Criminal Justice and Behavior

 

Advanced Search

Journal Navigation

Journal Home

Subscriptions

Archive

Contact Us

Table of Contents

Click here to register today!

Click here to register today!

Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Saved Citations
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Add to My Marked Citations
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Ferguson, C. J.
Right arrow Articles by Smith, S. M.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati  
What's this?
Criminal Justice and Behavior, Vol. 35, No. 3, 311-332 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/0093854807311719
© 2008 American Association for Correctional and Forensic Psychology

Violent Video Games and Aggression

Causal Relationship or Byproduct of Family Violence and Intrinsic Violence Motivation?

Christopher J. Ferguson

Texas A&M International University, CJFerguson1111{at}aol.com

Stephanie M. Rueda

Texas A&M International University

Amanda M. Cruz

Texas A&M International University

Diana E. Ferguson

Texas A&M International University

Stacey Fritz

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

Shawn M. Smith

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

Two studies examined the relationship between exposure to violent video games and aggression or violence in the laboratory and in real life. Study 1 participants were either randomized or allowed to choose to play a violent or nonviolent game. Although males were more aggressive than females, neither randomized exposure to violent-video-game conditions nor previous real-life exposure to violent video games caused any differences in aggression. Study 2 examined correlations between trait aggression, violent criminal acts, and exposure to both violent games and family violence. Results indicated that trait aggression, family violence, and male gender were predictive of violent crime, but exposure to violent games was not. Structural equation modeling suggested that family violence and innate aggression as predictors of violent crime were a better fit to the data than was exposure to video game violence. These results question the common belief that violent-video-game exposure causes violent acts.

Key Words: computer games • violent crime • aggression • personality • family violence


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?