Stop or Go? Playing Violent Games Reduces Inhibitory Control in Adolescents

Międzobrodzka, Ewa; Waiyaki, F; Buczny, Jacek; Konijn, Elly A.

doi:10.31234/osf.io/2anrt

Cited by 1 publication

(8 citation statements)

References 63 publications

(129 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…While the results of Study 2 (Chapter 2) showed no effects of violent gaming on inhibitory control, the correlational Study 1 suggested that higher exposure to violent video games was related to better (and not worse) inhibitory control in adolescents. This result is not in line with our earlier research on inhibitory control among adolescents (Miedzobrodzka et al, 2021b), suggesting that both habitual VVGE and short-term exposure to violent gaming may be related to, and result in, respectively, weaker inhibitory control. Possible explanations of these inconclusive findings are: (1) use of different stimuli: neutral (arrows; Miedzobrodzka et al, 2021b) versus emotional faces (angry or disgusted;…”

Section: Theoretical Implications: Inhibitory Controlcontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…This result is not in line with our earlier research on inhibitory control among adolescents (Miedzobrodzka et al, 2021b), suggesting that both habitual VVGE and short-term exposure to violent gaming may be related to, and result in, respectively, weaker inhibitory control. Possible explanations of these inconclusive findings are: (1) use of different stimuli: neutral (arrows; Miedzobrodzka et al, 2021b) versus emotional faces (angry or disgusted;…”

Section: Theoretical Implications: Inhibitory Controlcontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…The RIM model could link exposure to violent video games to inhibitory control, by assuming that repeated and automatic violent actions in video games may underlie problems with inhibitory control. Based on the above, an integration of these three theories (I3, GAM, and RIM) offers more in-depth explanation for how and under which circumstances violent video game exposure may relate to changes in inhibitory control and underlie behavioural outcomes, including aggressive behaviour (Miedzobrodzka et al, 2021b). Moreover, such integration could be also extended to other social-cognitive outcomes of interest.…”

Section: Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further, short-term exposure to a violent (vs. nonviolent) movie resulted in a similar effect in adults: better inhibitory control in response to others' emotional expressions. However, similar research in adolescents is lacking, and the only studies in a similar context, but with neutral (not emotional) stimuli, found weaker inhibitory control related to habitual exposure to violent video games or as a result of short-term violent gameplay (Miedzobrodzka et al, 2021b). Therefore, to formulate our expectations regarding inhibitory control as an underlying mechanism of aggression in the VVGE context, we integrated insights from three theories: the General Aggression Model (GAM; Allen et al, 2018;Anderson & Bushman, 2002), the Reflective Impulsive Model (RIM; Strack & Deutsch, 2004), and the I 3 theory (Slotter & Finkel, 2011; see Figure 4).…”

Section: Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…VVGE = Violent Video Game Exposure; GAM = General Aggression Model; RIM = Reflective Impulsive Model; I 3 = I 3 theory (Impellance, Instigation, Inhibition). Adapted from Miedzobrodzka et al, (2021b).…”

Section: Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Traces of Violent Video Gameplay in Adolescent Development

Międzobrodzka¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The possible effects of violent video gameplay on adolescents are intensely debated, highlighting the difficulties in the violent media research. The current dissertation posits that media may sort effects in more subtle and less direct ways than thus far studied. It employed a novel perspective to investigate the possible effects of violent video games on adolescents’ social outcomes, by looking beyond aggression and by focusing on four social-cognitive skills: emotion recognition, inhibitory control, perspective-taking, and empathy for pain. The development of these skills is particularly salient during early adolescence. If such development would be disturbed by exposure to violent video games, it may underlie antisocial behavior. Integration of insights from media psychology, developmental psychology, and neuroscience led to an expectation that exposure to violent video games would be negatively related to and would have a negative impact on the four social-cognitive skills. To investigate how exposure to violent video games may influence these social-cognitive skills, we took a multi-level approach, by investigating possible effects on a self-report level (questionnaires), a behavioral level (reaction times), and a brain level (ERP responses). To test our hypotheses, we performed four studies employing various study designs: correlational, experimental, and quasi-experimental in different adolescent samples and in one young adult sample. The outcomes of this project indicated that the possible impact of violent video game exposure on adolescents’ social-cognitive skills is limited and may be observed only in terms of short-term effects: less accurate perspective-taking and lower empathy for pain reactions measured immediately after the game. Further, habitual exposure to violent video games was related to lower empathy for pain reactions, but only in young adults, not in adolescents. Contrary to our expectations, more frequent habitual exposure to violent video games was related to better inhibitory control over emotional expressions in adolescents. Moreover, we also tested the possible effects of exposure to antisocial content in other media, beyond video games, and found that it was related to less accurate emotion recognition and lower empathy for pain reactions in adolescents. While this project brings new insights which could enrich scientific and public debates on violent media effects on youth, future longitudinal studies are needed to better understand possible ‘traces’ of violent video games in adolescent development, considering individual developmental trajectories and differences between young people.

show abstract

Section: Theoretical Implications: Inhibitory Controlcontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Theoretical Implications: Inhibitory Controlcontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%