this study assesses the potential impacts of parental mediation and parenting style on mature video game play and fighting behaviors using a longitudinal, random-digit-dial survey of adolescents (N = 2722). By simultaneously considering fighting, M-rated video game play, parental restrictions on media use, parenting style, and important covariates, we aim to provide further nuance to existing work on risk and protective factors for interpersonal aggression. Our results show that parental restriction has a significant, linear relationship with later fighting, whereby higher restrictions on a child's M-rated video game play predict decreases in reported fighting behavior. Authoritative parenting, high in both warmth and supervisory attention, also relates to decreased levels of fighting compared to other styles. Parenting style also moderated the effects of restriction, such that restriction was not equally predictive of fighting behavior across all parenting styles. However, the association between restriction and fighting was similar for highly demanding parenting styles, suggesting that authoritative parenting is not inherently superior to authoritarian. The effects of restriction were significant despite controlling for multiple covariates. Parental restriction of media use may be an effective strategy for parents concerned about violent games. Given some limitations in our dataset, we call for continued study in this area.

Игры, которые нас убивают: видеоигры и насилие в дискурсе российской печатной прессы

The paper investigates the video game discourse of the Russian state media from 2011 to 2015. Critical discourse analysis serves as a methodological framework for this work, and Foucault’s power/knowledge model is used to explain the logic behind the «grotesque discourses». In the Russian press, video games are described as an instance of inculcation, provoking overintense emotions and forcing individuals to commit symbolic acts impossible from the standpoint of “normal” pedagogy. The paper problematizes the mythologization of violence in video games and identifies the main tropes used to establish the connection between video games and violence (murders) as “natural” and “obvious”. Particular attention is paid to the publications of Aleksandr Minkin, a reporter at “Moskovskij Komsomolets” (“Moscow Komsomol Member”) and one of the most prominent critics of video games, as well as to the media coverage of the first school shooting in Russia (shooting at school № 263 in 2014). It is shown that video games are used in the media discourse as an explanatory principle that allows a shift from the crime to the criminal, to those acts which reveal moral depravity or psychological disorder, and those circumstances which foster criminalism. Pointing to the games helps restore the “normal” connection between social and moral qualities, explaining the crime committed by an honours student from a “good family” as being the result of the depictions of violence in video games affecting the child’s psyche. Video games are also described as a factor in shaping the “digital generation” or “generation of gamers” — odd and politically dangerous. The dangers that games create for both gamers and society in general (the non-distinction between the “real” and the “virtual”, the illusion of a “possible restart”) allow the journalists and experts to insist on strengthening measures of supervision and protection, and expanding legal and medical control.

Video games and close relations: Attachment and empathy as predictors of children's and adolescents' video game social play and socio-emotional functioning

This cross-sectional study examined the differential associations between attachment patterns and empathy and children's and adolescents' aggressive, prosocial and interpersonal video game play and peer relations. The sample was composed of 1391 Israeli children and adolescents, aged 9–15 who rated their recent video-game involvement in terms of violent, prosocial and interpersonal interactions. Dispositional attachment styles and empathy were measured, as well as social satisfaction, prosociality, peer support, subjective well-being, and aggressive behavior in daily life. The results confirmed the relationship between type of video game involvement, social functioning, and well-being. Prosocial and interpersonal video game play were related to greater social satisfaction, peer support, and prosocial behavior, which led to increased well-being, whereas violent video game play was related to increased school bullying, and lower social satisfaction and prosociality. Secure attachment was related to increased empathic concerns and higher levels of prosocial and interpersonal interactions in video game use. Children with attachment anxiety or avoidance engaged in significantly less prosocial video game behavior. These findings challenge the assumption that violence in video games is inevitably related to negative social consequences and points to the potential of video games to serve basic attachment and prosocial needs that can promote close relations.

