Teens that play violent video games tend to cheat more and have lesser self control, a new study finds.
Many previous studies have linked playing of violent video games to an increase in aggressive behavior, especially among younger children and teen. A new study adds another adverse effect of playing such games. Teens that play violent video game tend to cheat more and have lesser self control, according to a new press release.
Participants for the study included 172 Italian high school students, aged 13 to 19. Each participant was made to play either a violent or non-violent video game for 35 minutes after practicing for 10 minutes. During the experiment, a bowl containing 100 gm of M&M chocolate candies were placed near the computer of each participant. They were told that they could eat as many candies as they wanted but were also informed that eating too many candies in a short period of time was unhealthy for them.
Researchers noticed that the participants who played violent video games ate thrice as many candies as did the participants who played nonviolent games.
"When people play violent video games, they show less self-restraint. They eat more, they cheat more," Brad Bushman, co-author of the study and professor of communication and psychology at The Ohio State University said in the statement. "It isn't just about aggression, although that also increases when people play games like Grand Theft Auto."
After playing, the participants were asked to complete a 10-item logic test in which they could win one raffle ticket for each question they got right. The raffle tickets could be used to win prizes. The participants were told how many answers they had gotten right and were then asked to take that many raffle tickets from an envelope containing several tickets while no one was watching.
Later, researchers noted that the participants who played violent video games cheated eight times more than the participants who played non-violent games, taking more raffle tickets than they had actually earned.
At the end of the study, Bushman conducted a final experiment to test the aggressiveness of participants after playing video games. Participants were told they were to complete against an unseen partner and the one who won would get the opportunity to blast his opponent with loud noises that were audible through headphones. Researchers observed that the participants who played violent video games chose to blast their opponent with louder, longer lasting sounds than participants who played non-violent video games.
"We have consistently found in a number of studies that those who play violent games act more aggressively, and this is just more evidence," Bushman said.
Participants of the study were also asked to complete the Moral Disengagement Scale, which aims to measure how much people hold themselves to high moral standards in all situations. Researchers found that among participants who played violent games, teens that scored higher in moral disengagement were more likely to cheat, eat more chocolates and act more aggressively. There were no such differences among those who played the nonviolent games.
"Very few teens were unaffected by violent video games, but this study helps us address the question of who is most likely to be affected," Bushman said. "Those who are most morally disengaged are likely to be the ones who show less self-restraint after playing."
Bushman concluded the study by revealing that both males and females were negatively affected by playing the violent games.
