Individuality in Video Games

Violent video games have been an area of concern for the researchers and the general public alike for decades. However, research methodology and results have been inconsistent, and tend to focus on the effect violent video games have on a player’s real-life actions. While some research correlates playing violent video games with an increase in criminal thinking or desensitization, other research shows that playing violent video games results in a mediating affect. 

Nonetheless, as video games evolve, so do their role in society. For instance, McKernan (2010) analyzed coverage of video games in The New York Times from 1980 to 2010.  His analysis found that video games were described as a societal threat in earlier years (the 80s and 90s), but their descriptions evolved in the 2000s, leading to an acceptance of video games as a form of art.

Researchers’ focus has also evolved. Recently, how players’ personality traits affect interactions with video games has become a topic of interest. One area of thought is that certain individual characteristics may make specific players vulnerable to violent video games.

Markey and Markey (2010) focused on players’ levels of psychoticism and the relation to violent video games. The researchers’ definition of psychoticism is conceptualized as an individual who tends to be “cold, lacking in sympathy, unfriendly, untrustworthy, odd, unemotional, unhelpful, antisocial, and paranoid” (p. 82). Their results found that players with a higher level of psychoticism tended to react more aggressively and hostile after being exposed to violent video games.

This research raises another pertinent question: If a player’s personality traits affect the way video games influence real-life interactions, how do they affect the way a player interacts within a video game? Joeckel, Bowman, and Dogruel (2012) examined the decision-making processes of players during gameplay. They found that participants tended to make decisions within video games by following their moral instincts. However, when game cues present an immoral environment, they will likely follow the corrupt avenue in an effort to enjoy gameplay within the virtual world parameters.

Future research will be key when determining what type of role video games play in popular culture, as well as psychology. There are many aspects that are continuously being explored, but more information regarding in-game interactions with moral decision-making processes, and how personality traits inform those interactions, will offer insight into the importance of this popular art form on players and the general public.

References

Joeckel, S., Bowman, N. D., & Dogruel, L. (2012). Gut or game? The influence of moral intuitions on decisions in video games. Media Psychology, 15, 460-485.

Markey, P. M. & Markey, C. B. (2010). Vulnerability to violent video games: A review and integration of personality research. Review of General Psychology, 14(2), 82-91.

McKernan, B. (2013). The morality of play: Video game coverage in The New York Times from 1980 to 2010. Games and Culture, 8(5), 307-329.

Schulzke, M. (2010). Defending the morality of violent video games. Ethics of Information Technology, 12, 127-138.

Welcome to my video game blog

For this blog, I am planning on focusing on the concept of morality in regards to video games. The main question I would like to investigate is: How does an individual's personality traits and personal morality affect gameplay?

The idea of personal choice has been increasingly embedded in video games. From the games that I have played, there seems to be two different kinds of personal choice video games: binary and non-binary.

When I refer to games with a binary morality, I am describing those games that give you two options within the storyline. More specifically, you have the choice of whether to be a hero or a villain, or, in other words, good or evil. The Infamous game series is an example of binary moral choice in video games. In this series, the storyline and power-ups will change depending on whether the player decides to be a hero or a villain.

Non-binary moral choices are the decisions that players make within a game that are not "black and white" and don't have "correct" answers in regards to good and evil, or hero and villain, tropes. These choices, similar to binary choices, have an effect on storyline and character progression. TellTale's The Walking Dead video game series is an example of a video game series that includes non-binary choices. While choices in this game series do not necessarily make the player good or evil, they have long-lasting effects within the game, as well as future installments in the series.

I have read a couple of studies on the subject of individuals' morality and its effects on gameplay, however I have barely scratched the surface. Learning more about how morality, and, in turn, personality traits, affect gameplay is an important area of research. Not only will it provide an insight into how video games reflect each individual, but it may also provide an avenue to further research in areas such as game development, video game addiction diagnoses and treatment, video game marketing, and many others.