JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PERSONALITY 21, 21 l-223 (1987)

Personality Factors, Subject Gender, and the Effects of Aggressive

Video Games on Aggression in Adolescents

MARK WINKEL, DAWN M. NOVAK, AND HELEN HOPSON

Pan American University

Male and female adolescents served as subjects in an experiment designed to

assess the relationship among personality factors, heart rate, and aggression after
having played an aggressive video game. For males, personality traits and heart
rate were separately related to aggression. Personality characteristics similar to
those of the Type A individual were related in a positive direction to heart rate
in females. The content of the video games did not affect heart rate or postgame
aggression, even though females displayed greater mean heart rate than males
throughout the experiment. The results are discussed with regard to sex role
stereotypes, content-related explanations of aggression, and Type A personality
characteristics. That teenagers may be mimicking the violence in video games
was not supported. 0 1987 Academic Press. Inc.

Ithas been stated that video games lead to aggression and have adverse
effects on teenagers. These statements together with the popularity of
video games have recently led some investigators to focus on the role
which video games play in aggressive behavior. Two such studies consisted
of children who played a particular type of video game, and who were
then observed in a free play situation (Cooper & Mackie, 1986; Silvern,
Williamson, & Countermine, 1983). Another study employed a video
game survey (Dominick, 1984), while a fourth involved the type of video
game preferred in a free choice situation (Nelson & Carlson, 1985). What
have not been investigated, however, are the personality traits of the
players and the possible harmful effects which the specific content of
the games have on aggression and sympathetic activity.
Proponents of video games maintain that they may be successfully
employed in therapeutic contexts (Leerhsen, Zabarsky, & McDonald,
1983), education (Malone, 1981), and in social interaction and growth

This research was supported by a grant from the Faculty Research Council at Pan
American University and presented at the April 1984 meeting of the Southwestern Psy-
chological Association. Address all correspondence and reprint requests to Mark Winkel.
Department of Psychology, Pan American University, Edinburg, TX 78539.

211
0092-6566187 $3.00
Copyright 0 1987 by Academic Press. Inc.
All rights of reproduction in any form reserved.
212 WINKEL, NOVAK, AND HOPSON

(Favaro, 1982). There are, however, a number of reasonable arguments

which have been leveled against their widespread use. One of the strongest
criticisms concerns the potential for video games to cause aggression
and violence. Philip Zimbardo (1982) has said that the video games that
are proving so addictive to young people may be socially isolating and
may actually encourage violence between people. Surgeon General C.
Everett Koop (Orlofsky, 1982) has stated that the games could encourage
children to mimic the violence on the screen, and that these games have
adverse physical and mental effects on teenagers. The possibility that
home video games cause aggression in adolescents together with their
popularity makes the systematic investigation of their effects essential.
While a particular methodology does not currently exist for investigating
the effects of video games on adolescents, similarities between films,
television, and video games make some of the methods employed in
early aggression studies particularly appropriate. As pointed out by Silvern
et al. (1983) the similarities found between television programs and video
games include entertainment value, violent content, and various physical
features including action, pace, and visual change. Berkowitz and Geen
(1966) employed a method similar to that developed by Buss (1961) to
study the effects of filmed violence on subsequent aggression by subjects
who were either angered or treated in a neutral fashion and who were
then exposed to an aggressive or nonaggressive film. This method involved
the delivery of electric shocks to another person with the use of an
aggression machine. The experimental subject was led to believe that
the effects of punishment on learning were being studied, and that he
or she was arbitrarily chosen to play the role of a teacher. After subjects
had been exposed to one type of film, they were given the opportunity
to aggress against a confederate by delivering electric shocks as punishment
in this pseudolearning experiment. A modification of this method was
employed in the present investigation.
Factors which have been shown to affect aggression include stimulus
cues, heart rate, personality characteristics, and gender. Explanations
of aggression based on content-related mechanisms emphasize the specific
nature of the stimulus (Thomas, 1982). For example, Geen and Berkowitz
(1967) have stated that aggression cues or stimuli generally associated
with aggressive behavior are necessary for aggressive actions to take
place. That aggression cues and filmed or televised violence leads to
increased aggression against another person has been demonstrated (Ber-
kowitz, 1974; Geen, 1978). It follows that the aggressive content or
aggression cues contained in a video game should lead to aggressive
behavior. In one study (Cooper & Mackie, 1986) children played either
a violent video game, a nonviolent game, or a no-game control. The
children were then provided with the opportunity to behave aggressively
 VIDEO GAMES AND AGGRESSION 213

