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Video Games help your wellbeing? I'm sold!

imbalancedimbalanced Registered User regular
edited January 2007 in Games and Technology
Apparently video games can help people psychologically fulfill some deep-seeded need to do something with their lives. Can't build the biggest building in the world? At least you got Simcity going for you. Want to fight in a war, but don't like the whole "dying" thing? Bust out the Counter-Strike and feel better knowing you're alive.

So says this article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070118/hl_nm/video_game_dc

I guess we can put this information in the same pile as "video games make better surgeons/pilots" data. Anybody want to tell me your deepest darkest need and what video game solves that psychological hunger for you?
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Playing video games can satisfy deep psychological needs and, at least in the short term, improve people's well-being, new research shows.
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The more a game fulfilled a player's sense of independence, achievement and connectedness to others, the more likely he or she was to keep playing, Dr. Scott Rigby of Immersyve, a Florida-based virtual environment think tank, and colleagues from the University of Rochester in New York found. And the more fully a player's needs were satisfied, the better he felt after playing.

"We think this is really one of the first validated models of what is going on psychologically when people are playing video games," Rigby told Reuters Health in an interview. To date, he noted, research on video games has focused on their potentially harmful effects, such as promoting social isolation, addiction, and violence.

While the findings don't prove that "video games are always good for you," Rigby noted, they do help to provide a more balanced understanding of people's motivations for playing them. "We're trying to in some sense normalize how people look at video games, rather than seeing them as having some mystical power to addict."

In four studies reported in the journal Motivation and Emotion, Rigby and his colleagues sought to understand people's motivation for playing the games and the games' immediate effect on well-being.

In the first study, they had 89 people play a simple game involving jumping to different platforms. In the second phase, the researchers compared the experience of 50 people who played two 3-D adventure games, one very popular and one less so. In the third study, 58 people tried four different games, while in the fourth the researchers surveyed 730 members of an online gaming community who were experienced in playing "massively multiplayer online" games.

Players' enjoyment of games depended on whether the games made them feel competent and independent, and, in the case of multiplayer games, connected to other players. Players who enjoyed their experience showed increases in well-being, self-esteem, and vitality after playing, while those whose needs weren't satisfied reported lowered vitality and mood.

"Video games we think have tremendous potential to impact people, particularly today's video games which are incredibly rich and complex," Rigby said. "This creates very fertile ground psychologically."

Mastering challenges in video games can be a healthy way of coping when opportunities for feeling independent or competent are scarce in the real world, he argued.

"Video games in some ways are very good at satisfying these psychological needs," Rigby noted. "Often times real life is not as clear...real life often can make you feel ineffective."

SOURCE: Motivation and Emotion, December 2006.

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Posts

  • ToadTheMushroomToadTheMushroom Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I always wanted to be a Jedi and Kotor fulfilled this want.

    ToadTheMushroom on
  • GlalGlal AiredaleRegistered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Apparently, I've always wanted to be an amnesiac robot stuck on a floating island filled with sentient rabbits and unlikely architecture.


    And a toaster.

    Glal on
  • AldoAldo Hippo Hooray Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I always wanted to beat up headcrabs with a crowbar and Halflife fulfilled this want.

    Aldo on
  • VoranthVoranth MI NOMBRE, POR CIERTO ES DONTÉ!Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Nothing else satisfies my thirst of stretching out into a long and thin band of slime brimming with elastic energy, and then blasting myself at two-tailed raccoons quite like DQH: Rocket Slime.

    Let's not forget manning a giant armoured parade float with treads.

    Voranth on
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  • RookRook Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I've always wanted to put my pet skull into a mound of evil

    Rook on
  • CouscousCouscous Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Glal wrote:
    Apparently, I've always wanted to be an amnesiac robot stuck on a floating island filled with sentient rabbits and unlikely architecture.


    And a toaster.
    Who doesn't want to be those things?

    Couscous on
  • Resident0Resident0 Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Well i thought this was fucking obvious, who doesn't get that "yea im a fucking HERO!!" feeling when battling off hordes of nazis in CoD3 (or even Wolf 3D on PC, the old one).

    I remember feeling pretty elated when i finally beat Gears Of War and like, "yeah we did it, woo!" to my co-op buddy on the mic, that kinda feeling is just awesome in videogames.

    Resident0 on
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  • DelzhandDelzhand Registered User, Transition Team regular
    edited January 2007
    Apparently I have a deep seated need to kill God, who we thought was on our side, but is really some sort of spaceship, any could really benefit from a higher polygon count.

    Huh. I thought God and I were on better terms than that...

    Also, I have apparently wanted to stab a patient about three times with a scalpel while trying to get my nurse to stop talking.

    Delzhand on
  • NswyersNswyers Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I guess deep down, I want to don ancient space armor and morph into a little ball, rolling around and shitting bombs in increments of 3.

