Human-like rivals lead to aggression in video game players

Video games that pit players against human-looking characters may be more likely to provoke violent thoughts and words than games where monstrous creatures are the enemy, according to a new study.
Researchers at the University of Connecticut and Wake Forest University asked 148 participants to play the first-person shooter Quake 3 Revolution, in which the gamer battles onscreen opponents whose appearance can range from human-like to completely non-human, such as a giant floating eyeball.
Kirstie Farrar, associate professor of communication at UConn and the lead researcher on the study and colleague Rory McGloin, an assistant professor-in-residence, along with Wake Forest professor Marina Krcmar, a former UConn faculty member, then used a series of tests to measure participants' levels of verbal, cognitive, and physical aggression.

Participants who battled what they perceived as human-looking characters in the game were more likely to have aggressive thoughts and words than those who had shot down monstrous nonhuman characters.
"The more human players perceived the aggressive targets to be, the more verbally aggressive they were and the more violent words they generated," the study said.
"Although we predicted that less human targets would result in more aggression, players seemed to be more aggressive after perceiving more human targets," it added.

The prospect that fighting human-looking characters can provoke more aggression than unleashing violence against characters with no real-world counterparts could have implications for debates over gaming, especially as video games become more sophisticated and immersive, Farrar said.

The study also noted there was no significant increase in levels of physical aggression after fighting human-looking video game characters, something that suggests social prohibitions against violent acts remain strong.
"It's important to think in terms of risk factors. The research clearly suggests that, among other risk factors, exposure to violent video games can lead to aggression and other potentially harmful effects," said Farrar.
The study was published in journal Mass Communication and Society.