in a free play situation and to later punish or reward another child. Girls
evidenced significantly more aggressive free play after playing an aggressive
video game.
Another approach to understanding the causes of aggression emphasizes
the role played by the sympathetic nervous system. It seems as though
heightened sympathetic activity can sometimes facilitate overt aggression.
Some of the variables which have been shown to lead to this effect
include arousal stemming from competitive activities (Christy, Gelfand,
& Hartmann, 1971) and vigorous exercise (Zillman, Katcher, & Milavsky,
1972). If it can be demonstrated that video games which possess aggression
cues lead to sympathetic increases, a connection might be found between
such increases and postgame aggression.
A relationship has been demonstrated between a sympathetic response
and winning and losing in a competitive game situation. In a mixed-
motive game, males showed higher heart rate, when they won, with the
pattern being just the opposite for females (Van Egeren, 1979). One does
not win or lose at a video game, but generally plays alone to obtain a
high score, often by destroying various objects in the game. While this
type of situation is not directly comparable to one where a person competes
with another, there may still be some similarities with regard to the
motivational system involved. There is a growing body of evidence which
suggests that heart rate acceleration is associated with an appetitive
motivational system (Fowles, 1983). It was suggested by Van Egeren
(1979) that males may have focused more on winning with females focusing
more on losing. Heart rate accelerations in males who won could be
accounted for by the appetitive nature of winning the game, or receiving
the monetary rewards associated with winning, an appetitive situation.
Similarly, playing a video game may be viewed as an appetitive situation
in that players are being rewarded by an arbitrary point system which
is dependent upon the number of objects destroyed in the game. Even
in a situation where an individual plays a new game for the first time
and is unfamiliar with the point system, players seem highly motivated.
Players may be cognizant of the number of objects destroyed regardless
of the specific score they are receiving and as a result are being rewarded
for that behavior. Consequently, heart rate accelerations may be associated
with the incentive of destroying objects in a video game. This sympathetic
activity may then combine with the effects of the aggression cues contained
in the game, leading to subsequent aggression.
The expression of aggressive behavior has also been shown to be
related to personality factors, such as those of Type A adults. Carver
and Glass (1978) found that, under certain circumstances, men who ex-
hibited a Type A behavior pattern were more likely to behave aggressively
in a teacher-learner situation. The Type A behavior pattern is characterized
214 WINKEL, NOVAK, AND HOPSON

by traits such as competitiveness, high need for achievement, and time

urgency. People who rated themselves as quick to express anger displayed
more aggressive behavior in a competitive situation than more controlled
people (Taylor, 1967). Anxious people displayed a higher heart rate and
behaved less aggressively in a competitive situation than less anxious
people (Dengerink, 1971). Thus, sympathetic responding and personality
characteristics may collectively affect behavior in the video game player.
Sex differences in aggression have been demonstrated in many studies
employing the Buss paradigm (Frodi, Macaulay, & Thome, 1977). While
the direction of the differences in the studies reviewed by Frodi et al.
(1977) are mixed, “women were very seldom found to be more aggressive
than men” (p. 641). It follows that male video game players will be more
aggressive than females after playing a video game, particularly an ag-
gressive one.
Because past research has shown Type A personality factors to be
important determinants of aggression, the present study explores the
relationships among similar personality characteristics of video game
players and aggression. It is further our intent to extend the findings of
the effects of filmed violence on aggression to situations involving video
games. The results of research based on heart rate accelerations in appetitive
motivational systems is incorporated in the present design. A teacher-
learner paradigm, together with a modified Buss apparatus, is employed
to assess the effects of manipulating video game content on aggression
and heart rate. The present investigation tests the following working
hypotheses:
1. A strong relationship exists between the personality characteristics
of video game players and aggressive behavior.
2. Aggressiveness can be predicted from the heart rate of video game
players.
3. Males are more aggressive than females after playing a video game.
4. Playing an aggressive video game will result in a higher heart rate
and a higher level of postgame aggression than playing a less aggressive
game.

