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THE CONNECTION BETWEEN VIDEO GAMES AND THE

DEVELOPMENT OF TEENAGE AGGRESSION

RESEARCH PAPER

ST. AUGUSTINE SCHOOL OF NURSING

LAS PINAS

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN NURSING

NENITA M. DURAN
Researcher

MRS. JULIET B. BATAC

Instructor
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THE CONNECTION BETWEEN VIDEO GAMES AND THE

DEVELOPMENT OF TEENAGE AGGRESSION

RESEARCH PAPER

In partial fulfilment
of the requirements in Nursing Research I

NENITA M. DURAN
January 2023
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ABSTRACT

This study determined the connection between video games and the

development of teenage aggression. The research found that real-life violent

gameplay was positively related to aggressive behavior and delinquency. The

relation was stronger for an individual who is characteristically aggressive for

men. The study provides evidence that the use of violent video games

increases the risk for adolescents to trigger aggressive cognition and even

behavior while playing. The General Aggression Model demonstrate used to

determine the factors in the immediate situation combined with factors of

participant's perception in video games. The study assessed the level of

aggression of 12 participants and their perception in video games. Using

descriptive research design, The General Aggression Model, and statistical

treatments such as; percentage; mean; Likert scale the objectives were

attained.

The researcher had found out the connection between video games and

the development of teenage aggression according to their aggression

questionnaire results. The result of the study shows that men are more likely

to experience aggression when playing a real-life violent video game under

the long period of time. While women tend to only play a nonviolent game

and become more less aggressive in playing games.

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THE CONNECTION BETWEEN VIDEO GAMES AND THE

DEVELOPMENT OF TEENAGE AGGRESSION

Nenita M. Duran

INTRODUCTION

Adolescence is a stage period that begins the development and

transition from puberty to adulthood. As individuals discover and develop a

personal identity, learn to manage peer interactions, and transition to

independence, adolescence is associated with explosive emotions and

boundary-testing behavior. Teenage years are more likely to be spent

exploring how to form person's character in the future.

In today’s world, where technology has been continuously developing,

nearly all young people are drawn in playing video games. Video games have
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grown in popularity, raising major concerns about the potential harmful

impacts of their recreational activities.

According to Anderson and Bushman, that a violent video games has a

direct lead to increase the individual’s aggression. Based on the General

Aggression Model, teenagers' aggression is substantially predicted by

extensive exposure to violent video games. (Anderson, 2001)

Statement of the Problem

Today's world is mostly comprised of technology. We have been

submerged in a world of high definition electronics in a very short period of

time, but the negatives have also become a concern, particularly among young

people.

Specifically, this study sought to answer the following problems;

1. What are the direct effects of video games on teenagers?

2. How can video games affect adolescents behavioral

development?

3. How can video games leads to aggression?

Objectives of the Study

The research has the general aim of understanding the effects of video

games and their recreational activities on the development of their behavior

specifically their aggression.

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Specially, aimed to:

1. to determine the direct effects of video games on teenagers;

2. to analyze the influence of video games to adolescents

behavioral development; and

3. to explain how the video games leads to aggression.

Significance of the Study

The significance of this study lies from the developmental period that

has been addressed, which is adolescence, that signifies the transition from

early childhood to adulthood and is responsible for the growth of adolescent

behavior and personality development. It educates the society specially

the parents, educational leaders, instructors, and official authorities in charge

of regulating the games, as well as children, about the violent conduct

associated with video games. Therefore, it can serve as guide by determining

which video game are safe for character development of adolescents.

Researchers would also benefit in this study since it would serve as a

guide in understanding and creating advance research with the same ideas and

concern in the future.

Scope and limitations of Study

This study focuses on the effects of recreational video games on the

development of teenage adolescents. The data collection will be conducted

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with 10 participants that are game players between the ages of 15 to 25. This

study will not cover other problems that are not considered part of the

development of adolescent aggression. The study would be done through

online with the use of google forms questionnaire to the participants as a

survey and reference. By their response researchers will be able to know the

connection between video games and the development of teenage aggression.

