The influence of video games on verbal behavior

Abstract

How does the nature of two distinct video games influence the verbal episode between two individuals? The primary goal of this study was to determine if non-competitive games would induce more communication about events outside the realm of video games. Twelve adult male participants (average age 26.25) participants divided into six dyads and were exposed to 10-minute sessions with competitive and non-competitive games. The experiment had The Finals™ as the competitive condition (A) and Minecraft™ as the non-competitive condition (B) in an ABAB/BABA procedure. Audio recording was used to analyze the frequency of the determined responses between the participants of each dyad. The results showed that in Condition A the mean response rate was 0.83 (SD: 2.04), and in Condition B the mean response rate was 7.75 (SD: 13.82). With a statistically significant p-value of 0.048. These findings suggest that non-competitive games encourage individuals to broaden their verbal repertoire and talk about other events than video games. Relevant to other therapeutic approaches such as the car ride, these findings highlight the adequate approach of non-competitive video games during therapeutic gaming sessions.

Keywords: video games, competitive, non-competitive, verbal behavior, therapeutic approach