    Nswyers on
  • AccualtAccualt Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    This is kind of an "oh duh" article.
    Video games allow us to act like action superstars and who the hell doesn't want to act like that.

    Accualt on
  • LavaKnightLavaKnight Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I've always wanted to insult swordfight.

    LavaKnight on
  • PureauthorPureauthor Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Videogames lets us do things we'd like to do but can't? Wow, who knew.

    Why are all these studies so completely useless?

    Pureauthor on
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  • ZombiemamboZombiemambo Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I've noticed that a good gaming session can put me in an excellent mood, whereareas a bad one can ruin the rest of my day. Do I care that much? Not at all, but for some reason it deeply (we've been using that word alot in this thread) effects my mood.

    WoW is probably the biggest factor for me. Getting into a good group or obtaining good gear makes me happy and I'll probably be happy for the rest of the day, unless something shitty happens. A bad PuG or wandering aimlessly because of boredom can make me feel crummy and sluggish.

    I don't know if this satisfies any "deep needs" in my life, but it can change the way I feel.

    Zombiemambo on
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  • blakfeldblakfeld Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    So. How long do you think it will take for Jack Thompson to take this out of context?

    blakfeld on
  • JinniganJinnigan Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    While it's certainly an "oh duh" moment, it's not a statement that I've seen any of us make.

    Just because it's obvious in hindsight doesn't mean it wasn't worth expressing.

    Jinnigan on
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  • core tacticcore tactic Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    blakfeld wrote:
    So. How long do you think it will take for Jack Thompson to take this out of context?
    "Videogames work like CRACK. We need to get this new drug off the street!"

    core tactic on
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  • AvaritiaAvaritia Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I always wanted to try magic mushrooms to feel really tall or really small or if I had not just one life. But I'm too much of a coward. :roll:

    Thank you, Super Mario!

    edit:
    Resident0 wrote:
    [...]who doesn't get that "yea im a fucking HERO!!" feeling when battling off hordes of nazis in CoD3 (or even Wolf 3D on PC, the old one).

    Me.

    Avaritia on
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  • sarukunsarukun RIESLING OCEANRegistered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Accualt wrote:
    This is kind of an "oh duh" article.
    Video games allow us to act like fucking ninjas and who the hell doesn't want to act like a fucking ninja, just all the times flipping out and karate chopping a dude and not even thinking twice about it.



    All wailing on a guitar.



    All popping the hugest boner.

    sarukun on
  • XagarathXagarath Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I always wanted to be a russian medical academic who talks to people in bird masks.

    Xagarath on
  • EinhanderEinhander __BANNED USERS regular
    edited January 2007
    I've always wanted to be a Rally Car Driver.

    That, and in a bitchin' rock band.

    Video games have helped me realise these otherwise impossible dreams.

    Thank you, video games.

    Einhander on
  • PieManPieMan Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I've always wanted to be a lawyer and a surgeon, but lacked the intelligence for both professions. Thank you, videogames!

    PieMan on
  • ArcibiArcibi Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I always wanted to be a blue spiky guy who ran really fast and would have epic clashes with a mad scientist and his endless legion of robots and maybe even have a fox kid with two tails who could fly for a sidekick, but later have my franchise ruined by introducing twenty new characters every game, guest-starring in the lamest spin-off ever, and going on to star in a re-imagining of the series that promised to fix everything but in actuality made it all worse

    And now that need is fulfilled

    Arcibi on
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  • TaramoorTaramoor Storyteller Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I will say that Shadow of the Colossus fulfilled that great fantasy all young men have.

    Scaling and destroying a goddamned giant with nothing but a sword to save the girl.

    Taramoor on
  • solsovlysolsovly Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    PieMan wrote:
    I've always wanted to be a lawyer and a surgeon, but lacked the intelligence for both professions. Thank you, videogames!

    They need to make a Phoenix Wright tie in to Trauma Center. Do you know how many malpractice lawsuits I should have? Like being really sleepy and activating your "star" ability.... with a scalpel instead of your hand.

    solsovly on
  • fsmith1fsmith1 Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    blakfeld wrote:
    So. How long do you think it will take for Jack Thompson to take this out of context?
    "Videogames work like CRACK. We need to get this new drug off the street!"

    "Games are obviously a construct of the devil to allow mass murderers to realize their sick fantasies! We must not allow them to sate their bloodlust any longer! Playing video games with violence should be a crime because it obviously means that person wants to KILL!"

    Aside from that, yeah, this is a really "oh... duh" kinda thing. Yay for Zelda and Trauma Center!

    fsmith1 on
  • EinhanderEinhander __BANNED USERS regular
    edited January 2007
    fsmith1 wrote:
    blakfeld wrote:
    So. How long do you think it will take for Jack Thompson to take this out of context?
    "Videogames work like CRACK. We need to get this new drug off the street!"

