Video Games and Mindfulness

Question :

Write an essay about how video games help to improve mindfulness

Answer :

The duration of the study was two weeks and the results showed that the Tenacity group’s attention had improved. This could be ascertained from the changes in critical brain areas and their connectivity. In order to understand these positive effects of video games, it is also important to know the reason why these games are played. Difficult moments and trying times make people reluctant towards socializing with others, and they find isolation as the only method to keep away from the world. Video games can be a form of mindful meditation that keep the mind focussed, and maintain the presence of the body and mind. These engage the gamer physically and emotionally in the current moment. 

Individuals who play games such as “Candy Crush” are doing more than simply playing a game and levelling up, they are also improving their focus. Scientific researches about mindfulness training have shown that underlying brain substrates change in adults and there is an improvement in attention. Such studies undertook analysis where functional connectivity and diffusion tensor were combined. The results produced changes in communication within the left fronto-parietal network. Again, such research considered the comparative effects of Tenacity and a control game. It has been established that playing Tenacity improves Emotional Conflict Task performance and alters corresponding functional and structural brain networks which are associated with attention when compared with playing the commercially available control game (Chan, 2019).

Other examples displaying similar effects can be found in people playing video games like “Minecraft” which strengthen people’s ability to socialize and communicate. Studies suggest that video games even if played for a short period of time, can induce neuro-plastic changes in teenagers. Hence, these can be regarded as effective tools to increase attention and other qualities such as empathy in teenagers. From cultural point of view as well, video games have immense value as these can provide the players with knowledge about a specific culture. Besides, video games often have interactions between players from diverse cultural backgrounds and therefore inter-cultural and socio-cultural literacy would be evolved which would give rise to various qualities such as awareness and understanding about different cultures or geo-political environment and also self-awareness. These attributes make video games capable of inducing emotions which can lead to weakening of attitudes regarding stereotypical treatment of others. These also build the players’ intercultural skills as there are interactions between people from different backgrounds. (Note: Need to find a new evidence for this part)

Video games, especially games such as “The Elder Scrolls” have been known to help individuals cope with stress as the surrounding environment is peaceful and calm. There are routes with beautiful sceneries which promote deep breathing and general wellness. Video games are essentially skill building mechanisms which are immersive which means it distracts the player from the surroundings and the player’s entire focus is centred in the gameplay only. This feature may seem unbelievable to many but the researches provide the logic that these are stressbuster tools which help an individual recover from anxiety and stress. It also provides emotional satisfaction through the establishment of a sense of control (Jung, 2019). Casual video game playing controls stress by initiating activities which work to restore the player’s mood and these are known as affective abilities (Patsenko, et al., 2019). This was ascertained through a study where participants were subjected to baseline affective and cognitive assessment (ACA)  (Rupp, Sweetman, Sosa, Smither, & McConnell, 2017). 

Video games induce various types of improvements such as brain and body exercises, problem solving skills and physical benefits. Here, brain exercises refer to the changes caused in three crucial parts of the brain. Changes in the pre-frontal cortex improves decision making and planning skills which can be gained through games such as “Super Mario” which require pre-planning skills. The right hippocampus portion of the brains grows as well as video games improves information processing abilities and memory retention. The cerebellum portion of the brain improves fine motor skills as video games requires effective modulation and control of responses. While action games have their own benefits, brain games also provide mental stimulation with repetitive features. Games such as “Minecraft”, “SimCity” and “Civilization” problem-solving skills as these require strategies to be successful. These games teach players planning and resource management skills at an early age aided with simple explanations there are also different types of fitness games which improve body fitness through dance sessions and fitness regimes. These offer quick fitness activities for those who do not have the time or money for gym visits. General physical benefits from video games include improvement of eyesight because the use of graphics in video games helps the players to achieve improved perception of colour shades and contrasts. These studies have been supported by the Office of Naval Research and the National Eye Institute. In pre-school children video games improve fine motor skills such as hand-eye co-ordination. Even surgeons who engage in regular gameplays become better at their jobs due to improved muscle co-ordination. 

Advantages of video games are many according to the impacts they create. These impacts can be classified into behavioural change impact, content understanding impact, knowledge acquisition impact and perception impact (Shliakhovchuk & Muñoz García, 2020). Behavioural change impact includes willingness to help everyone, improvement in sensitive emotions, improvement in communication and adaptability, inclusive behaviour towards members outside the group. Content understanding impact refer to benefits of understanding racial diversity. Racial hostilities are reduced as players begin to understand the importance of diversity and develop compassionate feelings for those who fall prey to cultural stereotyping. Video games have in-built problematic values and game assumptions which promote culture choices influenced by technology. Knowledge acquisition impact refer to knowledge based empathy, awareness and literacy. There could be socio-cultural developments inclusive of multi-modal literacy. An example could be found in games that require the learning of a new language. Such impacts also include better understanding of global processes. Video games can also create changes in perceptions as there are games specifically designed to dismiss real-world stereotypes. Few other benefits of video games include motivational and emotional impacts (Granic, Lobel, & Engels, 2014).

The emotional reward and satisfaction associated with meditation combined with the pleasures of video games forms a fruitful activity that is equivalent to the practice of wellness and mindfulness. Thus video games not only help in reducing depression and anxiety in the modern world but also help in building a community of youngsters who are mentally prepared for the ever-evolving future.

1 References

Granic, I., Lobel, A., & Engels, R. (2014). The Benefits of Playing Video Games. American Psychological Association, 69(1), 66 –78.

Jung, A. (2019). Yes, Video Games Can Be Good for You. Good Housekeeping.

Patsenko, E. G., Adluru, N., Birn, R., Stodola, D. E., Kral, T., Farajian, R., . . . Davidson, R. J. (2019). Mindfulness video game improves connectivity of the fronto-parietal attentional network in adolescents: A multi-modal imaging study. Scientific Reports, 9(1).

Rupp, M. A., Sweetman, R., Sosa, A. E., Smither, J. A., & McConnell, D. S. (2017). Searching for Affective and Cognitive Restoration: Examining the Restorative Effects of Casual Video Game Play. Human Factors, 59(7), 1096–1107.

Shliakhovchuk, E., & Muñoz García, A. (2020). Intercultural Perspective on Impact of Video Games on Players: Insights from a Systematic Review of Recent Literature. Educational Sciences: Theory and Practice, 20(1), 40–58.