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Meriläinen M, Ruotsalainen M. The light, the dark, and everything else: making sense of young people's digital gaming. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1164992. [PMID: 37388650 PMCID: PMC10306168 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1164992] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Whether gaming has a beneficial or detrimental effect on young people's lives is a defining feature in both the research and the public discussion of youth digital gaming. In this qualitative study, we draw from a thematic analysis of the experiences of 180 game players in Finland, aged 15-25 years. Utilizing the digital gaming relationship (DGR) theory, we explore how different aspects of gaming actualize in their lives, and how different features of gaming culture participation come together to form their experience. We contend that framing gaming as a balancing act between beneficial and detrimental obscures much of the complexity of young people's gaming, reinforces a partially false dichotomy, and overlooks young people's agency. Based on our results, we suggest alternative approaches that help reduce and avoid these problems.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Maria Ruotsalainen
- Department of Music, Art and Culture Studies, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
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2
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Zhao S, Zhang W. Infamous Gaming: The Intergroup Bias of Non-gamers in the Chinese Marriage Market. Front Psychol 2022; 13:682372. [PMID: 35197891 PMCID: PMC8859252 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.682372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
The link between gaming and negative outcomes has been explored by previous research and has led to the widespread adverse attitude toward gaming (ATG) and gamers, especially from those who are unfamiliar with this activity. By implementing an audit study with gamers and non-gamers as participants (N = 1,280), we found that non-gamer participants rated gamers less as similar to their ideal marriage partners compared to non-gamers, while gamer participants did not differentiate between gamers and non-gamers in the ideal marriage partners similarity rating (IMPSR). The findings also revealed that the difference in IMPSR between gamer and non-gamer participants toward gamers was completely mediated by their ATG. These results imply that non-gamers consider gaming as an undesired characteristic, and this is due to the relatively negative attitude of non-gamers toward gaming. Current study provides a new perspective on exploring the effect of gaming by investigating the social interaction between gamers and non-gamers in real-world and suggests that the unfamiliarity of gaming can lead to the negative ATG, which may, ultimately, place gamers at a disadvantage in the context of mate selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuguang Zhao
- School of Journalism and Communication, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China
| | - Wenjian Zhang
- Institute of Zijin Media Research, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
- *Correspondence: Wenjian Zhang,
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3
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Ferguson CJ, Wang CKJ. Aggressive Video Games Are Not a Risk Factor for Mental Health Problems in Youth: A Longitudinal Study. CYBERPSYCHOLOGY, BEHAVIOR AND SOCIAL NETWORKING 2020; 24:70-73. [PMID: 33252268 DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2020.0027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Recent preregistered studies and analyses have suggested that links between aggressive video games (AVGs) and aggression-related outcomes may have been exaggerated in previous literature. However, concerns about AVGs remain. Although the impact of aggressive games on aggressive behaviors has been the subject of approximately a dozen preregistered studies, the potential impact of aggressive games on the player's mental health symptoms has not been the subject of similar preregistered analyses. In the current study, a sample of more than 3000 youth from Singapore were examined by using preregistered analyses to determine whether early exposure to aggressive games was predictive of anxiety, depression, somatic symptoms, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder 2 years later. Analyses suggested that exposure to AVGs is not a risk factor for later mental health symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - C K John Wang
- National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
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4
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Berdot-Talmier L, Zaouche-Gaudron C. Utilisation des jeux vidéo en réseau par les enfants : motivation, adaptation sociale et affective selon le genre. ENFANCE 2020. [DOI: 10.3917/enf2.203.0375] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
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5
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DeCamp W. Parental influence on youth violent video game use. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2019; 82:195-203. [PMID: 31300079 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2019.04.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2018] [Revised: 04/05/2019] [Accepted: 04/18/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Violent video games have been the subject of much news and analysis. One area of the debate, particularly in legal arenas, has been whether parents have or should have control over what games their children play. Despite such debates, only limited empirical research has examined whether parents actually do have influence over what games their children play or how much they play them. Using cross-sectional data from large-samples of American high-school and middle-school students, this study examines parental influences on violent video game play and the role of perceived parental opinion of violent video games. Results suggest that parental attachment and perceived parental opinion of video games play a significant role in the degree to which youth play violent games, even through later adolescence in high school.
