Effects of reward and punishment in prosocial video games on attentional bias and prosocial behaviors

Yin, Mengyun; Qiu, Boyu; He, Xu; Tao, Zhiyuan; Zhuang, Chengrong; Xie, Qiheng; Yu, Tian; Zhang, Wei

doi:10.1016/j.chb.2022.107441

Cited by 7 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…An a priori power analysis using G*Power (version 3.1.9.7; Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf) was conducted to estimate the sample size. Based on data from Yin et al [ 18 ] (n=40), which compared 2 independent groups on the same task, the minimum effect size in that study was 0.77. With a significance level of α=.05, Cohen d =0.77, and power=.80, the minimum sample size needed with this effect size was 56 for the independent samples 2-tailed t tests used in this study.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The study used a video game adapted from the one used by Yin et al [ 18 ], where participants played the role of a first-year college student facing diverse situations based on college life. The content that the participants encountered in the scenarios was neutral (ie, not including hurting or helping behavior, to avoid in-game hurting or helping content from affecting postgame maze choices) and related to daily life at college, such as choosing which clubs to join, what they chose to wear out, and what sports they were involved in after class.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Notably, the results of the Tangram Task have been found to correlate significantly with aggression and prosocial behaviors measured through scales and laboratory tasks [ 21 ]. In some countries, students may be unfamiliar with tangrams, so Yin et al [ 18 ] suggested using mazes instead to measure helping and hurting behaviors.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Relationship Between Cognitive Resource Consumption During Gameplay and Postgame Aggressive Behaviors: Between-Subjects Experiment

Teng,

Zhu,

Zhang

et al. 2023

JMIR Serious Games

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Background The question of how video games can shape aggressive behaviors has been a focus for many researchers. Previous research has focused on how violent video game content leads to postgame aggressive behaviors. However, video games not only convey violence or prosocial content to players but also require cognitive effort from individuals. Since human cognitive resources are limited, consuming more cognitive resources in a game leads to less cognitive resources to suppress aggressive impulses. Therefore, the depletion of cognitive resources from playing video games may also lead to changes in postgame aggressive behaviors. Objective This study aimed to examine the relationship between cognitive resources consumed in video games and postgame aggressive behaviors. Methods A total of 60 participants (age: mean 20.22; range 18-24 y) were randomly assigned to either the high-load group or the low-load group. Participants from both groups played a video game centered around college life. In the low-load group, participants followed the gameplay instructions to complete it. In the high-load group, participants were given an extra digital memory task to complete while playing the game. Participants in both groups played the video game for about 25 minutes. A maze selection task was then conducted to measure the participants’ helping and hurting behaviors. Results The independent samples 2-tailed t tests showed that the high-load group had significantly higher hurting scores (mean 3.13, SD 2.47) than the low-load group (mean 1.90, SD 2.12; t58=−2.07, P=.04; Cohen d=−0.535), whereas helping behaviors were not significantly affected (t58=1.52, P=.13; Cohen d=0.393). Conclusions As more cognitive resources are consumed in a video game, more hurting behaviors are exhibited after the game. This finding proposes an alternative route by which video games impact aggressive behaviors, adding to previous theories and raising concerns about the popularity of cognitive training games.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Relationship Between Cognitive Resource Consumption During Gameplay and Postgame Aggressive Behaviors: Between-Subjects Experiment

Teng,

Zhu,

Zhang

et al. 2023

JMIR Serious Games

Self Cite

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show abstract

“…In economic behavior, consumer purchasing decisions are motivated by the interplay between the perceived benefits of goods and the risks of financial detriment [79], while businesses balance the prospects of profit against the risks of adverse outcomes in their strategic considerations. Social conduct, too, is moderated by the potential for community endorsement or social exclusion [80,81]. In conclusion, a comprehensive understanding of the roles that both rewards and punishments play is essential to improving decision-making mechanisms.…”

Section: A B Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multifactorial effects on bounded rational decision-making

Han,

2024

EPL

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Conventional models of decision-making are predicated upon the notion of rational deliberation. However, empirical evidence has increasingly highlighted the pervasive role of bounded rationality in shaping decisional outcomes. The manifestation of bounded rationality is evident through a spectrum of cognitive biases and heuristics, including but not limited to anchoring, availability, the decoy effect, herd behavior, and the nuanced dynamics of reward and punishment, as well as the implications of weighting and framing effects. This prospective study is dedicated to a comprehensive exploration of such multiple factors together with their impacts to the architecture and functionality of decision-making processes, and their further research potentials as well.

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“…To our knowledge, only two studies (Carnagey & Anderson, 2005;Yin et al, 2022) have directly addressed the effects of feedback when examining the association between video games and aggressive or prosocial behaviors. In Carnagey and Anderson's (2005) study, three groups of participants played three modes of the same racing game.…”

Section: Evidence Of the Function Of Feedback In Video Gamesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Video Games Should Not Be Studied as Media That Only Passively Transmit Social Information

Qiu,

Zhang

2024

Preprint

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There is a close connection between video games and social life, and researchers are interested in whether and how video games shape aggression and prosocial behaviors. However, there are great inconsistencies across studies on this topic. These mixed results may be due in part to a focus on learning models that were relevant in research on traditional media like television but are less useful in research on video games. Unlike other media, video games are characterized by frequent game-player interactions and immediate feedback, and there is evidence that in-game rewards and punishments can shape aggressive or prosocial behavior inside and outside the game. We argue that reinforcement learning may help us to understand the effects of video games on aggressive and prosocial behaviors, and propose a conceptual model based on this argument.

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Effects of reward and punishment in prosocial video games on attentional bias and prosocial behaviors

Cited by 7 publications

References 40 publications

The Relationship Between Cognitive Resource Consumption During Gameplay and Postgame Aggressive Behaviors: Between-Subjects Experiment

The Relationship Between Cognitive Resource Consumption During Gameplay and Postgame Aggressive Behaviors: Between-Subjects Experiment

Multifactorial effects on bounded rational decision-making

Video Games Should Not Be Studied as Media That Only Passively Transmit Social Information

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