title: Playing a Videogame with a Sexualized Female Character Increases Adolescents' Rape Myth Acceptance and Tolerance Toward Sexual Harassment.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Prior research has documented favorable effects of active and educational videogames among adolescents. However, research on potential negative effects of such games is limited. Scholars have called attention to games portraying sexualized female characters. The purpose of the current study was to experimentally investigate the effect of playing a videogame with a sexualized female character on adolescents' acceptance of rape myths and tolerance for sexual harassment.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-seven secondary school pupils, 12-15 years of age, participated in a 2 (gender: boys versus girls)×2 (game character: nonsexualized versus sexualized female) factorial design experiment. Participants played a game for 15 minutes and were randomly assigned to one of the two game characters. Afterward, they completed established scales to assess rape myth acceptance and tolerance for sexual harassment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Analyses of variance showed greater acceptance of rape myths (P=0.039) and greater tolerance of sexual harassment (P=0.046) in adolescents who played with the sexualized woman compared with adolescents in the control condition. We did not find significant differences between boys and girls or any interaction effect between gender and game character.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings suggest that gameplaying with a sexualized woman may increase adolescents' acceptance of rape myths and tolerance for sexual harassment. These findings highlight attention to the use of sexualized female game characters in (educational and active) videogames that target adolescents.
authors.affiliation: 1 Leuven School for Mass Communication Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .|2 Research Center for Marketing and Consumer Science , KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Karolien
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Driesmans
authors.affiliation: 3 The Amsterdam School of Communication Research, University of Amsterdam , Amsterdam, The Netherlands .
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Vandenbosch
authors.affiliation: 1 Leuven School for Mass Communication Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium .
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eggermont
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D001290:Attitude; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D011287:Prejudice / Q000523:psychology; D011902:Rape / Q000523:psychology*; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D017406:Sexual Harassment / Q000523:psychology*; D012938:Social Perception; D012945:Social Values; D013240:Stereotyping; D018910:Video Games / Q000523:psychology*