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Affiliation(s)
- Whitney DeCamp
- Western Michigan University, Department of Sociology, 1903 W. Michigan Ave, Kalamazoo, MI, 49008-5257, USA.
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6
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Przybylski AK, Weinstein N. Violent video game engagement is not associated with adolescents' aggressive behaviour: evidence from a registered report. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2019; 6:171474. [PMID: 30891250 PMCID: PMC6408382 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.171474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2018] [Accepted: 01/18/2019] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
In this study, we investigated the extent to which adolescents who spend time playing violent video games exhibit higher levels of aggressive behaviour when compared with those who do not. A large sample of British adolescent participants (n = 1004) aged 14 and 15 years and an equal number of their carers were interviewed. Young people provided reports of their recent gaming experiences. Further, the violent contents of these games were coded using official EU and US ratings, and carers provided evaluations of their adolescents' aggressive behaviours in the past month. Following a preregistered analysis plan, multiple regression analyses tested the hypothesis that recent violent game play is linearly and positively related to carer assessments of aggressive behaviour. Results did not support this prediction, nor did they support the idea that the relationship between these factors follows a nonlinear parabolic function. There was no evidence for a critical tipping point relating violent game engagement to aggressive behaviour. Sensitivity and exploratory analyses indicated these null effects extended across multiple operationalizations of violent game engagement and when the focus was on another behavioural outcome, namely, prosocial behaviour. The discussion presents an interpretation of this pattern of effects in terms of both the ongoing scientific and policy debates around violent video games, and emerging standards for robust evidence-based policy concerning young people's technology use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew K. Przybylski
- Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3JS, UK
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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7
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Madrigal-Pana J, Gómez-Figueroa J, Moncada-Jiménez J. Adult Perception Toward Videogames and Physical Activity Using Pokémon Go. Games Health J 2018; 8:227-235. [PMID: 30339063 DOI: 10.1089/g4h.2018.0100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective: The purpose of the study was to determine perception of videogames and the use Pokémon Go in Costa Rica. Materials and Methods: A national representative sample (n = 1059) of adults aged 18 years and older was chosen to complete a face-to-face survey on videogame perceptions and the use of Pokémon Go. Statistical analyses included 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) around the estimate, multiple regression, cluster, and factor analysis. Results: The 85.2% of the population (n = 866) were familiar with videogames, especially those in the 18- to 29-year age group (96.3%) and college education (94.8%). Perceptions about videogames were negative (Addictive = 89.6%, Violence = 75.5%, Bad for health = 51.3%) and positive (Stimulate mental abilities = 59.6%, Relaxing = 55.2%, Improve family communication = 49.4%); and 28.4% perceived that people without responsibilities played videogames. Perceptions were different by age group and educational level. Age and gender were significant predictors of attitudes toward videogame playing. Pokémon Go was played by 3.9% of those respondents who knew or had heard about videogames, who reported spending 6.7 h/week (95% CI = 3.9-9.5) playing the game, walking 24.7 km (95% CI = 12.5-36.9), and covering 70.4 km (95% CI = 45.3-95.5) by other transportation means. Conclusions: Positive and negative perceptions toward videogames mediated by age and education level were found in a Costa Rican sample. Age and gender predicted attitudes toward videogame playing. A small number of participants played Pokémon Go, which might suggest that this videogame was not engaging in this population.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - José Moncada-Jiménez
- 3 School of Physical Education and Sports, University of Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
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8
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Copenhaver A, Ferguson CJ. Selling violent video game solutions: A look inside the APA's internal notes leading to the creation of the APA's 2005 resolution on violence in video games and interactive media. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LAW AND PSYCHIATRY 2018; 57:77-84. [PMID: 29548507 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijlp.2018.01.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Revised: 01/05/2018] [Accepted: 01/08/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
For decades politicians, parent groups, researchers, media outlets, professionals in various fields, and laymen have debated the effects playing violent video games have on children and adolescents. In academia, there also exists a divide as to whether violent video games cause children and adolescents to be aggressive, violent, and even engage in criminal behavior. Given inconsistencies in the data, it may be important to understand the ways and the reasons why professional organizations take a stance on the violent video game effects debate which may reflect greater expressed certitude than data can support. This piece focuses on the American Psychological Association's internal communications leading to the creation of their 2005 Resolution on Violence in Video Games and Interactive Media. These communications reveal that in this case, the APA attempted to "sell" itself as a solution to the perceived violent video game problem. The actions leading to the 2005 resolution are then compared to the actions of the APA's 2013-2015 Task Force on Violent Media. The implications and problems associated with the APA's actions regarding violent video games are addressed and discussed below.