Peculiarities of the influence of media products on the level of adolescent anxiety

The article considers the problem of the influence of modern media products on the psychological characteristics of the individual, the violation of its information and psychological security and, as a consequence, the increase in the level of anxiety in adolescents. The subjects were 90 adolescents aged 13-15, who were resting in the children's center "Young Guard". The following research methods were used: methods of deviant analysis of media text by S.V. Knyzhnykova, methods of studying the level of anxiety by P. Kondash, methods by CH.D. Spielberger to detect personal and situational anxiety (adaptation by Yu.L. Khanin), the test of viability by S. Maddi (adaptation by D.O. Leontiev, E.I. Rasskazov). Spearman's correlation method and the Mann-Whitney U test were used for statistical analysis. The results showed that modern adolescents mostly choose the Internet and television among the media, do not approve of aggressive films, but consider aggression as a quality of a poorly educated person and as a result of self-defense against injustice; they consider cruel films and computer games dangerous, they are outraged by the following media stories - a naturalistic depiction of violence, a demonstration of perversions, a detailed depiction of death and abuse of people. Adolescents have an average level of vitality, but the level of involvement is low, the level of control is medium, and the level of risk appetite is high; the average level of situational and personal anxiety prevails, self-esteem and interpersonal anxiety prevails. It has been proven that such media products as violent films and computer games, films with scenes of various types of violence and murders, as well as media stories such as depictions of bullying and violence against people, their deaths and perversions affect the personality of adolescents and contribute to situational anxiety, interpersonal anxiety and general anxiety.

The “digital animal intuition:” the ethics of violence against animals in video games

Video game players sometimes give voice to an “intuition” that violently harming nonhuman animals in video games is particularly ethically troubling. However, the moral issue of violence against nonhuman animals in video games has received scant philosophical attention, especially compared to the ethics of violence against humans in video games. This paper argues that the seemingly counterintuitive belief that digital animal violence is in general more ethically problematic than digital human violence is likely to be correct. Much video game violence against animals has at least some potential, even if only a modest one, to contribute to moral indifference toward animals and to their routine mistreatment. These possible effects have ethical implications for animals, society, players, and video game designers.

Coactivation of ANS and self-reported positivity as a function of chronic violent game exposure

Coactivation of ANS and self-reported positivity as a function of chronic violent game exposure

Protecting Children from Violent TV Programmes and Video Games in Tanzania

Violent Television programmes and video games have been consistently found to have negative impact on children’s education and behaviour. Past and current research on the attitudes of children watching violent television and video games show that children who watch violence in television and video games imitate the violent behaviours of the actors they watch in the television and video games. In Tanzania the influence of violent movies and video games on the education of children is an issue of great concern to parents, pediatricians, educators, researchers, and policymakers. However, very few studies have been undertaken to assess the debilitating effects of violent television programmes and video games on children’s education and attitudinal behaviour. This paper presents the findings of a study undertaken to assess the effects of violence in television and video games on children’s education and attitudinal behaviour. The study’s setting was Isenge Primary School, Pasiansi Ward, in the city of Mwanza. A total of 1,183 pupils were involved where 133 were randomly interviewed. The attitudes of the pupils were assessed by the Child and Adolescent Social Perception Measure (CASP). Results showed that the pupils’ attitudinal behaviours were substantially influenced by violent Television programmes and video games.

Reexamining the Findings of the American Psychological Association’s 2015 Task Force on Violent Media: A Meta-Analysis

In 2015, the American Psychological Association (APA) released a task-force technical report on video-game violence with a concurrent resolution statement linking violent games to aggression but not violent crime. The task-force report has proven to be controversial; many scholars have criticized language implying conclusive evidence linking violent games to aggression as well as technical concerns regarding the meta-analysis that formed the basis of the technical report and resolution statement. In the current article, we attempt a reevaluation of the 2015 technical report meta-analysis. The intent of this reevaluation was to examine whether the data foundations behind the APA’s resolution on video-game violence were sound. Reproducing the original meta-analysis proved difficult because some studies were included that did not appear to have relevant data, and many other available studies were not included. The current analysis revealed negligible relationships between violent games and aggressive or prosocial behavior, small relationships with aggressive affect and cognitions, and stronger relationships with desensitization. However, effect sizes appeared to be elevated because of non-best-practices and researcher-expectancy effects, particularly for experimental studies. It is concluded that evidence warrants a more cautious interpretation of the effects of violent games on aggression than provided by the APA technical report or resolution statement.

