title: Expertise in video game playing is associated with reduced valence-concordant emotional expressivity.
abstract: In carefully selected groups of video game playing (VGP) experts and nonexperts, we examined valence-concordant emotional expressivity. We measured electromyographic (EMG) activity over the corrugator supercilii muscle while participants viewed pleasant, neutral, and unpleasant pictures. Potential group differences concerning valence-concordant expressivity may arise from differences concerning the participants' emotional reactivity. To control for such differences, we concomitantly measured skin conductance response (SCR) and, in a separate affect misattribution procedure (AMP), valence transfer from the same set of stimuli. Importantly, we found attenuated valence-concordant EMG activity over the corrugator supercilii muscle in VGP experts compared to nonexperts, but no differences were evident concerning SCR or valence transfer in the AMP. The findings suggest that expertise in VGP is particularly associated with reduced valence-concordant emotional expressivity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Weinreich
authors.forename: Tilo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Strobach
authors.forename: Torsten
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schubert
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004576:Electromyography; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005149:Facial Expression; D005152:Facial Muscles / Q000502:physiology*; D005712:Galvanic Skin Response / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018910:Video Games / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: EMG; Emotional expressivity; IAPS; Valence; Video game playing