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Stephanie Luis
Irene Peterson
English 1010-053
5/1/2016
Video Games
Many People use to think that playing video games turned our brains to mush, that it
caused people to become violent after playing violent video games, and that people who play
video games are antisocial. Not only have these stereo types been proven wrong, but now it
seems as though video games are helping people in many real life situations. But, are video
games really good for our mental health, physical health, or our society? Video games have
become much more popular than theyve ever been. A little over half of American households
have someone who plays video games, according to the University of Rochester. This is because
children and adolescents arent the only ones who play video games, but also adults. The main
focus for video game developers arent only on children anymore, but are also on entertaining
adults.
According to a study conducted by Daphne Bavelier, a professor of brain and cognitive
science at the University of Rochester. Bavelier and his colleagues were able to find that playing
quick paced video games, such as action video games, helped in making faster decisions. The
research was conducted with two groups of people. The people that were used for this
experiment ranged from 18 25 year olds. Both groups played 50 hours of games. One group
played a fast-paced action game while the other played a slow-moving strategy game. The
groups were asked to analyze the same thing, which was both visual and auditory, then they were

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asked a series of questions which they had to answer as soon as possible. From this Bavelier
found that both groups answered the same amount of questions correctly, but the group that
played the fast paced video game answered 25% faster.
Bavelier states that, Action video game players brains are more efficient collectors of
visual and auditory information, and therefore arrive at the necessary threshold of information
they need to make a decision much faster. As mentioned before, making faster decisions help in
improving general skills which we constantly use in life, such as, driving, multitasking, and
navigating around town. This shows how video games could greatly impact our way of thinking.
As a matter of fact, there are other ways in which video games could help us develop
skills that we use on the daily bases. This article by Joel Lee is about the positive ways in which
a wide variety of video games influenced his life. He explains how different genres helped him
adapt a variety of skills. Video games had Lee think critically in many of the strategic games he
played, and it helped him in thinking ahead in real life situations. Not only did these strategic
games stimulate planning and strategy, but they also encouraged him to think creatively.
Additionally, there were also games which involved having groups of people go for the same
objective. For these types of games there always had to be someone to lead the way for the
group, which he sometimes had to do. In doing so it helped him develop leadership and social
skills. He also explains how the repetitive ways of games helped him become more patient and
perseverant. These skills are very useful throughout life. They definitely helped Lee, Games
helped shape me into a more productive member of society.
An article by the University of North Carolina statistically shows that people who play
games are socially active and arent the basement dwelling loners who people use to portray
them to be. This article was based of the large scale of quantitative research conducted by The

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Pew Research Institute. According to the article, 24% of gamers play alone, although, 76% of
these people play with friends, family, etc. It is easier for people to play together because the
internet allows them to connect wirelessly online, making it more convenient for everyone. Not
only that, but people are able to get on sites like YouTube or twitch where they can view realtime tournaments from some of their favorite games, while also being able to socialize in the
comments section with people that are watching the same tournament stream; in the comfort of
their home. According to the article, tournaments for the game StarCraft had more spectators
than the Super Bowl. Not only online, but also in the stadiums. This truly shows how social
gamers are.
On the other hand, Jack Flanagan conducted an extensive amount of research in order to
show how dangerous being addicted to video games could be. Being addicted to video games
could cause people to lose sight of their priorities, have withdrawal symptoms, migraines, back
problems, and very occasionally death. It was shown that 12% of participants in 7,000 people
were said to be addicted to video games. Getting rewarded in a game begins to trigger the brains
reward system that makes people want to play more which could cause addiction. Flanagan
explains that Partial Reinforcement Effect is a way games reward their players randomly, like
gambling. Video games could be as addicting as gambling causes some people to become. Not
only does this reward system motivate people to play more, but also because their friends are
relying on them to play the game. Having to do so makes people feel important which ends up
being a motive for them to play every-day. Flanagan also points out that games are a way for
people to escape from the real world so they could escape from their real life problems. When
playing video games people should take precautions. We should not lose sight of our priorities in
life.

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In addition to this, Heather Kelly, a CNN technology reporter explains through research
and facts she found from the American Psychological Association that playing violent video
games causes people to feel aggressive. For this reason the APA strongly advises parents to put
parental controls in games for their children. This is why violent video games are best played by
people who are mature and old enough to play them. It is important to look at the rating of a
video game before letting a child play it. Since their minds are still developing its best to not to
allow children to play video games that promote violence. We dont want them to think that
violence is acceptable.
Moreover, Gillian Mohney, is ABC News digital reporter who covers health and
breaking news through articles and video. In this article Mohney talks to professionals and
explains how a man was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his leg. The cause of this was
from lying in bed for eight hours for four days straight. The reason why he did not move in this
long period of time was because he was playing video games. If he had kept doing this for much
longer it would have led to pulmonary embolism which is when blood clot forms in the leg and
travels to the lungs. This is fatal 30% of the time, but with the right medication the clots are able
to dissolve. If people were to develop blood clots in short periods of time it is most likely that
they have secondary risk factors. We must take this into consideration and get up and move every
hour or so to allow our blood to flow through the body. And we must listen to our bodies in case
there is something that seems wrong, so we can get medical treatment ahead of time. Not only
that, but we must cut down the amount of time we play video games. According to the article, the
usage of video games has risen to almost an hour since 2010.
Playing video games could be beneficial to our mental health because it could help us in
grasping information, and come up with solutions faster. Not only that, but it also helps in

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developing skills which are constantly used and needed in life. Although, there was research
showing that video games could cause addiction which leads to mental and physical health
problems. I believe that video games could help us in building useful skills that will greatly
benefit our society, but video games could be quite dangerous if played extensively. We must
take into consideration that video games are for fun, not as a replacement of life. We control and
play the game, it should not control and play us. But it all depends on the person playing it.

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Work Cited
Bavelier, Daphne, et al. Video Games Lead to Faster Decisions that are No Less Accurate.
University of Rochester. N.p. 24 Aug. 2010. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
Flanagan, Jack. The Psychology of Video Game Addiction. The Week. The Kernel, 6 Feb.
2014. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
How Video Games Can Be Social. University of North Carolina. Positive Effects of Video
Games on Society, 2016. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
Kelly, Heather. Do Video Games Cause Violence. CNNMoney. CNNMoney San Francisco,
17 Aug. 2015. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
Lee, Joel. 5 Life Skills That Video Games Can Help You Develop. MakeUseOf. N.p. 6 Aug.
2014. Web. 24 Apr. 2016.
Mohney, Gillian. Video Game Leads to Life-Threatening Condition for Gamer. abcNews.
N.p. 12 Dec. 2013. Web 24 Apr. 2016.