Is video games' effect on attitudes universal? Results from an empirical study comparing video games' impact on the attitude change of players with different backgrounds

0579733 - ÚI 2025 US eng J - Článek v odborném periodiku
Kolek, L. - Martinková, Patrícia - Vařejková, Michaela - Šisler, V. - Brom, C.
Is video games' effect on attitudes universal? Results from an empirical study comparing video games' impact on the attitude change of players with different backgrounds.
Journal of Computer Assisted Learning. Online first 22 November 2023 (2024). ISSN 0266-4909. E-ISSN 1365-2729
Grant CEP: GA ČR(CZ) GA21-03658S
Institucionální podpora: RVO:67985807
Klíčová slova: attitude importance * explicit attitudes * game-based learning * history representation * implicit attitudes * video games
Impakt faktor: 5, rok: 2022
Způsob publikování: Open access

BACKGROUND: Existing studies confirm that some video games can change players' attitudes. However, since we do not know the specific elements responsible for attitude change, the potential of video games to achieve desired educational or behavioural outcomes often remains unfulfilled. OBJECTIVES: To fill the research gap, our study examined whether the perspective-taking game mechanic in the serious game Czechoslovakia 38–89: Borderlands, which had previously been shown to affect attitudes, would have the same effect on another sample of players with different characteristics. METHODS: We have assessed the effect of a historical video game using a perspective-taking mechanic on players' explicit and implicit attitudes. Explicit attitude changes were measured at a general level, meaning a broad evaluation of a depicted historical event, and at a specific level, meaning a more detailed evaluation of specific aspects of the event. Simultaneously, we measured the effect of players' perceived attitude importance on attitude change. The study used a sample of 137 young adults. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: This study's results indicate a significant pretest-posttest explicit attitude change on the general level and on a specific level in comparison to the control group. Perspective-taking game mechanics is particularly important for explicit attitude change. No change was found in implicit attitudes. The effect of the perceived attitude importance on attitude change was not confirmed. TAKEAWAYS: As one of the first to focus on the effects of specific game mechanics on attitudes, this study confirmed that perspective-taking has stable, short-term effects on attitude change even across different research samples.
Trvalý link: https://hdl.handle.net/11104/0348536