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Ferguson CJ, Beresin E. Social science's curious war with pop culture and how it was lost: The media violence debate and the risks it holds for social science. Prev Med 2017; 99:69-76. [PMID: 28212816 DOI: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2017.02.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2016] [Revised: 01/20/2017] [Accepted: 02/13/2017] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
For nearly half a century, psychologists, pediatricians and psychiatrists have studied the potential impact of media violence on aggression and societal violence, particularly among youth. Despite hundreds of studies, scholars have failed to find consensus on potential effects. Nonetheless, professional organizations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and American Psychological Association have released policy statements conclusively linking violent media to societal concerns. In reaction, some scholars have accused these professional groups of distorting evidence and failing to inform the public of the inconsistent nature of studies in this field. The current paper reviews recent research on media violence. It concludes that caution is recommended in public statements regarding media effects and that professional groups risk serious reputation damage with policy statements calling for behavioral change without clear reflection of the current evidence-base of the research. Recommendations are provided for practitioners and for science policy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Eugene Beresin
- Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, United States
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10
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Nagendra H, Kumar V, Mukherjee S. Evaluation of cognitive behavior among deaf subjects with video game as intervention. COGN SYST RES 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cogsys.2016.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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11
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Video Gaming and Children's Psychosocial Wellbeing: A Longitudinal Study. J Youth Adolesc 2017; 46:884-897. [PMID: 28224404 PMCID: PMC5346125 DOI: 10.1007/s10964-017-0646-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2016] [Accepted: 02/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The effects of video games on children’s psychosocial development remain the focus of debate. At two timepoints, 1 year apart, 194 children (7.27–11.43 years old; male = 98) reported their gaming frequency, and their tendencies to play violent video games, and to game (a) cooperatively and (b) competitively; likewise, parents reported their children’s psychosocial health. Gaming at time one was associated with increases in emotion problems. Violent gaming was not associated with psychosocial changes. Cooperative gaming was not associated with changes in prosocial behavior. Finally, competitive gaming was associated with decreases in prosocial behavior, but only among children who played video games with high frequency. Thus, gaming frequency was related to increases in internalizing but not externalizing, attention, or peer problems, violent gaming was not associated with increases in externalizing problems, and for children playing approximately 8 h or more per week, frequent competitive gaming may be a risk factor for decreasing prosocial behavior. We argue that replication is needed and that future research should better distinguish between different forms of gaming for more nuanced and generalizable insight.
