In search of the player: Perceived game realism and playing styles in digital game effects

Violent video games, in particular shooting games such as Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto , are a favourite pass time for a growing group of adolescents and (young) adults. Because of their violent nature, these games are subject to strong social criticism. Especially when severe acts of violence are committed as was the case with the crimes of Anders Breivik or the school shootings in the United States of America violent video games are often at the centre of criticism. Following the increased societal fear about the impact of virtual violence, the relationship between violent video games and attitudinal and behavioural changes has become a topic of academic interest. One recurrent point of discussion within this type of research concerns the specific role of the user in an interactive medium such as digital games. Although most video game effects research to date has attributed a strong theoretical importance to the interactive nature of game play, thetrend to empirically examine and incorporate player activity in video game effects research is recent. With this doctoral dissertation, we aim to contribute to this research tradition by examining aspects of the player-game relationship and incorporating these aspects in research on the relationship between exposure to virtual violence and desensitization to violence.In Part I of this dissertation, the medium-specificrelationship between a game and a player is discussed, as well as the extent to which this relationship has been accounted for in existing video game effects research. Using insights from literary theory, filmtheory, game studies, and game design, we conceptualize the player-gamerelationship as a process of negotiation that takes place at two levels. On the one hand, players need to interpret the message, just as is the case for traditional media. On the other hand, players actively contribute to the meaning of a game by providing the game system with input based upon their own preferences and dispositions. As a result, video games consist of dynamic models from which meaning is created through interaction with players.In line with the abovementioned conceptualization of game play, research on the relationship between exposure to violent video games and aggression-related outcomes has been criticized for paying too little attention to player activity. In this doctoral dissertation, we identify three domains of investigation related to the player-game relationship that are relevant from a media effects studies point of view: configuration, involvement, and perceptions. In addition, we discuss alternative theoretical frameworks in which the emphasis is on personality characteristics and environmental strains as causes of aggression. In Part II of this dissertation, we present our own contribution to understanding, conceptualizing, and operationalizing the player-game relationship. We focus our attention on playing styles and perceived game realism, two subjects that have, both from a conceptual and operational point of view, only sporadically been accounted for in previous research but nonetheless bear strong relevance to video game effects research. First, we address the claim that avideo game cannot be described in terms of one single, consistent text,but should be investigated as a virtual space of possibilities , enabling players to construct an individual trajectory. By means of qualitative diaries, video commentary models, and focus group interviews wemap the various ways in which young male adults interact with, shape, and experience the content of shooting games. The results of this study confirm the theoretical observation that players construe a personal playing style, even while engaging with the same title. Consequently, players may ascribe different qualities to the acts of violence they perform. Based upon the data, we identify several concepts (e.g. strategic involvement, narrative justification, pace, ) that may impact the relationship between exposure to virtual violence and aggression-related outcomes. In addition to an examination of the variousways in which players construe their playing style, we address the claim that players perceptions of the reality that is presented in a game cannot be understood in terms of representational judgements only, but that players also think about video games as dynamic, rule-based systems when judging a game. More specifically, we incorporated the medium-specific characteristics of game play in the explication of perceived game realism. By means of a series of quantitative surveys, we identify five dimensions of perceived game realism: simulational realism, freedom, (character) involvement, social realism, and perceptual pervasiveness. This five-factor solution strengthens the theoretical framework presented in Part I of this dissertation by confirming that, besides the audio-visual characteristics, the characteristics that relate to player activity are constructive of a game s overall reality impression. In Part III of this dissertation, we examine whether the player-game relationship, and more specific playing styles and perceived realism, can be used to better understand the relationship between exposure toshooting games and desensitization to violence. Because several researchers have emphasized that the influence of violent media should not be discussed in isolation of other risk, protective, or buffering factors, we also take into account personality characteristics and environmental factors. Results from a cross-sectional survey (N = 1846 adolescent boys) indicate that concepts related to the way in which players experience and process violent content, as well as personality and environmental factors, are better predictors of desensitization to violence than mere exposure to violent video game content. The results support a multifactorial approach to understanding aggression. Specifically with regard to video game effects research, we believe it is fruitful to shift focus from mere exposure to violent video game content to the intensity of the game play experience in order to arrive at a proper understanding of why and how video games may affect individuals.status: publishe