    "Games are obviously a construct of the devil to allow mass murderers to realize their sick fantasies! We must not allow them to sate their bloodlust any longer! Playing video games with violence should be a crime because it obviously means that person wants to KILL!"

    Ironically, I think that video games are tied with riding my bike as the primary ways for me to vent my stress, which actually prevents me from killing people. Trashtalking the NPC/enemies of whatever game I'm playing helps a lot as well.

    Einhander on
  • DarlanDarlan Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I think a distinction between wanting to be the character and finding the scenarios interesting should be emphasized more...who really wants to be the character in a survival horror game? Hell, who wants to personally kill people in real life? I think it's more of an escapism, "I want to lead a different, fresh, fantasy impossible life" rather "I want to be doing exactly what that character is doing."

    Darlan on
  • Capncrunch7Capncrunch7 Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    This is being taken way too literally.

    It's not suggesting that you want to be a mobile wedge of cheese navigating a pitch black labyrinth, consuming vast quanities of pellets and dodging ghosts, but rather that you want to be in a world where goals are clear and success is inevitable with enough hard work and dedication.

    Capncrunch7 on
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  • MorninglordMorninglord I'm tired of being Batman, so today I'll be Owl.Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    This is being taken way too literally.

    It's not suggesting that you want to be a mobile wedge of cheese navigating a pitch black labyrinth, consuming vast quanities of pellets and dodging ghosts, but rather that you want to be in a world where goals are clear and success is inevitable with enough hard work and dedication.

    Speak for yourself! *puts on his cheddar suit*

    Morninglord on
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  • Cameron_TalleyCameron_Talley Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    This is being taken way too literally.

    It's not suggesting that you want to be a mobile wedge of cheese navigating a pitch black labyrinth, consuming vast quanities of pellets and dodging ghosts, but rather that you want to be in a world where goals are clear and success is inevitable with enough hard work and dedication.

    I think perhaps you are taking other posters' responses way too literally...I think most of us get what you are talking about...

    Cameron_Talley on
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  • SkyGheNeSkyGheNe Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Online games allow me to become so Godly at games that I am able to crush the emotionally distraught and stupid over the web and hopefully drive them to cut themselves and do my part for darwinism since the government has been working against said theory with their labels and laws.

    SkyGheNe on
  • APZonerunnerAPZonerunner Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Guitar Hero. That is all the evidence they need.

    APZonerunner on
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  • aspaaspa Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    solsovly wrote:
    PieMan wrote:
    I've always wanted to be a lawyer and a surgeon, but lacked the intelligence for both professions. Thank you, videogames!

    They need to make a Phoenix Wright tie in to Trauma Center. Do you know how many malpractice lawsuits I should have? Like being really sleepy and activating your "star" ability.... with a scalpel instead of your hand.

    Make it a multiplayer game with the Guitar Hero controller. Spin out different arguments by hitting different key combinations like in Loom, select fitting counter-arguments like the insult swordfights in Monkey Island.

    aspa on
  • XagarathXagarath Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    This is being taken way too literally.

    It's not suggesting that you want to be a mobile wedge of cheese navigating a pitch black labyrinth, consuming vast quanities of pellets and dodging ghosts, but rather that you want to be in a world where goals are clear and success is inevitable with enough hard work and dedication.
    I recall at least one indy game where you do play a mobile wedge of cheese.
    Literally.

    Xagarath on
  • IShallRiseAgainIShallRiseAgain Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Oh god, does this mean I secretly have furry urges since I played sonic and banjo kazooie? :shock:

    IShallRiseAgain on
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  • core tacticcore tactic Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    If I love Burnout, does it secretly mean I'm suicidal?

    core tactic on
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  • egoat711egoat711 Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    I played Sims 2 because I want to get a job and buy bedsheets that match my wall color scheme.

    ...and simulate having to go to the bathroom.

    egoat711 on
  • Flesh Into GearFlesh Into Gear Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    Taramoor wrote:
    I will say that Shadow of the Colossus fulfilled that great fantasy all young men have.

    Scaling and destroying a goddamned giant with nothing but a sword to save the girl.

    There comes a time in every young mans life when he has to face up and stab some fucking weak points.

    Flesh Into Gear on
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  • PheezerPheezer Registered User, ClubPA regular
    edited January 2007
    So basically if you're too much of a weenie to do much with yourself in real life, having a level 9999 party in Disgaea is a substitute for legitimate accomplishment.

    You don't fucking say.

    Pheezer on
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  • MarravicaMarravica Registered User regular
    edited January 2007
    See, I always preferred video games to TV because games are interactive- they make you work for your results. TV shows just present pre-made static storylines. Boring. Give me Baldur's Gate over Stargate any day of the week.

    This study didn't tell me anything I didn't already know but I hope one day Americans will lose their hostility towards games.

    Marravica on
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