METHOD
Subjects
Eight groups of seven students each (28 males and 28 females), were recruited from
eighth-grade classes at a junior high school located in southern Texas. After obtaining
parental permission, subjects were randomly assigned to one of the eight cells of this
Gender (male, female) x Video Game Content (very aggressive game, aggressive game,
nonaggressive game, no-game control) randomized block design. Frequency of video games
played per week was recorded for each subject prior to the experimental session to assess
past learning experience among the groups. No statistically significant differences were
 VIDEO GAMES AND AGGRESSION 215

found, ruling out any systematic influence which past video game experience would have
on arousal or aggression. Subjects received $3 for their participation, which required
approximately 90 min of their time.

Apparatus and Materials

Beckman silver-silver chloride electrodes were used with a Narco biotelemetry transmitter-
receiver and a Narco MKIV physiograph to record heart rate. An Apple HE with disk
drive and hand controllers was used to control and display the video games. The Arcade
Machine produced by Broderbund Software served as the video game. Various video
games can be created with this software which allows for the manipulation of object shapes,
sounds, explosions, and other game characteristics. Visual presentation was accomplished
with the use of an NEC 19-in. color monitor connected to an Apple IIE located approximately
24 in. in front of the seated subject. The Apple IIE was programmed to operate in a
manner similar to a Buss apparatus to provide the subject with the confederate’s response.
The Jr.-Sr. High School Personality Questionnaire (HSPQ) developed by Cattell and
Cattell (1975) was used to measure subjects’ responses to 14 primary personality factors
included some similar to Type A characteristics. This testing is a broad-based personality
inventory intended for an age range of 12-18 years, making it an appropriate instrument
to use with the sample chosen for this study. The HSPQ contains the same unitary
personality concepts as those in the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (Cattell &
Cattell, 1975), with those related to Type A characteristics being sizothymia/affectothymia
(i.e., reserved/warmhearted), threctia/parmia (i.e., shy/adventurous), untroubled ade-
quacy/guilt proneness, low self-sentiment integration/high strength of self-sentiment (i.e.,
uncontrolled/controlled), and ergic tension (i.e., relaxed/tense). Reliabilities of the HSPQ
include two types, dependability and stability coefficients. Dependability coefficients indicate
the degree of agreement of a test with itself between two administrations at relatively brief
time intervals, while the stability coefficients measure the reliability of the test over 6 or
12 months. Dependability coefficients may vary as a function of the satisfactoriness of the
testing conditions, stability coefficients being fixed in value more by the stability of the
trait. Dependability coefficients for the HSPQ for a I-day retest ranged from .83 to .93
with a median value of .87. The stability coefficients based on a 6-month retest ranged
from .68 to .82, the median equaling .71. The median homogeneity coefficient calculated
for scales in a single form of the test was .35, with values which ranged between .20 and
.43. This indicates an instrument which consists of relatively independent scales. The
correlations of the individual scales with the pure factors which they are supposed to
measure, or the construct validity, yielded multiple correlations which ranged from .81 to
.96, with a median value of .91.

Design and Procedure

The two independent variables were Subject Gender (males vs females) and Video Game
Content (very aggressive vs aggressive vs nonaggressive). A no-computer control group
was also employed to determine the effects of interacting with a computer in a particular
way, that is, playing a nonaggressive video game, on aggressive behavior. The dependent
measures included subjects’ responses to the personality inventory, heart rate, and aggressive
behavior (i.e., money deducted from another person’s payment). Even though blood pressure
and electrodermal measures have been used as indicators of sympathetic activity (Andreassi,
1980), they were not included in this study due to the possible confounding effects they
might have on a subject’s ability to attend to the experimental manipulations. Electrode
placement for skin conductance measures would also have interfered with the manipulation
of the hand-held video game control units.
216 WINKEL, NOVAK, AND HOPSON

