Shooting sprees and acts of terrorism shake public opinion and media agendas eminently as the discourse involves strong emotions like anxiety and fear towards violence against humans. Violent video games might arouse similar emotions to individuals, they are often suspected to be the origin of aggression and violent potential of young and male perpetrators with no perspective and a poor social environment.
Research on violent video games is ubiquitous, yet lacks consensus on the effects of these entertainment products and the level of aggression or other emotions aroused by the consumption of violent media. This study outline proposes to invert the leading question - not to depreciate the wonder of how we step into the real world after we have played violent video games - but to find out how we step into violent video games after we have been shattered by reality.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Literature Review
2.1. Aggression through violent video games and sensitization
2.2. Moral Disengagement
2.3 Interactivity and Realism
3. Methods
3.1. Overview
3.2. Participants
3.3. Stimulus material and procedure
3.4 Measures
4. Expected Results
5. Discussion
6. Conclusion
Research Objectives and Core Themes
The primary objective of this study is to investigate how exposure to real-life violent content influences the gaming experience, moral judgment, and aggression levels of players interacting with violent video games. The research explores whether such real-life context can serve as a sensitizing factor rather than contributing to desensitization.
- Psychological effects of violent video games (VVGs)
- Moral disengagement and ethical standard setting
- Impact of real-life context on media perception
- Influence of Virtual Reality (VR) and immersion on aggression levels
- Experimental design for evaluating player behavior and decision-making
Excerpt from the Book
2.2. Moral Disengagement
When it comes to judging someone’s own actions and therefore determining the ethical correctness of these actions, people refer to ethical standards they have established for themselves. If an individual evaluates a certain situation to be embedded in an extraordinary moral context, the self-view of one’s ethical standards may not apply in this particular context (Bandura, 1999). This concept of a Moral Disengagement hence finds itself to be a predestinated theory for VVG research. Experiments indicated moral judgement of violent behavior in VVGs to be connected to its context. When a game situation is perceived as such and further is familiar, guilt and judgement of players towards their in-game actions tend to be less negative (Hartmann & Vorderer, 2010).
When players of VVGs are exposed to real life content after playing the game, their judgment differs about their violent in-game actions as well as actual criminal actions of real life scenarios they are being confronted with. A study by Lee, Peng & Klein about this matter revealed that players might judge their own virtual criminal actions to be less negative when they read about a similar crime stemming from a real life context. Furthermore these crimes are also perceived as more tolerable and players would propose a minor sentence to the perpetrators of these violent crimes compared to people who did not play the VVG beforehand. The study hence suspects some kind of desensitization of moral judgement through VVGs (Lee, Peng & Klein, 2010).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Presents the research gap regarding how real-life context influences gaming experiences and introduces the central question of whether players can be morally sensitized through exposure to real-life violence.
2. Literature Review: Discusses existing research on aggression in video games, the theory of Moral Disengagement, and the roles of interactivity and realism in shaping player behavior.
3. Methods: Outlines a 2x2 mixed experimental design involving four groups, testing the effects of real-life content exposure and VR immersion on players' reactions to a specific violent game mission.
4. Expected Results: Proposes that exposure to real-life violence will influence how players judge in-game actions, hypothesizing that this context might decrease aggression levels, particularly within immersive VR settings.
5. Discussion: Examines the implications of the study for social policy, media education, and the responsibility of game designers in fostering moral standards rather than mere aggression.
6. Conclusion: Summarizes the need for further research into context-aware gaming and notes the limitations regarding the chosen stimulus material and the requirement for robust empirical testing.
Keywords
Violent video games, Moral Disengagement, aggression, sensitization, Virtual Reality, real-life context, media effects, General Aggression Model, ethical standards, interactive media, player behavior, immersion, psychological effects.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this study?
The study investigates the psychological impact of violent video games, specifically focusing on how exposure to real-life violent content can potentially sensitize players and alter their moral judgment regarding in-game actions.
What are the central thematic fields?
The work combines media psychology, aggression research, ethics (Moral Disengagement theory), and gaming technology, specifically analyzing the interaction between virtual environments and real-world perceptions.
What is the primary research question?
The research asks to what extent players of violent video games can be morally sensitized through prior exposure to real-life violence.
Which scientific methodology is proposed?
The author proposes a 2x2 mixed experimental design that involves testing different participant groups under conditions of real-life content exposure and varied immersion levels, specifically using a mission from the game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
What is addressed in the main body?
The main body covers the literature review on aggression and Moral Disengagement, the setup of the experimental study, the expected outcomes based on previous findings, and a discussion of the practical implications for society and the gaming industry.
Which keywords define this work?
The work is characterized by terms such as Violent video games, Moral Disengagement, aggression, sensitization, Virtual Reality, and media effects.
Why is the "No Russian" mission from Call of Duty used?
The author uses this specific mission because it requires the player to navigate a highly unethical situation, allowing researchers to measure whether the player chooses to participate in violence or abstains based on prior exposure to real-life context.
How does the study view the role of VR?
The study hypothesizes that highly immersive settings like VR may amplify the sensitization effect, potentially leading to a decrease in aggression levels compared to standard desktop gaming.
What is the significance of the "inverted approach" mentioned?
The inverted approach challenges the traditional view that violent games necessarily cause aggression; instead, it tests whether real-life contexts can reverse this effect by forcing players to engage with their internal moral standards.
- Quote paper
- Julian Marx (Author), 2016, Moral (Dis-)Engagement. How real life context can sensitize players of violent video games, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/355931
