It is the basic assumption of this study that a relationship exists between the interpersonal needs of inclusion, control, and affection and occupational choice as indicated by college major. Studies in the area of vocational choice have largely dealt with people who are practicing the vocation, leaving doubt as to whether people are attracted to the vocation as a result of need-satisfaction behavior, or whether the people determine their orientation by practicing the occupation. The need for further clarification of these questions was recognized, and this study was an effort to add to the evidence for or against the validity of the concept of interpersonal need satisfaction as a factor in vocational choice.

Prior research has established a relationship between playing video games containing stereotyped representations of traditionally marginalized groups and resulting negative attitudes towards those groups. Yet, very little work has examined video games containing more positive, non-stereotyped representations and whether these diverse casts have inverse effects resulting in positive attitudes following exposure, an effect demonstrated in television media. The current study makes use of two paradigms, one based on short-term priming theory concerning immediate exposure to media, and one on long-term cultivation theory dealing with the overall media diet, and the relation to attitudes towards Blacks including symbolic racism, colorblindness, and implicit bias. In Study 1 (n = 31), Black and White participants reported how much time weekly they spent playing a popular game with positive representations of People of Color before completing measures. In Study 2 (n = 91), Black and White participants were exposed to one of three games, one with positive representation, one with negative representation, and a control game before completing study measures. Findings suggested that participant race was related to pro-Black attitudes (p = .009), but that direct exposure to a game with positive representation (p = .13) as well as playing the game during the …