Defending gaming: A piece about how gaming can improve mental health.
Because of recent events, people have been limiting the amount of time that they spend out. As a result, people have been trying new hobbies. One of these pastimes has been and continues to be playing video games.
According to techcrunch.com: “The first quarter of 2020… sales hit a record $10.86 billion in the States between January and March of this year, marking a 9% increase over a year prior; $9.58 billion of that figure was from video game content.” Many people are playing video games now and it looks like that is not going to change anytime soon. With the recent popularity of these games, it is easy to forget that there are still many critics of the hobby.
At sbs.com, Jordan Foster, a clinical psychologist who specializes in working with people who have problematic gaming behaviors has spoken negatively about gaming in an interview. To quote: “ In terms of health risks, people who have excessive gaming behaviors often have less sleep, they don’t exercise and display lower physical activity”
While this is not false, it is part of a trend. When talking about video gaming related to mental health, we normally focus on the negative effects that playing these games excessively. As a casual player, I acknowledge that video games can be harmful. However, I feel like we should talk more about the benefits of playing video games as well. In addition to the negative, there are also many ways playing video games can improve mental health. It is important that this information should be talked about more.
For example, playing video games can improve some of your reflexes. In a scientific article called Increasing Speed of Processing With Action Video Games, the results of several studies are shown relating to this topic. According to the data, the players in the experiments reported to show improved hand-eye coordination, increased visual processing in the periphery, enhanced mental-rotation skills, greater divided attention, and enhanced visuospatial memory.
All of this makes sense. In an action video game, a player often has to pay attention to a wide range of actions sometimes in a limited time frame. As well, they must remember specific button combinations. Knowing this, it is understandable that playing these games can help your brain to an extent. There are more advantages to video games.
One of them is that they can be a great stress-reliever. This one seems obvious, but video games calm you down in a very different compared television and movies. There is a reason why people love Animal Crossing New Horizons so much.
With current events, people are more stressed out. Many of afraid of the future and what’s to come. Video games can be a great escape from life’s problems. In a fictional world of a game, you can be someone else and have much more control over what happens to you. In the case of the new Animal Crossing game, you customize your island to be however you like and all the characters admire you. Unlike the real world, you have more control on whats happening and what will happen. It is fun, to say the least.
In conclusion, playing video games is becoming very popular. There are some disadvantages to spending all day in front of a screen. Despite this, it is important to acknowledge why these games are so popular, to begin with. I am curious if I just validated someone who accidentally spent last night playing until 1 a.m. instead of sleeping. If I did, I want to remind everyone that, like everything, video games are good in moderation. Thank you for reading and have a nice day!
Sources
Heater, B. (2020, May 15). US video game sales have a record quarter as consumers stay at home. Retrieved July 16, 2020, from https://techcrunch.com/2020/05/15/us-video-game-sales-have-record-quarter-as-consumers-stay-at-home/
Video games were a hit during the coronavirus lockdown, but will they maintain their appeal? (2020, July 16). Retrieved July 16, 2020, from https://www.sbs.com.au/news/video-games-were-a-hit-during-the-coronavirus-lockdown-but-will-they-maintain-their-appeal
