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Hayden Steele

Professor Namey

English Composition

5 November 2018

The Personal, Social, and Cognitive Benefits of Video Games

Within recent years, video games have been a relevant topic in the media and news. Since

recent mass shootings seem to occur more often than ever, the media is quick to point their

fingers at violent video games. The news has condemned video game producers for being the

factor that “motivates” people to commit mass murders. USA Today uploaded an article titled

“Study confirms link between violent video games and physical aggression” (Snider). The title of

this article makes the information sound decisive and confident. However, the first paragraph

states that the research conducted for this topic is not definitive. USA Today interviewed the

scientists stating their research findings. However, the article does not feature how the scientists

conducted their experiment and came to their results (Snider). These articles are very common in

media and news. With all the negative attention directed towards video games, I wondered if

there was anything good about video games. Research and studies prove that video games

exercise and improve cognitive functions, social encounters, and decision-making skills.

On the morning of December 25, 2011, I woke up with excitement and curiosity. I

quickly got out of bed and ran down stairs. I stopped at the top of the basement stairs in awe.

Below me was a plethora of boxes wrapped in vibrant, colorful paper. I waited for my parents to

come into the basement, then I tore into gifts before me. Like a savage, I ripped open each

package, leaving shreds of paper and mangled bows everywhere. After a surprisingly short
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period of time, I reached for the last box with my name on it. Unlike the other packages, I

examined the size and weight of the square container. I slowly tore off the wrapping paper,

trying not to ruin the exterior of the box. I stopped ripping off the paper when I saw the lustrous,

green Xbox 360 logo on the box. I became ecstatic and ran to my parents to thank them. It was at

this moment that I entered the vast, expanding universe of video gaming.

I would play video games almost every day. My parents worried that I would become

“addicted” to video games; however, I could only play so much before I was ready to move on to

another activity. Video games never affected my physical and social being. I had friends in my

neighborhood that I would hang out with every day. We would play football, soccer, tag, or build

forts in the woods behind our houses. My best friend, who I have known since I was 4 years old,

is Mattheu. If I was in the middle of playing video games and Mattheu rang my doorbell to see if

I could hang out, I would shut off my Xbox and head outside. Him and I always preferred to go

outside rather than play video games. On school nights, when it was too late to hang out, him and

I would play video games together before bed. This never affected our school work or ability to

sleep. It was just a way for us to spend time together without actually being together.

In the winter of 2018, Mattheu moved out of my neighborhood. Then, in the late summer

that same year, I started college at the University of Cincinnati. Mattheu and I were very worried

about maintaining our friendship. I was going to have a very busy schedule with college, and he

had just been promoted to a supervisor at his work. Today, we are only able to hang out for about

three hours a week. That might sound like a decent amount of time, but it is a big change from

seeing each other for hours every single day. I truly feel that the only way him and I are still

friends is because of video games. Almost every night, him and I play games with each other

while we talk on our headsets. While playing games, we are able to talk about our day, vent
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about things that frustrate us, and share funny stories. We look forward to the time we get to

spend with each other over the computer. It is a big stress reliever and it offers a break from the

stressful life of being a student.

Growing up, I heard many adults share their opinion on video games. The most common

description I heard about video games from someone older than me was that video games are a

worthless waste of time. With curiosity, I would ask them, “What about board games? Are board

games a useless waste of time?” To my surprise, their answers differed drastically from their

opinion of video games. Many adults would enlighten me on the fact that board games were

social and used brainpower and strategy. These adults that I talked to held board games at such a

high, critical level of greatness. However, when that game was transferred to a screen, their

opinions dropped to an all time low. This sparked a question in my mind that I needed to find out

the answer to. Why is it that older generations disapprove of video games, and is there any

benefit to playing video games? This is where I started my research.

In my efforts of searching for the answer to the first part of my question, the reasoning

why older generations disprove of video games, I stumbled upon an article by Joanne Orlando.

Orlando is a researcher at the University of Sydney. In this series, children submit questions to

her that she answers academically. In this article, nine-year-old Bo from Melbourne, Australia

asked “why adults think video games are bad”. In response to this question, Orlando explains

that the main reason why parents disapprove of video games is because of the fear of the

unknown (Orlando). Many parents worry that violent video games will cause their child to

become violent (Orlando). Video games are a recent invention. With rapid changes and additions

to video games, such as virtual reality, research on the effects that video games have on children

is indecisive.
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Another concern that older generations have against video games is whether children are

acquiring any skills or attributes while they play. Orlando describes that when a child reads a

book for an hour, it is known that they are improving their literacy, processing, and spelling

skills (Orlando). In contrast, many people are uneducated on the topic of whether a child who is

playing video games for an hour is gaining anything from their experience. Adults and parents

who grew up in the 1980s and 1990s might have some experience with video games. Whether

going to the arcade on the weekends or plugging their Atari into the TV. Video games were just

starting to be introduced into the lives of humans. These games were very basic and simple, with

most only having one objective. Today, video games are much more advanced and complicated.

One game can hold over 1,000 objectives. Also, most present-day video games focus heavily on

cooperation with other players to achieve a common goal. Video games today vary drastically

from the early video games of the 1980s and 1990s. Therefore, video games have very different

definitions and connotations to a fifteen-year-old child than to a forty-year-old adult.

