Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 25, 2026

Measuring Engagement of Spectators of Social Digital Games
Published on: July 3, 2021
Expertise in video game playing is associated with reduced valence-concordant emotional expressivity
André Weinreich1, Tilo Strobach, Torsten Schubert
1Department of Psychology, Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
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.
More Related Videos
13:40Combining Computer Game-Based Behavioural Experiments With High-Density EEG and Infrared Gaze Tracking
Published on: December 16, 2010
05:51Exploring the Use of Isolated Expressions and Film Clips to Evaluate Emotion Recognition by People with Traumatic Brain Injury
Published on: May 15, 2016
Related Concept Videos
Emotional Expression
Universal Facial Expressions
Psychologist Paul Ekman identified seven basic...
Social Foundations of Self I: Play and Game
Social Scripts
Labeling Emotion
Physiology of Emotion
Autonomic Nervous System
The autonomic nervous system (ANS) plays a critical role in emotional responses by regulating involuntary physiological functions. It consists of two main components: the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems. The sympathetic system...
Role of Emotions in Social Life