The Game Within the Game: The Potential Influence of Demand Characteristics and Participant Beliefs in Violent Video Game Studies

In two experiments, we examined the potential impact of demand characteristics in violent video game (VVG) research. Study 1 (N = 788) measured behavioral aggression, while Study 2 (N = 1,182) measured trait aggression. Participants were informed either that researchers wanted to confirm that VVGs increase aggression (“Positive Hypothesis”) or that VVGs have no effect (“Null Hypothesis”). Study 2 included a third condition where participants were given no information. In both studies, the interaction between VVG exposure and experimental conditions was significant. Whereas VVG exposure was significantly positively associated with aggression in the “Null Hypothesis” condition, it was not in the “Positive Hypothesis” condition. These effects were driven by habitual players responding differently based on the presented hypothesis, appearing less aggressive in the “Positive Hypothesis” condition than in the other two conditions. These findings highlight the importance of addressing demand characteristics in VVG studies.