Finding the Difference in Change of Aggression Between the Sexes After Playing Violent Video Games By: Rustin Casteel Advisor: Terri Lenox

outline History of violence in video games Previous research Gender differences in video games Testing for aggression experiment

HISTORY OF VIOLENCE IN VIDEO GAMES Death Race (1976) first controversial violent video game Removed from shelves due to controversy 1993 Congressional hearing that focused on violent video games such as DOOM and Mortal Kombat Resulted in the formation of the ESRB 1997 lawsuit involving the Heath High School shooting Columbine Massacre (1999) Led to studies into whether violent video games cause an increase in aggression APA study from 2015 confirmed link between violent video games and aggression

Previous research ‘Effects of Violent Video games on Behavior: Potential Sex Differences’ By Bartholow and Anderson Used TCRTT to measure aggression Found males were more aggressive

Gender differences in video games Study found that video games are aimed more towards males Males outnumber females in ads 3 to 1 Study by Erica Scharrer Males represented more as playable characters Study by James D. Ivory Males and females play video games for different reasons Males prefer competitive games while females prefer social interaction Study by By M. H. Phan, J. R. Jardina, & W. S. Hoyle

Testing for aggression Taylor Competitive Reaction Time Test Ferguson, C.J. & Rueda, S.M. J Exp Criminol (2009) Hot Sauce Test Lieberman, Joel D., Sheldon Solomon, Jeff Greenburg, and Holly McGregor State Hostility Scale Craig A. Anderson

The Experiment Used two video games, one ‘violent’ and the other ‘non-violent’ Games were gender neutral Applied State Hostility Scale to participants Attempted to recruit participants who did not habitually play video games Those who habitually play may be desensitized to the violence

The experiment Administered questionnaire to 50 students (25 male, 25 female) Questionnaire involved questions about participants experience with playing video games Invited 10 of each gender with the least experience playing video games Half of each gender played the violent game while the other half played the non-violent game Administered State Hostility Scale Had participants watch a short YouTube clip to return them to normal

Questionnaire results Games selected 140 (non-violent) PixelJunk Shooter (violent) More willingness to participate in experiment from those with experience playing video games Few responses from those with lack of experience

Hypotheses Males playing the violent video game will have a greater increase in aggression than females Those playing the non-violent video game will see no change in aggression

Results Males Violent Game Average Before: 64 Average after: 81 Average Change: +17 Non-Violent Game Average Before: 62 Average after: 75 Average Change: +13 females Violent Game Average Before: 55 Average after: 63 Average Change: +8 Non-Violent Game Average Before: 52 Average after: 57 Average Change: +5

Possible problems The non-violent game might have been considered more difficult than the violent game, causing more frustration Should have had participants rate difficulty after playing Those with experience playing video games had an easier time playing than those who didn’t have experience

Sources "APA Review Confirms Link Between Playing Violent Video Games and Aggression." American Psychological Association. N.p., 13 Aug. 2015. Web. 23 Sept. 2016. Anderson, Craig A., and Bruce D. Bartholow. "Effects of Violent Video Games on Aggressive Behavior: Potential Sex Differences."Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 38.3 (2002): 283-90.ScienceDirect. Web. 30 Sept. 2016. Anderson, Craig A. "State Hostility Scale." (1995): n. pag. Web. 25 Sept. 2016. Ferguson, Christopher J., and Stephanie M. Rueda. "Examining the Validity of the Modified Taylor Competitive Reaction Time Test of Aggression." Journal of Experimental Criminology (2009): n. pag. Web. 26 Sept. 2016. Lieberman, Joel D., Sheldon Solomon, Jeff Greenburg, and Holly McGregor. "A Hot New Way to Measure Aggression: Hot Sauce Allocation." Aggressive Behavior 25 (1999): 331-48. Web. 28 Sept. 2016. "Video Games: Males Prefer Violence While Females Prefer Social." Software Usability Research Lab. N.p., 09 Feb. 2013. Web. 25 Sept. 2016. Ivory, James D. "Still a Man's Game: Gender Representation in Online Reviews of Video Games." Mass Communication & Society 9.1 (2006): 103-14. Web. 23 Sept. 2016. Scharrer, Erica. "Mass Communication and Society." Virtual Violence: Gender and Aggression in Video Game Advertisements: : Vol 7, No 4. N.p., 17 Nov. 2009. Web. 25 Sept. 2016.

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