Violent games relax players

Posted on Monday, April 07 2008 @ 0:15 CEST by Thomas De Maesschalck
A study conducted by Jane Barnett and her colleagues at Middlesex University suggests violent video games make gamers less angry and have a relaxing effect:
The study was conducted by Jane Barnett and her colleagues at Middlesex University, who recruited 292 male and female gamers aged 12 to 83 to play World of Warcraft. The players were asked to complete a questionnaire on anger, aggression and personality before playing the game for two hours, after which they took the test again.

In their results, the psychologists found that participants were more likely to feel calm or tired after playing, though there were differences depending on age, sex and personality.

"There were actually higher levels of relaxation before and after playing the game as opposed to experiencing anger but this did very much depend on personality type," said Barnett. "This will help us to develop a emotion and gaming questionnaire to help distinguish the type of gamer who is likely to transfer their online aggression into everyday life."
More info at Shacknews.


About the Author

Thomas De Maesschalck

Thomas has been messing with computer since early childhood and firmly believes the Internet is the best thing since sliced bread. Enjoys playing with new tech, is fascinated by science, and passionate about financial markets. When not behind a computer, he can be found with running shoes on or lifting heavy weights in the weight room.



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