Effects of transportation into a video game world on aggressive cognitions and behaviors

Abstract

Transportation is the state of being highly immersed within a media world. Two studies examined how transportation into a video game world (via character choice) increases aggressive cognitions and behaviors. Study 1 examined the effects of character choice and presence of blood on aggressive cognitions. It was found that freedom of choice increased aggressive cognitions, but only when blood was present in the game. Study 2 examined the effects of character choice and presence of blood on aggressive behaviors via a noise blast competitive reaction time task. Consistent with Study 1, freedom of choice increased aggressive behavior, but only when blood was present in the game. Furthermore, transportation mediated the relationship between choice and aggressive behaviors. Together, these studies offer investigation of the impact of character choice and transportation in video games and emphasize the importance of transportation within video game research. In doing so, this work introduces a potential moderator and mediator for previously established video game effects and opens the door for future examination of how other attitudes and behaviors might be influenced when playing a video game in a highly transported state.