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Graphic Depictions: Portrayals of Mental Illness in Video Games
Author(s) -
Shapiro Samuel,
Rotter Merrill
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of forensic sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.715
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1556-4029
pISSN - 0022-1198
DOI - 10.1111/1556-4029.13214
Subject(s) - mental illness , movie theater , stereotype (uml) , psychology , depiction , video game , mental health , character (mathematics) , social psychology , psychiatry , art , visual arts , multimedia , computer science , geometry , mathematics
Although studies have examined portrayals of mental illness in the mass media, little attention has been paid to such portrayals in video games. In this descriptive study, the fifty highest‐selling video games in each year from 2011 to 2013 were surveyed through application of search terms to the Wikia search engine, with subsequent review of relevant footage on YouTube. Depiction categories were then assigned based on the extent of portrayal and qualitative characteristics compared against mental illness stereotypes in cinema. Twenty‐three of the 96 surveyed games depicted at least one character with mental illness. Forty‐two characters were identified as portraying mental illness, with most characters classified under a “homicidal maniac” stereotype, although many characters did not clearly reflect cinema stereotypes and were subcategorized based on the shared traits. Video games contain frequent and varied portrayals of mental illness, with depictions most commonly linking mental illness to dangerous and violent behaviors.