Framing Gaming: The Effects of Media Frames on Perceptions of Game(r)s
Abstract
This study investigates the effects of media frames on attitudes toward video games, perceptions of their users, and consequences. Prior research has shown that gaming is a controversial issue, with media coverage focusing on either risks or opportunities. To examine the effects of these portrayals, the present study used a 2 × 2 experimental design and exposed participants (N = 360) to a news article that framed gaming in terms of risk or opportunity on the journalistic level and on the level of a corresponding expert statement. By examining the perceived negative effects of games, this study extends previous research by combining framing and third-person research. Results showed that framing gaming indeed had an effect on participants’ attitudes. This framing effect was moderated by individual video game use. Despite identifying a traditional third-person perception regarding negative video game effects, we found framing to have no significant influence on third-person perceptions.
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Biographies
Anna Sophie Kümpel is a PhD candidate at the Institute of Communication Studies and Media Research at LMU Munich (LMU). Her primary research interests are media effects, online communication, and digital media.
Alexander Haas is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Institute of Communication Studies and Media Research at LMU Munich (LMU). He received his PhD in communication science from the LMU Munich in 2012 with a dissertation on interpersonal communication and media effects. His primary research interests are political (online) communication, interpersonal communication, and credibility.
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Article first published online: April 7, 2015
Issue published: November-December 2016
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