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Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
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The Effects of Prosocial Video Games on Prosocial Behaviors: International Evidence From Correlational, Longitudinal, and Experimental Studies

Douglas A. Gentile

Iowa State University; National Institute on Media and the Family, Minneapolis, MN, dgentile{at}iastate.edu

Craig A. Anderson

Iowa State University

Shintaro Yukawa

University of Tsukuba, Japan

Nobuko Ihori

Ochanomizu University, Japan

Muniba Saleem

Iowa State University

Lim Kam Ming

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Akiko Shibuya

Keio University, Japan

Albert K. Liau

HELP University College, Malaysia

Angeline Khoo

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Brad J. Bushman

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor; VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

L. Rowell Huesmann

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

Akira Sakamoto

Ochanomizu University, Japan

Although dozens of studies have documented a relationship between violent video games and aggressive behaviors, very little attention has been paid to potential effects of prosocial games. Theoretically, games in which game characters help and support each other in nonviolent ways should increase both short-term and long-term prosocial behaviors. We report three studies conducted in three countries with three age groups to test this hypothesis. In the correlational study, Singaporean middle-school students who played more prosocial games behaved more prosocially. In the two longitudinal samples of Japanese children and adolescents, prosocial game play predicted later increases in prosocial behavior. In the experimental study, U.S. undergraduates randomly assigned to play prosocial games behaved more prosocially toward another student. These similar results across different methodologies, ages, and cultures provide robust evidence of a prosocial game content effect, and they provide support for the General Learning Model.

Key Words: video games • prosocial behavior • empathy • media violence • General Learning Model

This version was published on June 1, 2009

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Vol. 35, No. 6, 752-763 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/0146167209333045
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