Video Games Prove Good For Well-Being: A New Study
Playing Video Games Has Proven To Have Positive Aspect Mental Well-Being and Social Interaction
According to a recent study conducted by the University of Oxford, which revealed that those individuals who tend to play video games for a long duration are prone to feeling happier than those who do not engage in video game activities. The research study focused on two commonly played video games: EA Plants vs. Zombies and Nintendo Animal Crossing. These recent positive effects of video game research provided some surprising findings regarding gamers.
A usual step was also added in the study; like the video games, developers shared anonymous data regarding the time duration of playing each game by the participants involved in the study sample. Those logs were later linked to the survey in which the playing individuals answered questions regarding their mental health and well-being.
The study sample of the research included 3,274 gamers, and all were above the age of 18. In previously conducted research-based studies on video games, the data and information collected regarding the time duration of the gaming sessions of the individuals were based on self-reported guessed estimate values, which could possibly provide inaccurate data that could relatively impact the results of the study.
Effects of Video games on Well-being
The player data provided by Nintendo for the participants in Animal Crossing: New Horizons were only the time duration. Whereas EA also provided data regarding the player performance during the game in Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, which includes unlocked achievements and the emoticons that the contestants used to express themselves.
After playing the video games, the participants were asked to share their user experience. The lead author of the study, Prof Andrew Przybylski, stated that he was surprised by the end results of the research. If an individual plays Animal Crossing video games for at least four hours every single day, then the player would likely experience happier than the individual who does not.
It does not signify that video games are the main cause of the individual’s increased happiness. This could possibly suggest that video games improve social skills and have some positive effects on the player due to the additional social features provided in the game.
Mr. Przybylski also added that the previously conducted researches on video games over the last forty years suggests that the longer an individual plays a video game, the more unhappiness they experience in their daily routine.
There are some social benefits of video games as both of the games used in the research had an additional social interactive feature that allows the user to directly interact with other players controlled by actual humans through the game. It is possible that people spend much of their time playing a video game included with social aspects unless they are happy about the feature.
Benefits of video games aside, people who were compelled to play video games as they were looking to avoid stress from daily life had reported back to be less contented than they were expecting.
Studying playgrounds worldwide
The team leader for the research study has called onto other video game makers to share similar information regarding participants who use their video game products almost daily that could help provide further detail regarding the effects related to video games and mental health. For more comprehensive study analysis regarding the positive aspect of video games on daily life requires different video game genres, numerous player information, and long time duration.
The research study on a larger aspect is similar to letting the psychologists intensively study all the playgrounds located across the world. The research could possibly help in building a theory regarding bullying and learn how individuals form new friendships over time.