Research Symposium

BIO

Emali Osteen is a Junior at Florida State University majoring in Biological Science with an interest in minoring in Sociology. She has obtained her Associates in Arts Degree from North Florida College before transferring to Florida State University. Is It All Just Jumpsares is her first research project and has been working on it since September of 2025. Emali's career goal is to become a medical doctor and specialize in Dermatology.

Is It All Just Jumpscares?

Abstract

While the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) is a staple of communication theory, its specific application to the interactive decision-making processes within the horror video game genre is still underexplored. This research investigates how environmental themes and game mechanics influence player processing via the central route of cognitive elaboration versus the peripheral route of affective, or emotional, response. For this study, everyone in our research team created a detailed content analysis of gameplay walkthroughs in popular horror games, such as my assigned video game, Resident Evil 7. A structured codebook was used to categorize specific triggers and player responses. Objectivity in coding was maintained with an inter-coder reliability threshold of 80% to minimize bias. Building on previous research suggesting that horror environments use dual-processing cues, our study expects to find consistent integration of central and peripheral stimuli throughout gameplay and narrative arcs. Given that the study is currently ongoing, the researchers anticipate that these findings will demonstrate how the horror genre strategically utilizes communication theories to influence player behavior and cognitive processing. This study is expected to prove a connection between communication theories and horror video games because of their reliance on communication tactics. This study can be used as a gateway to future studies surrounding horror video games and communication theories.

Keywords: ELM Theory Jumpscares