ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the empirical work that has assessed the impact of online video game involvement on players' social currency and social ability. Since the popularization of e-mail and online chat rooms, researchers have noted concern over the potential consequences of utilizing the internet for social purposes. Displacement theorists highlight the potential for social atrophy over time due to online video game engagement. This is a classic media effects perspective, as it is use of the media itself that is believed to contribute to any negative outcomes. Conversely, compensation theorists focus on the motivational role of pre-exiting social dispositions in online video game involvement. The social displacement and social compensation hypotheses are the most commonly enlisted theoretical frameworks used to explain any inverse relationships between online video game involvement and social outcomes. While these two theories differ in the proposed origin of social differences among the online game playing community.
