Citation

Hilgard J, Engelhardt CR, Rouder JN, Segert IL, Bartholow BD. Psychol. Sci. 2019; 30(4): 606-616.

Affiliation

Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri-Columbia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Association for Psychological Science, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1177/0956797619829688

PMID

30843758

Abstract

Researchers have suggested that acute exposure to violent video games is a cause of aggressive behavior. We tested this hypothesis by using violent and nonviolent games that were closely matched, collecting a large sample, and using a single outcome. We randomly assigned 275 male undergraduates to play a first-person-shooter game modified to be either violent or less violent and hard or easy. After completing the game-play session, participants were provoked by a confederate and given an opportunity to behave aggressively. Neither game violence nor game difficulty predicted aggressive behavior. Incidentally, we found that 2D:4D digit ratio, thought to index prenatal testosterone exposure, did not predict aggressive behavior.

RESULTS do not support acute violent-game exposure and low 2D:4D ratio as causes of aggressive behavior.

Language: en

Keywords

Bayesian analysis; aggressive behavior; digit ratio; open data; open materials; violent video games