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Segev A, Rovner M, Appel DI, Abrams AW, Rotem M, Bloch Y. Possible Biases of Researchers' Attitudes Toward Video Games: Publication Trends Analysis of the Medical Literature (1980-2013). J Med Internet Res 2016; 18:e196. [PMID: 27430187 PMCID: PMC4969552 DOI: 10.2196/jmir.5935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2016] [Revised: 06/12/2016] [Accepted: 06/17/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The study of video games is expanding, and so is the debate regarding their possible positive and deleterious effects. As controversies continue, several researchers have expressed their concerns about substantial biases existing in the field, which might lead to the creation of a skewed picture, both in the professional and in the lay literature. However, no study has tried to examine this issue quantitatively. OBJECTIVE The objective of our study was to examine possible systematic biases in the literature, by analyzing the publication trends of the medical and life sciences literature regarding video games. METHODS We performed a complete and systematic PubMed search up to December 31, 2013. We assessed all 1927 articles deemed relevant for their attitude toward video games according to the focus, hypothesis, and authors' interpretation of the study results, using a 3-category outcome (positive, negative, and neutral). We assessed the prevalence of different attitudes for possible association with year of publication, location of researchers, academic discipline, methodological research, and centrality of the publishing journals. RESULTS The attitude toward video games presented in publications varied by year of publication, location, academic discipline, and methodological research applied (P<.001 for all). Moreover, representation of different attitudes differed according to centrality of the journals, as measured by their impact factor (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS The results suggest that context, whether scientific or social, is related to researchers' attitudes toward video games. Readers, both lay and professional, should weigh these contextual variables when interpreting studies' results, in light of the possible bias they carry. The results also support a need for a more balanced, open-minded approach toward video games, as it is likely that this complex phenomenon carries novel opportunities as well as new hazards.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aviv Segev
- Shalvata Mental Health Center, Hod Hasharon, Israel.
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Ferguson CJ, Nielsen RKL, Maguire R. Do Older Adults Hate Video Games until they Play them? A Proof-of-Concept Study. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-016-9480-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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Abstract
Theories regarding the influences of electronic games drive scientific study, popular debate, and public policy. The fractious interchanges among parents, pundits, and scholars hint at the rich phenomenological and psychological dynamics that underlie how people view digital technologies such as games. The current research applied Martin Heidegger’s concept of interpretive frameworks (Heidegger, 1987) and Robert Zajonc’s exposure-attitude hypothesis (Zajonc, 1968) to explore how attitudes towards technologies such as electronic games arise. Three studies drew on representative cohorts of American and British adults and evaluated how direct and indirect experiences with games shape how they are seen. Results indicated this approach was fruitful: negative attitudes and beliefs linking games to real-world violence were prominent among those with little direct exposure to electronic gaming contexts, whereas those who played games and reported doing so with their children tended to evaluate gaming more positively. Further findings indicated direct experience tended to inform the accuracy of beliefs about the effects of digital technology, as those who had played were more likely to believe that which is empirically known about game effects. Results are discussed with respect to ongoing debates regarding gaming and broader applications of this approach to understand the psychological dynamics of adapting to technological advances.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Netta Weinstein
- School of Psychology, Cardiff University , Cardiff , United Kingdom
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15
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Karimpur H, Hamburger K. The Future of Action Video Games in Psychological Research and Application. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1747. [PMID: 26635661 PMCID: PMC4649035 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2015] [Accepted: 10/31/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Harun Karimpur
- Department of Psychology, Experimental Psychology and Cognitive Science, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany
| | - Kai Hamburger
- Department of Psychology, Experimental Psychology and Cognitive Science, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany
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Clinicians’ attitudes toward video games vary as a function of age, gender and negative beliefs about youth: A sociology of media research approach. COMPUTERS IN HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2015.06.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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Ferguson CJ, Barr H, Figueroa G, Foley K, Gallimore A, LaQuea R, Merritt A, Miller S, Nguyen-Pham H, Spanogle C, Stevens J, Trigani B, Garza A. Digital poison? Three studies examining the influence of violent video games on youth. COMPUTERS IN HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2015.04.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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Rothmund T, Bender J, Nauroth P, Gollwitzer M. Public concerns about violent video games are moral concerns-How moral threat can make pacifists susceptible to scientific and political claims against violent video games. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2015. [DOI: 10.1002/ejsp.2125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tobias Rothmund
- University of Koblenz-Landau; Landau Germany
- Technische Universität; Darmstadt Germany
| | - Jens Bender
- University of Koblenz-Landau; Landau Germany
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20
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Abstract
Experiencing social identity threat from scientific findings can lead people to cognitively devalue the respective findings. Three studies examined whether potentially threatening scientific findings motivate group members to take action against the respective findings by publicly discrediting them on the Web. Results show that strongly (vs. weakly) identified group members (i.e., people who identified as "gamers") were particularly likely to discredit social identity threatening findings publicly (i.e., studies that found an effect of playing violent video games on aggression). A content analytical evaluation of online comments revealed that social identification specifically predicted critiques of the methodology employed in potentially threatening, but not in non-threatening research (Study 2). Furthermore, when participants were collectively (vs. self-) affirmed, identification did no longer predict discrediting posting behavior (Study 3). These findings contribute to the understanding of the formation of online collective action and add to the burgeoning literature on the question why certain scientific findings sometimes face a broad public opposition.