Initially three video games varying in level of aggressive content were presented to
approximately 100 undergraduate students enrolled in three introductory psychology classes.
The games were rank-ordered according to levels of aggressive content which ranged from
very aggressive to not aggressive. The sequence of game presentation varied between
classes to control for any possible order effects in the rank-ordering. The number of human
figures, the duration of human figure destruction, and the duration of the sound effects
associated with each explosion varied between games. The greater the number of human
figures and the longer the destruction of human figures, the more aggressive the game
content was thought to be. The video games were identical with the exception of the
content areas just described. Results of the rank ordering analysis yielded F(2. 273) =
18.07, p < 401. Multiple comparisons of mean rating of aggressiveness resulted in statistically
significant differences between all possible pairs of games. The three levels of aggressive
content in the video games which resulted from the rank-ordering, together with the no-
computer control. served as the independent variable in the actual experiment.
Following receipt of signed informed consent and parental permission forms, prospective
subjects completed the HSPQ. Experimenters then prepared the physiological recording
equipment and microcomputers for game play. The video game and physiological recording
equipment were in the same room as the subjects, but the physiological equipment was
partially concealed to reduce any undue concern by subjects about the recording techniques.
Upon arrival at the experiment, each subject was greeted by a same-sex experimenter,
after which the electrodes for measuring heart rate were attached.
Each subject was then told that the equipment would have to be adjusted while he or
she rested for approximately 5 min. during which time base level readings were taken.
Subjects in the control group would not interact with a computer video game at any time,
so they were told that the resting phase would last IO min. Following the 5-min rest period,
subjects in the video game conditions were told that the physiological recording equipment
also required adjustments while they were engaged in an activity, and that playing a video
game would allow those adjustments to be made. Subjects in the actual game conditions
each played one video game, which had a particular level of aggressive content. Following
the resting and video game periods, all subjects were told that the actual experiment was
about to begin.
The subject was told that the experiment was designed to study the physiological reactions
of junior high school students as they assumed the role of a teacher. Ostensibly, his or
her job as a teacher was to punish another subject, the learner, whenever the learner made
a mistake on a short quiz. This was accomplished by having the teacher deduct money
from an extra payment given to the learner. The subject was instructed to read each of
15 questions into a microphone so that the learner. wearing headphones and out of sight,
could hear the questions while remaining anonymous to the subject. The subject was
further told that the learner would respond on a computer connected to the subject’s
monitor. This would allow the subject to see the learner’s answer and compare it to the
correct answer located on an answer sheet given to the subject. Actually, the learner was
an Apple IIE programmed to respond with a predetermined number of correct and incorrect
answers to the questions. The total amount of money deducted by the subject was si-
multaneously recorded by the same Apple IIE. This teacher/learner paradigm was employed
in the experiment to allow the subjects to aggress against another person after having
played a video game having a specific level of aggressive content. While the number of
errors made by the learner (i.e., the computer) on the quiz was determined prior to the
experiment, the amount of money deducted from the learner’s payment was left strictly
up to the actual subjects.
 VIDEO GAMES AND AGGRESSION 217

RESULTS
There were two components to the data analysis, one assessing the
relationship between personality factors and behavioral measures, and
the other assessing the effects of the video games varying in aggressive
content on the behavioral measures.
First, the complete linear regression model (Overall & Spiegel, 1969)
was employed to assess the relationships among the personality factors
and the two dependent variables, aggression and heart rate. This analysis
estimates the independent effects of each variable adjusted for all other
variables included in the model. Those factors of the HSPQ which are
similar to the dimensions measured by the Jenkins Activity Survey (cf.
Carver & Glass, 1978) were included in the regression equation. For
males, monetary deductions were predicted from the relaxed/tense di-
mension of the HSPQ when the predictor variables included the re-
laxed/tense, shy/adventurous, and zestful/circumspect individualism di-
mensions, R* = .30, /3 = - 126.16, F(3, 24) = 6.87, p < .05. Those
males who scored low on the relaxed/tense personality dimension (i.e.,
more relaxed type) deducted more money from the learner than those
individuals scoring higher on this scale. Heart rate during the base level
period alone was used to predict subsequent aggression for males which
yielded R* = .14, /? = - 27.37, F( 1, 26) = 4.25, p < .05. Heart rate
while playing the video games was also used to predict aggression, R2
= .13, /3 = -27.15, F(l, 26) = 3.82, p < .058. For males, the lower
their heart rate, the more aggressive they were in the teacher/learner
situation. Even though personality measures and heart rate predicted
aggression separately, there was no correlation between the trait of re-
laxation and the state of sympathetic activity.
For females, total deductions were predicted from the re-
served/warmhearted and untroubled adequacy/guilt proneness dimensions
of the HSPQ, R* = .21, F(2, 25) = 3.25, p < .054, with p = - 56.28,
and p = -66.63, respectively. In addition, the shy/adventurous, un-
controlled/controlled, and relaxed/tense dimensions together predicted
mean heart rate for all three phases of the experiment, base level period,
video game period, and the teacher/learner period, R2 = .46, F(3, 24)
= 6.89, p < .OOl; R* = .43, F(3, 24) = 6.11, p < .003; and R* = .43,
F(3, 24) = 6.04, p < .003. Partial correlation coefficients for these three
predictors may be seen in Table 1.
From these analyses it may be stated that females who possess reserved
and secure personality traits are more aggressive in this type of situation
than those who are more warmhearted and guilt prone. Females who
are more shy, controlled, and tense, display greater physiological arousal
as measured by heart rate than those possessing opposite characteristics.
218 WINKEL, NOVAK, AND HOPSON

