Media influences: effects of computer games

Question 1

What is media?

Answer 1

• communication channels like TV, film & books which make news, entertainment etc available

Question 2

What are computer games?

Answer 2

• games that are generally played on screen using a key board, mouse or controller

Question 3

What may aggressive behaviour be linked to based on whose findings?

Answer 3

• viewing ‘excessive’ amounts of TV regardless of whether the content is violent or not
• Robertson et al > measured TV viewing hours of over 100 NZ up to the age of 26 years (longitudinal)
• researcher found that the time spent watching TV in childhood & adolescence was a reliable predictor of aggressive behaviour in early adulthood (convictions for aggressive crimes)

Question 4

What is excessive amounts of TV linked to?

Answer 4

• reduced social interaction and poorer educational achievement
  > the link between aggression and excessive viewing may be indirect

Question 5

What is said to be the most significant media influence on aggressive behaviour and what was found to support this?

Answer 5

• violent content
• Bandura et al > replicated their earlier study, except children watched a film of the bobo doll being beaten by an adult model on a screen
• found that children imitated the aggressive behaviour of the model > SLT principle operate through media as well as face to face

Question 6

What was found about TV/film effects?

Answer 6

• Paik & Comstock carried out a meta-analysis about 200 studies
• they found a significant positive correlation between viewing TV/film violence & antisocial behaviour
• but argued it accounted for between 1-10% of the variance in children’s aggressive behaviour > minor role for TV & film

Question 7

Why does computer games have more powerful effects than traditional screen based media?

Answer 7

• player takes a more active role compared to a relatively passive viewer
• game playing is more directly rewarding for the player (positive reinforcement)

Question 8

What two measures for aggression are used?

Answer 8

• Taylor competitive reaction time task (TCRTT) > delivering blasts of white noise at chosen volumes
• correlational studies

Question 9

What was found in lab studies of aggression using TCRTT?

Answer 9

• Bartholow & Anderson found that students who played violent computer games for 10 minutes selected significantly higher volumes of white noise than students who played a non-violent golfing tour

Question 10

What was found in correlational studies of aggression?

Answer 10

• DeLisi et al > several measures of aggression is positively correlated with time spent playing violent games e.g. in juvenile offenders
• argues that the link is well established that aggression should be considered a public health issue & computer game violence a significant risk factor

Question 11

What is a limitation of research into media influences of aggression?

Answer 11

• aggression is defined in various ways
• e.g. the DV in studies is violent behaviour (DeLisi), volume of white noise blasted at an opponent (B & A) & criminal convictions
• Violence & aggression are not exactly the same behaviour > all violence is aggression but not all aggression is violent & not all aggression & violence’s are necessarily criminal
• effects found depend on how aggression is defined
• aggression hard to compare in studies

Question 12

What is a counterpoint of the limitation that aggression is defined in different ways?

Answer 12

• Meta-analyses can help to overcome this problem
• Anderson et al conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis of 36 studies defining aggression in different ways (behaviours, thoughts, feelings)
• found that exposure to violent computer games was associated with increases in all outcome measures of aggression
• therefore meta analyses that include various definitions of aggression are a valid method for uncovering effects of aggression

Question 13

What is another limitation of research into the effects of computer games?

Answer 13

• has many unsupported conclusions
• firstly many of the research studies are methodologically weak (e.g. CV’s, poor sampling methods)
• meta analyses are also not perfect on the basis of GIGO > if poor quality studies are included the analysis will be poor quality
• secondly, many studies are correlational so cause & effect conclusions are unjustified
• Thirdly, experimental studies lack external validity ( unrealistic measures of aggression)
• researchers guilty of drawing premature conclusions based on findings that lack validity

Question 14

What is strength of research into the effects of computer games?

Answer 14

• findings can be explained using SLT
• Andrerson et al > present SLT as a convincing theoretical framework
• note that it is widely accepted that exposure to violence at home is harmful to children & TV & computer games are sources of social learning
• children are more likely to imitate aggressive behaviours when they see them being rewarded (VR) & identify with on screen characters
• unifying explanation to account for findings > enhancing validity