Humanitarianism and black female bodies: violence and intimacy at the Moroccan–Spanish border

ABSTRACT Around Ceuta and Melilla, progressive Moroccan migration policies implemented since 2013 have not produced much positive change, as political, diplomatic and economic issues take over, producing a violent game of borders, both material and symbolic, racialised and gendered. Through an ethnographic approach, this article addresses the issue of violence experienced by migrants from Central and West Africa on the Moroccan–Spanish border, emanating from humanitarian and religious actors. Based on two and a half years of field research in Morocco (mainly in Rabat and in the North) and the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, with a special attention to embodied experiences of the border, this contribution shows that the humanitarianism practiced in a border town in Northern Morocco is also a space for updating relations of race and gender, which can, contrary to its claims, lead to even greater constraints on the mobility of people, notably women, being ‘helped’, and can reproduce a racialised and gendered order at the border. This contribution also proposes to reconnect this contemporary violence to history and underline the coloniality of such humanitarianism.

Exploring the Effects of Violent Video Games on Healthcare Trainees

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.

“Brutal Kill!” Violent video games as a predictor of aggression

Abstract In recent years, many international studies have investigated the relationship between violent games and violence, aggressiveness and delinquent behavior, but there are scarce studies in Brazil on the subject. The aim of this research was to investigate the relationship between dispositional behavior and antisocial behavior correlated with the playing of violent content video games. A total of 249 high school students participated in the study, of which 154 were women and 95 were men, aged 13-20 years (M = 15.4, DP = 1.12), who responded the following scales: Big Five Inventory, Buss and Perry Aggression Questionnaire, Antisocial and Criminal Behaviors Questionnaire and a new Scale of Video Games Violence. The regressions performed indicated that the violent games, antisocial behavior, anger and sex were predictors for physical aggression. In conclusion, the study confirms the hypothesis of the General Aggression Model on human aggression in which violent games are associated with aggressive behavior.

Video Game Violence and Interactivity: Effect or Equivalence?

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.

A Conceptual Critique of the Use of Moral Disengagement Theory in Research on Violent Video Games

Moral disengagement refers to cognitive processes of misrepresenting immoral acts in order to justify them. Research on moral disengagement factors in violent video games assumes that the digital representation of violence in video games is meaningfully similar to the cognitive misrepresentation of immoral acts that defines moral disengagement. Thus, the story worlds of violent video games are thought to misrepresent violence as being justified in order that players may morally disengage from their violent actions. This article challenges the moral disengagement perspective on violent video games by demonstrating its empirical reliance on a conceptual misunderstanding: The story worlds of most video games are not representational; they do not deviously misrepresent an underlying reality against which players ought rightfully to judge their own in-game conduct. Rather, video games simply present a story world that is as real or unreal as the violence that occurs within it. Therefore, moral disengagement theory is not readily applicable to the story worlds of video games. The article proceeds to show how this misconception leads researchers to draw empirically false and topically fraught conclusions about how players perceive and respond to violence in video games. Thus, the article challenges the moral disengagement literature’s claim to meaningfully inform the pervasive debates surrounding violent video games.

The function of video game violence: Training, discipline, and hybridity

The function of video game violence: Training, discipline, and hybridity

Interactive Visualization of Data on the Impact of Violent Games on the Behavior of Children and Adolescents: Action Research