Definition of Terms

Aggression is an action or behavior that uses threats or force against

others.

Game players is a player in a game is a person who takes part, either

as a job or fun.

Recreational activity is an actions that are performed solely for the

enjoyment, pleasure and amusement of individuals.

Online game is a game that are played over some form of computer

network, most often internet. It can range incorporating complex graphics and

virtual worlds populated by many players simultaneously.

Video game is an electronic game in which players control images on

a video screen.
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Theoretical Framework

Figure 1. The researcher used the general aggression model as its basis.

It is a comprehensive and integrative conceptual model that incorporates

many social, cognitive, and developmental theories to facilitate knowledge

and study on human violent behavior. GAM includes several theories,

including cognitive neither any theory, social learning theory, and behavioral

program theory. This theory can be divided into two groups of related

processes. Proximate processes are those that are directly associated with

aggressive conduct. Distal processes are those that have a long-term

aggressive behavioral tendency and impact brief processes. (Brad Bushman,

2011)
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Conceptual Framework

Participants Gender, age

demographic and email The
status address connection
between video
Player’s game Game
games and the
interest status/details development
of teenage
Physical aggression
Aggression Buss and Perry
Subscale Aggression
Questionnaire

Figure 2. It illustrates the conceptual framework of the connection

between video games and the development of teenage aggression. The figure

shows the analysis flow that begins with the demographic status, participants

game interest and physical aggression questionnaire. Each piece of

information was gathered and compiled to associate the impact of video game

and the development of teenage aggression.

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REVIEW OF RELATIVE AND LITERATURE

This chapter consists of literature, articles, and studies of different

authors and researchers that describe the overall approach of the study about

the connection between video games and the development of teenage

aggression.

Video games

Over the last decade, the popularity of video games has exploded.

According to 2020 data, 43 million gamers led the exceptional expansion in

the Philippine gaming industry and across Southeast Asia, with 74% of the

Philippine online gaming population playing on mobile devices, 66% on PC

games, and 45% on classic console games. (A game well-played, 2022) A

rising amount of research has shown good uses for video games, such as

minimizing posttraumatic stress disorder flashbacks, alleviating chronic pain,

and teaching health care personnel. (Wang & Katz, 2016). They have also

been found to support student learning by stimulating their engagement in

field observations, improve visual-spatial cognition, arithmetic,

memorization, leadership, and team functioning. Gamers have been found to

play for a variety of reasons. In a qualitative study, found problematic play

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was a response to life stress where using video games excessively was a

diversion that lead to problems.

Online games

According to a DFC Intelligence analysis, the global online gaming

industry is expected to expand from to $3.4 billion in 2005 to more than $13

billion in 2011, showing a possible growth in the number of online game

participants. With a noticeable increase in the number of online game

consumers, online games have attracted suppliers approaching the industry.

Due to the large number of Internet users, the chance for online-only game

firms to enter the online gaming industry has arisen, making the marketplace

more competitive for existing players. How to keep existing online gaming

customers and recruit new ones has caught the attention of practitioners and

academics alike. (DFC Intelligence, 2006). According to the research,

customer satisfaction is the most important element influencing consumers'

loyalty to suppliers. (Cronin, Brady, & Hult, 2000) Similarly, in a B2C

channel satisfaction model or an online shopping satisfaction model,

contentment is seen as an essential construct since it influences participants'

incentive to stick with the channel and is viewed as a predictor of repurchase.

(Devaraj, Fan, & Kohli, 2002).

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Aggression among Adolescents

Among all developmental phases, adolescence is regarded as a critical

time that must be examined. Adolescents may be a gift to society if their

conduct is appropriately regulated and their energy is properly channeled.