TABLE 1
PARTIAL CORRELATION COEFTICIENTS FOR PERSONALITY DIMENSIONS PREDICTING FEMALE
HEART RATE BY EXPERIMENTAL PERIOD

Experimental period
Personality
dimensions Base level Video game Teacher/learner
~___
Shy/adventurous - .;2 - .53 - .55
Uncontrolled/controlled .45 .49 .48
Relaxed/tense .53 .44 .42

Note. p < .Ol for all experimental periods.

A two-factor analysis of variance was employed to assess the effects

of subject gender and content of the video games on the concomitant
measures of heart rate and level of aggression by subjects. The results
of the analysis for heart rate data revealed a significant gender effect for
the video game period, F(1, 48) = 8.26, p < .Ol, as well as for the
teacher/learner period, E’( 1,48) = 8.71, p < .Ol . Overall, females displayed
greater heart rate than males. There was no significant difference for
gender during the base level period. Results for the effect of video game
content on heart rate were not significant. The three video games, which
varied in level of aggressive content, had no effect on the mean heart
rate of the subjects. The mean heart rate for the no-computer control
group was also not significantly different from any of the video game
treatment groups. Thus, playing a nonaggressive computer video game
did not affect heart rate. Analysis of personality dimension by video
game content interactions based on heart rate data during the video game
period likewise yielded no significant results for males or females.
Analysis of the monetary deduction data revealed results which were
not significant, indicating that the level of aggressive content in the video
games had no effect on subjects’ aggression toward the learner.

DISCUSSION
Three major findings are evident from the results of the present in-
vestigation. First, the results support past research (Dengerink, 1971),
and our first two hypotheses, that a relationship exists among the personality
traits of video game players, heart rate, and aggression. Second, the
specific aggression content of the games employed did not affect subsequent
aggression or heart rate. The third finding was the prediction of heart
rate for females by personality characteristics similar to those of Type
A individuals. Type A individuals are characterized by competitive
achievement striving, time urgency, and aggressiveness (Carver & Glass,
1978).
 VIDEO GAMES AND AGGRESSION 219

First, relationships among the personality factors, heart rate, and

aggression were demonstrated. For males, those subjects who scored
low on the ergic tension dimension or those who were characterized as
relaxed, tranquil, and composed, were more aggressive than those males
who scored higher on this factor. It may be that males who possess
these personality characteristics are less fearful of social castigation and
view aggression as being socially appropriate behavior. The social normative
beliefs or expectations of our subjects may have interacted with their
personality traits as well. Ajzen and Fishbein (1977) have shown social
normative beliefs to be important determinants of behavior. Male subjects
who have a relaxed personality trait, and who, when permitted to aggress
believe that aggression is socially appropriate, may do so. While we did
not measure our subjects’ normative beliefs, subjects were clearly informed
that we were interested in the effects of punishment on learning, the
implication being that punishment was the expected behavior in this
situation. Further, personality and physiological arousal contribute in-
dependently to aggression for males.
Second, the aggression cues or content of the video games (i.e., the
number of figures destroyed and duration of sound effects) did not affect
subsequent aggression or heart rate. Aggressive behavior and mean heart
rate did not vary between the no-computer control group and any of the
various aggressive video game conditions. Several possibilities follow
from these findings. First, the destruction of objects in our video games
was not rewarding and did not constitute an appetitive motivational
situation. Under such circumstances heart rate would not be expected
to vary systematically with the aggression content of the video games
(Fowles, 1983). However, given video game popularity in general, and
the apparent enthusiasm displayed by our subjects, this possibility seems
unlikely.
A second explanation for the lack of effect for game content is meth-
odological in nature. College students initially rated the aggression content
of the video games employed. It may be that the adolescent subjects
perceived the relative aggressiveness of each game differently from the
initial college student ratings. This also seems unlikely in light of the
unambiguous results of the college student ratings.
Another explanation is that subjects were not attending to variables
which would make video game playing appetitive in nature, such as the
aggression cues in our video games. It may be that our manipulation of
aggression content was effective but that the subjects were attending to
some aspect of the situation other than the visual or acoustic aggression
cues of the games. This does not seem probable. It is hard to imagine
someone playing a video game without looking at the screen and listening
to the sounds produced by the games.
220 WINKEL, NOVAK, AND HOPSON

