Psychology Commons^™

The Effects Of Prosocial And Aggressive Videogames On Children's Donating And Helping, John H. Chambers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of prosocial videogames, played both singly and cooperatively, and aggressive videogames, played both singly and competitively, on children's prosocial behavior. Eighty boys and 80 girls, half third and fourth graders, and half seventh and eighth graders, were randomly assigned to one of five conditions. In a control condition, children answered questions about videogame experience and enjoyment. In two of the treatment conditions, children played a videogame with prosocial content (a human-like fantasy character rescuing another from danger); half of the children played this game singly, while the other half played …