India is a developing country, and its youth are currently engaged in illegal

activities. Physical assault, acid attack, killing, threatening, shooting,

committing suicide, terrorism, and other anti-social behaviors; and

aggressiveness is ultimately accountable for all of these behaviors, which is

not healthy for society. In our everyday lives, we see media accounts of

physical assault, acid assaults, aggressive threats, surprise hostility, and a

variety of other types of attacks. Violence is the most serious

psychopathological risk factor in children and adolescents, affecting their

social, psychological, and physical well-being. Aggression in social

psychology refers to behaviors that are produced in order to harm another

person. Aggressiveness is classified into two types: instrumental aggression

and hostile aggression. While instrumental aggression is used to achieve a

goal or purpose, hostile aggression is used to harm others and includes two

forms of overt violence (physical and verbal) as well as social hostility.

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Online game as a tool for career development

“Man only plays when in the full meaning of the word he is a man, and

he is only completely a man when he plays.” Johann Friedrich von Schiller.

Today, the growing availability of low-cost technology has created a large

field for a virtual parallel to real life. Some people just utilize this technology

to tackle problems that they previously solved using traditional methods,

while many use it for much more. We can encounter every level of devotion,

from having an unusual internet acquaintance to folks who hardly operate

outside of virtual world. People who transcend the boundaries between actual

and virtual life find themselves in really novel circumstances that merit

scientific investigation. A widespread misconception regarding gaming is that

it is detrimental to job advancement, but we can show that it may also have

numerous benefits such as stress release and learning if done in moderation,

just like any other activity. Similarly, the cliché of the lonely gamer at home

is no longer accurate, as many of them now utilize gaming as a very natural

aspect of their social life, seamlessly crossing the borders between the real

and virtual worlds, even meeting new real life friends and lovers through

online acquaintances.
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METHODOLOGY

Research Design

The researcher will use descriptive type of study in order to know the

connection between video games and the development of teenage aggression.

Descriptive Research is a systematic investigation which aims to solve

problems by attaining numerical data and knowing the relationship of

variables using statistical techniques.

Researchers will use the descriptive research design to provide

relatively-systematic complete information concerning the study as it will

present the status of the given variables. Specifically, it will give a knowledge

of the adolescent perception and behaviors towards playing video games.

Respondents of the Study

This study’s participants will be the online game player ages 15 to 25.

They will be answering the survey voluntarily through online google form.

Overall, 12 participants completed this questionnaire, including 9 Male and 3

Female.

Data Gathering Procedure

The questionnaire used the Buss and Perry Aggression Questionnaire

(BPAQ). It consists of 29 self-administered items rated on a 5 point Likert

scale. It includes physical aggression, verbal aggression, anger and hostility.

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The score for each scale is the sum or the ratings for its items. The researcher

will distribute the survey form thru Facebook Messenger to the participant.

After the responses have been collected, for chapter 4 and 5, the

researcher will construct a tally to submit it to statistical interpretation and

evaluate and discuss the results.

Data Analysis

The research method will be divided into two parts; the demographic

profile of the participants and the participants game interest or information.

And for the last part is the Buss and Perry Aggression Questionnaire, it

focuses on the behavior of the participants. To identify, the researcher will

employ the Likert scale shown below.

Scale Range Men Women

Physical Aggression 9-45 24.3 17.9

Verbal Aggression 5-25 15.2 13.5

Anger 7-35 17.0 16.7

Hostility 8-40 21.3 20.2

Total score 29-145 77.8 68.2

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RESULT AND DISCUSSION

This chapter presents the results and findings on the responses from

the 12 participants who were surveyed for the purpose of the study. The

chapter also presented the results through tables and the discussion of the

analysis.

Demographic Profile and Game interest of the Participants

Table 1 shows that the most of the participants were Male with 75%,

followed by Female with 25%. According to most statistics, the number of

female gamers is not much lower than that of their male counterparts. A lot of

games have a predominantly male audience. This is because most games are

marketed so that they appeal more to men. Over 95% of games have male
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protagonists, and those with a female are often highly exaggerated and are

portrayed as a symbol of innocence and love only. (Hunink, 2022)

Table 2 shows that 66.7 percent of the participants answered often

while 33.3 percent are rarely. The result indicates that among the 12

participants, it shows that most of them tend to play more often. According to

a new global poll, video gamers spend roughly eight hours and 27 minutes

each week playing games, a 14 percent rise over 2020. According to Limelight

Networks, 44 percent play more than seven hours per week, and 25% play

more than 12 hours per week. (Combs, 2021).

