Effects of Computers and Video games on Behaviour Flashcards
In exams ‘research’ means…
Studies and/ or theories
Two key negative effects of video games
- Violent games may cause aggressive behaviour
- Violent games may damage social relationships
Anderson & Dill (2000) first study
METHOD:
- Lab experiment comparing the effects of Wolfenstein (violent game) and Myst (non-violent game)
- 210 psychology undergraduates played the violent or non-violent game
- They then played a game where they could blast an opponent with white noise
RESULTS:
-Participants who played Wolfenstein gave longer blasts of white noise than those who played Myst, they also scored higher on ‘aggression accessibility index’ which is a measure of how quickly they respond to aggression
CONCLUSION:
-This suggests that playing violent video games increases aggressive behaviour in the short term by encouraging aggressive thoughts.
Anderson & Dill (2000) second study
METHOD:
- 227 psychology undergraduates completed questionnaires to measure trait aggression and delinquency
- They also completed questionnaires about their five favourite video games, assessing how often they played them and how violent they were
RESULTS:
-The scores for exposure to video games correlated positively with those for trait aggression and for delinquency, both aggressive and non-aggressive
CONCLUSION:
-The researchers suggest that these longer lasting effects come about because violent games content teaches aggressive attitudes and ways of behaving, leading to personality changes.
Weber et al. (2006)
- Male participants were placed in am fMRI scanner and played a violent video game.
- Part of the brain which is used to generate empathy was less active during violent game play
- This (along with previous research) suggests that playing violent video games leads to desensitisation
Evaluation of research into the effect on aggressive behaviour
- Lab experiment increases internal validity as it ensures all extraneous variables are controlled
- Using matched pairs ensures that there is an equal number of violent children in each group
- Using an fMRI scanner gives biological evidence that the children are experiencing violent brain activity
- The ‘blaster’ could act as a buffer and so the children may be more likely to be aggressive as they couldn’t see the inhumanity and so it could lack validity
- Publication bias: when findings are significant they are more likely to be published, then the non-significant findings so therefore there is a biased picture of the studies
Description of research into the damaging effect on social relationships
Padilla Walker et al. (2009) found in a survey of 813 university students that as the amount of time playing video games went up, the quality of relationships with parents and peers went down.
Evaluation of research into the damaging effect on social relationships
- This is only an association so direct effect is unclear; may cause poorer relationships as it causes young people to remove themselves from social settings, or they may have already been struggling with social relationships and so turned to video games as an escape.
- Valkenburg and Peter propose the internet-enhanced self-disclosure hypothesis: shy and self-conscious adolescents will find it easier to disclose things about themselves online, because they are less worried about their appearance and social status, and self-disclosure contributes greatly to relationship formation.
Two key positive effects of video games
- Relaxing and pro-social games may cause pro-social behaviour
- Active games like Wii sports may encourage physical activity
Whitaker and Bushman (2011)
METHOD:
- 116 college students played either a violent, neutral, or relaxing video game for 20 minutes. They then completed a mood questionnaire.
- The experimenter then announced the she needed help sharpening some pencils. The number of pencils that participants chose to sharpen was to measure pro-social behaviour
RESULTS:
- Participants who played the relaxing video games chose to sharpen more pencils then those in the other conditions and rated themselves as feeling happier and more positive.
- Those who reported more positive emotions also sharpened more pencils
CONCLUSION:
-The study suggest that relaxing video games put people in a good mood, and when people are in a good mood they are more inclined to help others.
Evaluation of Whitaker and Bushman
- Relaxing video games were rated, by a separate group as being just as enjoyable as the neutral and violent games
- However, the violent games were rated as much more violent and the relaxing games as much more relaxing
- Only correlational data; no cause and effect
- Sharpening pencils is not a difficult task; not a valid way of measuring pro-social behaviour.
- Lacks population validity (college students)
Gentile et al (2009)
METHOD:
- Nearly 2000 Japanese children, aged between 10 and 17 completed two questionnaires; each was done twice with a 3-4 month time span between the two assessments
- They rated how often they played the two types of pro-social scenes. Using the same 5 point rating scale they also rated how often in the previous month they had done all four helpful behaviours
RESULTS:
- Statistical analysis showed that the amount of pro-social gaming at time 1 had a causal effect on amount of PSB at time 2 and amount of PSB at time 1 had a causal effect on amount of PSB at time 2.
- This supported a bi-directional relationship between two variables.
Evaluation of Gentile et al.
- Longitudinal study; able to show a causal relationship
- Strong sample size, but lacks population validity; Japanese culture may vary
- Range of behaviours in scale is limited; subjective scale
- Social desirability bias; more inclined to say they helped someone. -> validity issues over the findings.
Description of research into the effect on physical activity- Mellecker et al. (2008)
-They compared heart rate and calorie expenditure in children while playing various types of games and during rest. Compared the resting condition 39% more calories were burned during the seated bowling game, 98% during the active bowling game, and 451% more during the active running game.
Evaluation of Mellecker et el.
- Such games have potentially important practical implications in helping to prevent obesity.
- However it is difficult to come to a conclusion because of individual differences. For people keen on real sport, this is a better option: playing real sport burns off four times as much calories. However a benefit to video games is that they can help develop the confidence to start playing the sport. e.g. improving co-ordination skills and rule knowledge
