Studies indicate video games may help teach positive life-long skills

Two papers presented on August 5, 2008, at the Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association (APA) in Boston, MA (USA), demonstrated that some videogames can help improve the ability to solve problems and dexterity.

In a paper titled Children’s Problem Solving During Video Game Play, Fordham University psychologist Fran C. Blumberg, PhD, and Sabrina S. Ismailer, MSED, presented the results of a study that examined the problem-solving skills of grade-school aged children while they played videogames.

The subjects (122 fifth-, sixth- and seventh-graders) were asked to play a video game that they had never seen before. For 20 minutes during the game, the children had to think out loud so the researchers could gauge how they were thinking about and perceiving the situations in the game. It was found that younger children tended to focus better at in-game problems than the older children who played simply for enjoyment. The younger children also seemed more interested in setting short-term goals than the older children.

Another paper titled Four Dimensions of Video Game Effects by psychologist Douglas Gentile, PhD, and William Stone, BS, described game usage within high school and college-aged students along with a few professionals in the field of laparoscopic surgery. The purpose of the multiple studies that served as the basis for the paper were to detail the effects that gaming had on students’ social performances.

One of Gentile and Stone’s studies indicated that gamers playing violent games tended to be more violent and unforgiving than most gamers who play “prosocial” games. Another of their studies showed that gaming solely for enjoyment usually lead to poor academic performances and obesity. The study that involved 33 laparoscopic surgeons found that the surgeons who gamed could not only perform advanced surgeries more quickly but also made fewer errors in surgery.

Even when examining the gender differences, level of experience and number of surgeries done, it was found that advanced gaming skills can be a strong indicator of suturing capabilities. Another study, focusing on 303 surgeons, also found that their spatial skills and dexterity were improved by games that require both.

This shows that games aren’t necessarily good or bad but may have previously unknown (or unassumed) educational implications.

Another study titled Informal Scientific Reasoning in Online Game Forums by researchers Constance Steinkuehler, PhD, and Sean Duncan, MA, used the ever-popular World of Warcraft. It showed that games where characters have to work together to level up end up helping out with problem solving abilities as well as teamwork abilities. They also tend to level up quicker. It also showed that people who openly talked about plans within the game were dealing with in-game problems in a scientific manner when trying to figure out how to get through a difficult area or defeat a difficult boss.

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