If you’ve always thought of video games as a mere distraction, a new international study by researchers at the Oxford Internet Institute may well change your mind. According to their research, playing video games can have a positive impact on mood in as little as 15 minutes.
The research, which analysed data from 67,328 gaming sessions from 8,695 players across 39 countries, revealed that players of the popular PowerWash Simulator (PWS) video game reported an improvement in their mood during their gaming sessions. Researchers found that 72.1% of players experienced this mood improvement, based on statistical modeling of player data.
An almost immediate effect
This research, led by assistant professor Matti Vuorre of Tilburg University and research associate at the Oxford Internet Institute, part of the University of Oxford, aims to better understand the short-term effects of video games on gamers’ moods. Unlike previous studies, which often used artificial stimuli and laboratory environments, this study focused on more real-life gaming sessions.
The results show that players’ average mood increased by 0.034 units (on a scale of 0 to 1) from the beginning to the end of the gaming session. This improvement is comparable to that observed in other leisure activities such as reading, shopping or listening to music, the researchers point out.
Nick Ballou, postdoctoral researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute, commented: “By investigating player experiences during natural play of a popular and commercially available game, we found strong evidence for a small positive change in mood over the course of a play session. Our current study corroborates what qualitative research and reports from video game players around the world have long suggested: People feel good playing video games.”
To conduct the study, the researchers collaborated with PWS developer FuturLab to create a special edition of the game that recorded game events, game statuses, participant demographics and responses to psychological surveys. This special edition of the game was almost identical to the main version, with the addition of pop-ups asking players to indicate their mood, all playfully integrated to minimize disruption to the gaming experience.
Senior author, professor Andrew Przybylski at the Oxford Internet Institute, stressed the importance of further research in this area: “We believe our findings are most consistent with the notion that gaming – for most people – is a recovery activity that helps to manage day-to-day stresses and mood fluctuations, without necessarily having substantial long-term impacts.
“The fact that we studied only one game – and one that is not likely representative of today’s most commonly played games – suggests caution in generalising from our findings to other games. Future work should consider the use of randomised controlled trials to evaluate the effect of playing PowerWash Simulator or other games compared to other leisure activities or therapeutic interventions.” – AFP Relaxnews
