Ahn Changhyun, Noh Ghee Young
Media School, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Republic of Korea.
Front Psychol. 2024 Jul 15;15:1416258. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1416258. eCollection 2024.
This study investigates the psychological mechanisms in virtual reality (VR) games, focusing on the interplay between character morality, self-attribution, presence, guilt, and their collective impact on player enjoyment. Based on Affective Disposition Theory, it hypothesizes that players' moral judgments of characters significantly affect their engagement and enjoyment of VR narratives.
A post-test between-subjects experiment was conducted with 97 participants to examine the influence of character morality on guilt through the mediation of self-attribution, and how these factors affect players' sense of presence and overall enjoyment in VR games.
The findings indicate that self-attribution significantly mediates the relationship between character morality and guilt. Additionally, the sense of presence enhances enjoyment, with a stronger sense of 'being there' amplifying the emotional impact of players' moral decisions.
This study highlights the full mediating effect of self-attribution in the context of VR gaming, intensifying players' emotional responses to moral dilemmas. The results suggest that VR game designers should consider the moral implications of game narratives and character actions to create more emotionally engaging and ethically reflective gaming experiences. These insights have significant implications for VR game design and ethics, promoting greater ethical sensitivity among players.
本研究探讨虚拟现实（VR）游戏中的心理机制，重点关注角色道德、自我归因、临场感、内疚感之间的相互作用，以及它们对玩家游戏体验的综合影响。基于情感倾向理论，研究假设玩家对角色的道德判断会显著影响他们对VR叙事的参与度和体验感。
对97名参与者进行了一项事后测试的组间实验，以检验角色道德通过自我归因的中介作用对内疚感的影响，以及这些因素如何影响玩家在VR游戏中的临场感和整体体验感。
研究结果表明，自我归因在角色道德和内疚感之间起到显著的中介作用。此外，临场感会增强体验感，更强的“身临其境”感会放大玩家道德决策的情感影响。
本研究突出了自我归因在VR游戏情境中的完全中介作用，强化了玩家对道德困境的情感反应。研究结果表明，VR游戏设计师应考虑游戏叙事和角色行为的道德含义，以创造更具情感吸引力和道德反思性的游戏体验。这些见解对VR游戏设计和伦理具有重要意义，可提高玩家的道德敏感度。