Introduction: The purpose of the present study is to graphically and comprehensively illustrate the data on the impact of violent video games on the behavior of children and adolescents. Materials and Methods: This visualization system was designed based on the Schneider principle using the results of a clinical study carried out by psychologists at the Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, United States that included 242 children aged 8 to 12 years in three groups. All groups played different versions of the Minecraft game, then using data recorded in an Excel file on the Figshare site, four variables were depicted. The variables including finding the gun, length of time the gun was held, the number of trigger pulls, as well as demographic or control characteristics of age and gender of the children were evaluated. Results: Visualization was designed in the Processing software environment and it was easy to compare the three groups using the color, shape, and coordinate channels. Accordingly, it appeared that violent behaviors in children who experienced gun play were greater than those played the sword; both of them showed more violent behaviors compared to the group who played the non-violent version. Violent behaviors were also more prevalent in male children in all three groups. In other words, girls in the 8-12 age group in all three groups were less likely to exhibit post-game aggression. Conclusion: In this study, data on the impact of violent video games on the behavior of children and adolescents were graphically and comprehensibly visualized based on the Schneider Principle and revealed that violent behaviors in children who experienced violent video games were higher than those in the control group. Violent behaviors were also more prevalent in male children in all three groups.

A welcome, adrenaline-inducing distraction

Doom Eternal involves killing demons, but the evidence suggests violence in video games has no real effect on behaviour in the real world, says Jacob Aron

The Law and Science of Video Game Violence: What Was Lost in Translation?

There are a variety of challenges to making good use of scientific evidence in the courts, including the challenge of translating scientific evidence into something understandable, accurate, and as complete as necessary for the courts to render a sensible decision. This paper examines the use of scientific evidence in the set of cases involving legislative restrictions on minors’ access to violent video games, an issue that eventually reached the Supreme Court in Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association (2011). Although some of the typical problems associated with scientific evidence were not present in these cases, the courts, on the whole, still did a mediocre job of assessing the evidence. The video game violence cases reinforce the conclusion that the translation of scientific evidence is a significant challenge for the courts, though the higher quality analysis by the one judge who presided over a trial suggests that courts may better understand scientific evidence when they rely less on lawyers to translate it.

Gamification of Violence in Analog (Tabletop) Thematic Games: Splices, Wrinkles, and Translation Gaps

Modern tabletop (analog) games are riding a wave of popularity being a part of "resisting the digital” trend. First of all, imaginary worlds of media franchises become represented in tabletop games with their specific ways of creating interactive narrative and gaming algorithms. Secondly, tabletop games address complicated issues and concepts of today’s world. The authors aim to examine specific ways of representing violence in tabletop games, with plots already employed by pieces of different types of media. The authors believe that the hybrid nature of modern tabletop (analog) games involves a hybrid methodology, including phenomenology, hermeneutics, procedural rhetoric, the ideas of R.Kayua, M.Wolf, L.Manovich. The concept of violence is analyzed with reference to V. Podoroga, А. Usmanova, S. Zizek, V. Benjamin. The result of the study is a comprehensive description of the representation of violence in board-themed games. The authors argue that violence is represented in tabletop games at several levels and in different forms: narrative violence, visual violence, symbolic violence, etc. The study indirectly confirms the non-autonomy of the game process, the dependence of the game narrative on the experience of acquaintance with the "imaginary world.”
 Keywords: media theory, game studiеs, boardgames, tabletop games, violence

The effect of video games on positive and negative cognitions

Os efeitos dos videogames atraíram a atenção de muitos pesquisadores em psicologia, especialmente quando se sugere comportamentos agressivos relacionados a jogos violentos. Os jogos com conteúdo pró-sociais despertaram menos atenção, mas as pesquisas na área revelam que os jogos pró-sociais aumentam as cognições positivas e que os jogos violentos aumentam a incidência de cognições agressivas. O objetivo do atual estudo foi verificar o efeito de jogos violentos e pró-sociais sobre as cognições dos jogadores dentro de dois dias de experimentos. Para este fim, 30 participantes estudantes de graduação jogaram durante 20 minutos um tipo de jogo em cada dia de experimento e responderam a uma tarefa de associação livre de palavras para categorizar suas cognições em positivas ou negativas. Os principais achados mostraram que os jogos violentos aumentaram a ocorrência de cognições negativas, mas os jogos pró-sociais não aumentaram as cognições pró-sociais. Por fim, essas descobertas são discutidas com base em pesquisas anteriores sobre o efeito de jogos de videogames violentos e pró-sociais.