The most probable explanation for the present results concerns the
particular experimental situation employed. This study addresses the
direct effects of aggression cues on subsequent aggression. Given that
our subjects were attending to the visual and acoustic events manipulated,
and given that the subjects were expected to subsequently aggress freely
against another individual, one explanation remains. The aggression cues
in the present study were not strong enough alone to produce aggression.
In the absence of more compelling stimulus cues which have been shown
to lead to aggression (i.e., provocation) the aggression cues contained
in video games are not a sufficient stimulus for aggression.
It cannot be said that aggression or heart rate may never be affected
by other types of games and in situations which involve social interaction
(Cooper & Mackie, 1986). It is clear, however, that the aggression content
of the video games employed in this investigation, as well as playing a
nonaggressive video game, did not affect heart rate or aggression in our
subjects. The allegations made by C. Everett Koop (Orlofsky, 1982) and
others (Zimbardo, 1982), that video games may be causing teenagers to
mimic the violence or aggression displayed on the screen, were not
confirmed by the present investigation.
The third major finding is the relationship among personality traits,
aggression, and heart rate in female subjects. Females who are reserved
and self-assured were more aggressive than warmhearted and guilt prone
females. Moreover, two personality traits similar to those of the Type
A individual were able to predict heart rate for females in a positive
direction. Descriptions of the two factors in the HSPQ include adjectives
such as controlled, compulsive, tense, driven, overwrought, and fretful.
Females who possess these traits displayed higher heart rates than those
females not possessing them. This finding supports research which has
shown the behavior of Type A individuals to be related in a positive
direction to heart rate in adults (Pittner, Houston, & Spiridigliozzi, 1983).
It appears, then, that Type A females may be differentiated during
adolescence.
There was no difference between males and females in level of aggression
after having played a video game, the third hypothesis tested. This is
inconsistent with aggression studies which have employed a pseudolearning
paradigm. The majority of these studies indicate that males are more
aggressive than females. It should be noted, however, that sex differences
in aggression seem to be paradigmatic and a function of differing theoretical
starting points together with very different experimental situations (Cooper
& Mackie, 1986; Frodi et al., 1977). For example, males were more
aggressive than females in a study which measured direct verbal aggression
in nonangered subjects (Harris & Samerotte, 1975). Cooper and Mackie
(1986) found sex differences when aggression was measured in a free
 VIDEO GAMES AND AGGRESSION 221

play situation but not when the aggression was directed toward a specific
target. The present study supports Cooper and Mackie (1986) in that
aggression was directed at a specific other person taking the role of a
learner.
Another related factor which deserves mentioning is the way in which
the dependent variable of aggression is defined in the present study.
Because no single definition of aggression has been adopted as yet, a
question often raised with aggression studies is whether the dependent
measure does in fact represent aggression. One of the earliest definitions
described by Buss (1961) and used by others (Taylor, 1967) defines
aggression as the delivery of noxious stimuli to another. Several different
types of aggression which have been identified include physical or direct
aggression, verbal or indirect aggression, general hostility (Frodi et al.,
1977), and agonistic behavior directed toward another individual (Visser,
1972). We employed a modification of a paradigm used frequently by
others (Berkowitz, 1974; Buss, 1961) in that subjects deducted monetary
rewards from a confederate rather than delivering electric shocks to
another person. Support for the validity of this measure of aggression
is found in the literature on the Type A personality. A relationship has
been firmly demonstrated between Type A individuals and aggression
(Carver & Glass, 1978). The presence of a relationship between Type
A-like females and aggression in the present investigation lends clear
support to the validity of monetary deductions as a measure of aggression.
The results of the present investigation force the conclusion that “home”
video games, regardless of their aggression content, do not lead to heart
rate acceleration or aggression in lone adolescent players. For males,
aggression is a function of the personality trait of relaxation, and heart
rate. These in turn are probably influenced by situational determinants
of behavior such as the individual’s social normative beliefs and expec-
tations. The results also indicate that Type A characteristics may be
differentiated for females during early adolescence, and that they dem-
onstrate cardiac responses similar to those for Type A adults. It is clear
that personality traits, and possibly social factors, are important deter-
minants of aggression in adolescents.

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