Violent and nonviolent video games differentially affect physical aggression for individuals high vs. low in dispositional anger

Engelhardt, Christopher R.; Bartholow, Bruce D.; Saults, J. Scott

doi:10.1002/ab.20411

Cited by 32 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 37 publications

(49 reference statements)

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“…As such, we predict involvement of the OFC since it appears to be specifically involved in response to repeated media violence [18], [19]. Individual differences in brain and behavior during visual media viewing can be further understood in the context of self-reported affective states and autonomic responses (or lack thereof) [20], [21]. For example, self-reported distress and systolic blood pressure changes were observed in response to viewing violent media [1], [21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Reactions to Media Violence: It’s in the Brain of the Beholder

et al. 2014

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Media portraying violence is part of daily exposures. The extent to which violent media exposure impacts brain and behavior has been debated. Yet there is not enough experimental data to inform this debate. We hypothesize that reaction to violent media is critically dependent on personality/trait differences between viewers, where those with the propensity for physical assault will respond to the media differently than controls. The source of the variability, we further hypothesize, is reflected in autonomic response and brain functioning that differentiate those with aggression tendencies from others. To test this hypothesis we pre-selected a group of aggressive individuals and non-aggressive controls from the normal healthy population; we documented brain, blood-pressure, and behavioral responses during resting baseline and while the groups were watching media violence and emotional media that did not portray violence. Positron Emission Tomography was used with [18F]fluoro-deoxyglucose (FDG) to image brain metabolic activity, a marker of brain function, during rest and during film viewing while blood-pressure and mood ratings were intermittently collected. Results pointed to robust resting baseline differences between groups. Aggressive individuals had lower relative glucose metabolism in the medial orbitofrontal cortex correlating with poor self-control and greater glucose metabolism in other regions of the default-mode network (DMN) where precuneus correlated with negative emotionality. These brain results were similar while watching the violent media, during which aggressive viewers reported being more Inspired and Determined and less Upset and Nervous, and also showed a progressive decline in systolic blood-pressure compared to controls. Furthermore, the blood-pressure and brain activation in orbitofrontal cortex and precuneus were differentially coupled between the groups. These results demonstrate that individual differences in trait aggression strongly couple with brain, behavioral, and autonomic reactivity to media violence which should factor into debates about the impact of media violence on the public.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Reactions to Media Violence: It’s in the Brain of the Beholder

et al. 2014

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“…which has been widely used in previous video-game research (see Elson et al, 2015;Engelhardt, Bartholow, & Saults, 2011;Hasan et al, 2013).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In actuality, participants were shown a prerecorded video of a confederate, similar to one used in previous research (see Engelhardt et al, 2011). An experimenter went over all CRTT instructions and showed participants examples of low-intensity (Level 1), mediumintensity (Level 5), and high-intensity (Level 10) noise blasts lasting 1 s each, in order to demonstrate that the noise blasts were aversive.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Violent-Video-Game Exposure on Aggressive Behavior, Aggressive-Thought Accessibility, and Aggressive Affect Among Adults With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder

et al. 2015

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Recent mass shootings have prompted the idea among some members of the public that exposure to violent video games can have a pronounced effect on individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Empirical evidence for or against this claim has been missing, however. To address this issue, we assigned adults with and without ASD to play a violent or nonviolent version of a customized first-person shooter video game. After they played the game, we assessed three aggression-related outcome variables (aggressive behavior, aggressive-thought accessibility, and aggressive affect). Results showed strong evidence that adults with ASD, compared with typically developing adults, are not differentially affected by acute exposure to violent video games. Moreover, model comparisons provided modest evidence against any effect of violent game content whatsoever. Findings from this experiment suggest that societal concerns that exposure to violent games may have a unique effect on adults with autism are not supported by evidence.

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“…According to Engelhardt, Bartholow, and Saults (2011), the participants high in trait anger were the most aggressive in physical aggression, but only if they first played a violent video game. The differentiation between the two groups in the post-exposure scores in the current study support these claims.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A study showed that violent video games affect the players exposed to this medium by increasing their physical aggression when high in trait anger (Engelhardt, Bartholow, & Saults, 2011). In addition, Przybylski, Deci, Rigby, and Ryan (2014), found "that competence-impeding play led to higher levels of aggressive feelings, easier access to aggressive thoughts, and a greater likelihood of enacting aggressive behavior" (p. 441).…”

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confidence: 99%

Effects of Media with Violent Content on College Students’ Aggressive Reaction

Narvaez¹,

Elsner²

2016

JPR

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The effect of media violence on aggression levels was explored and related to increases in aggression levels based on personality traits. In this study, 78 undergraduate students were divided into a control group (violent video) and an experimental group (non-violent video) using a 2×2 factorial design (two video clips, two aggression inventories). The participants completed a pre-test Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire and the Mini-IPIP prior to being exposed to one of the two video clips. Afterwards the video exposure, the participants completed a post-test Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire. Analysis of the participants' data (n = 78), showed verbal aggression and conscientiousness approached significance, F(1, 77) = 3.750, p < 0.057, as did verbal aggression and agreeableness, F(1,77) = 3.796, p < 0.055. A significant difference was found in anger with neuroticism, F(1,77) = 7.577, p < 0.008. Overall anger and aggression levels pre-and post-exposure were closely related, indicating that some were already angry and aggressive t(77) = 2.3769, p < 0.020. Furthermore, control and the experimental groups only approximated significance in physical aggression F(1,77) = 3.832, p < 0.054. Contrary to previous studies, exposure to violence did not increase aggressive behavior as hypothesized; however, these findings showed that violence in media had an effect on the factor of anger and a difference between both groups in physical aggression.In addition, exposure to violence had an effect on specific personality traits of participants, such as agreeableness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism.

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Violent and nonviolent video games differentially affect physical aggression for individuals high vs. low in dispositional anger

Cited by 32 publications

References 37 publications

Reactions to Media Violence: It’s in the Brain of the Beholder

Reactions to Media Violence: It’s in the Brain of the Beholder

Effects of Violent-Video-Game Exposure on Aggressive Behavior, Aggressive-Thought Accessibility, and Aggressive Affect Among Adults With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder

Effects of Media with Violent Content on College Students’ Aggressive Reaction

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