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Nauroth P, Gollwitzer M, Bender J, Rothmund T. Social identity threat motivates science-discrediting online comments. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0117476. [PMID: 25646725 PMCID: PMC4315604 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0117476] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2014] [Accepted: 12/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Experiencing social identity threat from scientific findings can lead people to cognitively devalue the respective findings. Three studies examined whether potentially threatening scientific findings motivate group members to take action against the respective findings by publicly discrediting them on the Web. Results show that strongly (vs. weakly) identified group members (i.e., people who identified as "gamers") were particularly likely to discredit social identity threatening findings publicly (i.e., studies that found an effect of playing violent video games on aggression). A content analytical evaluation of online comments revealed that social identification specifically predicted critiques of the methodology employed in potentially threatening, but not in non-threatening research (Study 2). Furthermore, when participants were collectively (vs. self-) affirmed, identification did no longer predict discrediting posting behavior (Study 3). These findings contribute to the understanding of the formation of online collective action and add to the burgeoning literature on the question why certain scientific findings sometimes face a broad public opposition.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jens Bender
- University of Koblenz-Landau, Landau, Germany
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22
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Mitrofan O, Paul M, Weich S, Spencer N. Aggression in children with behavioural/emotional difficulties: seeing aggression on television and video games. BMC Psychiatry 2014; 14:287. [PMID: 25404041 PMCID: PMC4240831 DOI: 10.1186/s12888-014-0287-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2013] [Accepted: 10/01/2014] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mental health professionals are often asked to give advice about managing children's aggression. Good quality evidence on contributory environmental factors such as seeing aggression on television and in video games is relatively lacking, although societal and professional concerns are high. This study investigated possible associations between seeing aggression in such media and the aggressive behaviour of children attending specialist outpatient child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). METHODS In this mixed methods study, forty-seven British children aged 7-11 years with behavioural/emotional difficulties attending CAMHS and their carers participated in a survey; twenty purposively-selected children and a parent/carer of theirs participated in a qualitative study, involving semi-structured interviews, analysed using the Framework Analysis Approach; findings were integrated. RESULTS Children attending CAMHS exhibit clinically significant aggression, of varying types and frequency. They see aggression in multiple real and virtual settings. Verbal aggression was often seen, frequently exhibited and strongly associated with poor peer relationships and low prosocial behaviour. Children did not think seeing aggression influences their own behaviour but believed it influences others. Carers regarded aggression as resulting from a combination of inner and environmental factors and seeing aggression in real-life as having more impact than television/video games. CONCLUSIONS There is yet no definitive evidence for or against a direct relationship between aggression seen in the media and aggression in children with behavioural/emotional difficulties. Future research should take an ecological perspective, investigating individual, developmental and environmental factors. Carers, professional organisations and policy makers should address aggression seen in all relevant area of children's lives, primarily real-life and secondly virtual environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oana Mitrofan
- Academic Clinical Fellow, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Gibbet Hill Road, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK.
| | - Moli Paul
- Academic Clinical Fellow, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Gibbet Hill Road, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK.
| | - Scott Weich
- Academic Clinical Fellow, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Gibbet Hill Road, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK.
| | - Nicholas Spencer
- Academic Clinical Fellow, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Gibbet Hill Road, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK.
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