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Table 3 shows that 50 percent of participants feel aggression when playing

video games while 33.3 percent answered do not feel aggression. 16 percent

of the participants sometimes feel aggression while playing video games.

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VIDEO GAMES
Call of Duty Mobile Legends Valorant Non violent games

3, 13%

7, 29%

5, 21%

9, 37%

Table 4 shows that the game Mobile Legend was the most played game with

37 percent or 9 persons among 12 participants playing it. While Call of Duty

had 29 percent or 7 persons playing this game. The result indicates that

participants are more interested in playing real-life or violent video games.

The 3 nonviolent game answered by 3 female participants and the violent real-

life game was played by all male participants.

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Scale Range Women Percentage Men Percentage

Physical Aggression 9-45 18 40 28.2 62.6

Verbal Aggression 5-25 7 28 17.1 68.4

Anger 7-35 13 37.1 21.2 60.5

Hostility 8-40 17.3 43.2 29 75.5

Total score 29-145 55.3 36.7 95.5 65.8

Table 5 shows that the 3 female participants do not feel aggressiveness while

playing a nonviolent game having 55.3 scores for total aggression indicating

that female player are less aggressive. Men having 95.5 total scores for the

general aggression questionnaire, it shows that men are more aggressive while

playing games regardless of age.

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CONCLUSION

Violent video games provide a forum for learning and practicing

aggressive solutions to conflict situations. The effect of violent video games

appears to be cognitive. In the short term, playing a violent video game

appears to affect aggression by priming aggressive thoughts. Longer-term

effects are likely to be long-lasting as well, as the player learns and practices

new aggression-related scripts that become more and more accessible for use

when real-life conflict situations arise. In particular, participants who use

violent video game show more externalizing problems, more aggression, and

more avoidant coping strategies compared with participants who do not use

violent video game show.

The findings of our study, of course, cannot be considered definitive

because we could not control for the effect of other potential mediating

variables such as the child's general attitude toward aggressiveness in his or

her family and proximal environment, the degree of parental involvement in

children's play with VGs, the child's or preadolescent's cognitive

development, or more broadly the child's temperament and personality traits.

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REFERENCES

A game well-played. (2022, April 30). Retrieved from The Manila Times:
https://www.manilatimes.net/2022/04/30/entertainment-lifestyle/life-
times/a-game-well-played/1841858
Anderson, C. A. (2001). Effects of violent video games on aggressive
behavior, aggressive cognition, aggressive affect, physiological
arousal, and prosocial behavior: A meta-analytic review of the
scientific literature. Psychological science, 353-359.
Brad Bushman, C. A. (2011). The General Aggression Model: Theoretical
Extensions to Violence. Psychology of Violence, 246.
Combs, V. (2021, March 10). 8 hours and 27 minutes. That’s how long the
average gamer plays each week. Retrieved from Techrepubblic:
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/8-hours-and-27-minutes-thats-
how-long-the-average-gamer-plays-each-week/
Cronin, J., Brady, M., & Hult, T. (2000). Assessing the effects of quality,
value, and customer satisfaction on consumer behavioral intentions in
service environments. Journal of Retailing, 193-218.
Devaraj, S., Fan, M., & Kohli, R. (2002). Antecedents of B2C Channel
Satisfaction and Preference: Validating e-Commerce Metrics.
Measuring e commerce in Net enabled organizations, 316-333 .
DFC Intelligence. (2006, June). Retrieved from
http://www.dfcint.com/news/prjune62006.html
Hunink, M. (2022, December 21). Why Are There More Male Gamers Than
Female? Retrieved from Farmingless: https://farmingless.com/why-
are-there-more-male-gamers-than-female/
Wang, R., & Katz, D. (2016, February). Stimulation in Healthcare. Retrieved
from A Systematic Review of Serious Games in Training Health Care
Professionals:
https://journals.lww.com/simulationinhealthcare/Fulltext/2016/02000/
A_Systematic_Review_of_Serious_Games_in_Training.6.aspx