Once I became enlightened on the reasoning why older generations tend to disapprove of

video games, I was ready to move on to the second part of my question. I wanted to know if

playing video games have any benefits for people. An article by Mark Griffiths aided in my

studies. In his article, “The Educational Benefits of Video Games”, Mark lists different ways that

video games can benefit humans. He explains how every year, video games get more social

(Griffiths). Almost every game that comes on to the market has a multiplayer option. This allows

players to hook-up a microphone and connect with players all over the world. Because of this,

players can communicate with people from other countries in the comfort of their own home.

The outcome of this is that players are being exposed to different cultures, ideas, and lifestyles.
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Since video games have become more focused on teamwork and cooperation, players are

exposed to skills such as effective communication and team building (Griffiths). These skills are

important when searching for a job, working in a team, or trying to complete a common goal

amongst others. Video games require players to either work together with a friend or stranger to

complete a common goal. This demands players to communicate ideas, plans, and strategies with

their teammates while working in what can be a stressful, fast passed situation. This lets players

experience real life challenges with teamwork, communication, and deadlines.

Studies have been conducted to examine specific benefits of video games. A study was

conducted to conclude whether video games improved the perception of viewing two-

dimensional objects in a three-dimensional space. This skill is very common in engineering

fields when sketching, designing, and creating something such as a car or structure. The study

contained two groups of people. At the end, each group would be tested on their three-

dimensional skills and perceptions. One of the groups was required to play a game in the three-

dimensional perspective eight times. The game was simple. The player controlled a space ship

that was undergoing attacks from other computer-controlled spaceships (Green). After the eight

sessions of play, the group that played the game took the same three-dimensional test as the

group that did not play the game. The study concluded that the group that played eight sessions

of the video game outscored the group that did not play the video game (Green). This experiment

shows that there is a cognitive connection between video games and spatial visualization.

One of the most popular games to date is Minecraft. In this game, players are set free to

roam in a massive space complete with ecosystems such as desserts, forests, jungles, and white

cap mountains. Minecraft is a survival game where players start with absolutely nothing. It is the

player’s job to gather materials, hunt for food, build shelter, farm, and explore the land around
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them. With the materials that players gather, items such as swords, torches, beds, ovens, and

other survival objects can be created. The total number of items that players can create is 967

(Minecraft Wiki). Since the game updates frequently, more items continue to be added into the

game. The game requires real life principles and mechanics to be used when creating each item.

For example, to create glass windows in the game, the player must collect sand and wood. The

player then puts the sand into a furnace and uses the wood to light a fire. The output is glass

windows that the player can add into their home, igloo, or whatever structure they decided to

create for themselves.

Through extensive research and studies, it is proven that video games that allow players

to freely roam, such as Minecraft, challenge players to use different, creative solutions to solve

problems (Gee). This equips players with the skill of system thinking. System thinking requires

people to consider the effects of every decision they make (Gee). An example of this in

Minecraft is that a player has three pieces of wood and a raw piece of meat. The player can either

choose to cook the raw meat with the wood or create a torch for the oncoming sunset. Situations

like this are very common in video games and require the player to make decisions that contain

multiple outcomes and situations.

The activity of playing video games has become a hot topic for the media in today’s

society. Many articles and news stories are quick to blame video games for mass shootings,

strange behavior, and aggression without providing evidence or facts. As a result of this, older

generations tend to disapprove of video games. The reasoning for this is simply a lack of

understanding and a fear of the unknown. Video games differ drastically now versus fifteen

years ago. They have become more social, challenging, and contain a massive number of

objectives and situations that can occur. As a result of this, players exercise their social skills,
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problem solving skills, decision making skills, and diversity skills when they play these games.

As video games have become more advanced, players are required to use many social and

cognitive skills to complete challenges and work their way out of obstacles.
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Works Cited

Gee, James. Good Video Games and Good Learning. 2005, norcalwp.org/pdf/Gee--

Learning_Principles_Articles.pdf.

Green, Shawn, and Daphne Bavelier. The Cognitive Neuroscience of Video Games. 2004,

learningtransferlab.wiscweb.wisc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/280/2017/07/The-

Cognitive-Neuroscience-of-Video-GamesGreen-Bavelier-2006.pdf.

Griffiths , Mark. The Educational Benefits of Videogames. 2002,

irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/15272/1/187769_5405%20Griffiths%20Publisher.pdf.

Minecraft Wiki. “Item.” Minecraft Wiki, Gamepedia, 16 Oct. 2018,

minecraft.gamepedia.com/Item.

Orlando, Joanne. “Curious Kids: Why Do Adults Think Video Games Are Bad?” The

Conversation, 20 Sept. 2018, theconversation.com/curious-kids-why-do-adults-think-

video-games-are-bad-76699.

Snider, Mike. “Study Confirms Link between Violent Video Games and Physical Aggression.”

USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 2 Oct. 2018,

www.usatoday.com/story/tech/news/2018/10/01/violent-video-games-tie-physical-

aggression-confirmed-study/1486188002/.