Psychosocial Effects of Gaming

Video games are a common leisure activity enjoyed by millions across the globe. However, with their popularization has come with increased concern that prolonged engagement may have negative psychosocial consequences for its players. To determine whether or not these concerns are based on the scientific literature, this chapter discusses a systematic review of the research that has examined links between psychological outcomes and video game play. The results are mixed, and any negative outcomes found are typically short-lived and mild in nature. In addition, it references a large body of literature on positive psychosocial outcomes, including examples of games used to treat or rehabilitate health conditions. The chapter concludes by suggesting several ways to improve research that reduce bias and allow a better understanding of the complex causal relationships between engaging in games and psychosocial outcomes.

Download Full-text

Effects of Extra-curricular Physical Activity Programs on High-school Girls: A Systematic Review

10.1101/2020.04.25.20079780 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Laura-Maude Houle ◽

Jo-Anne Gilbert ◽

Karine Paiement ◽

Alexandra Ayotte ◽

Marie-Eve Mathieu

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Psychosocial Outcomes ◽

Qualitative Studies ◽

Average Score ◽

Psychosocial Effects ◽

High School Girls ◽

Health Related ◽

School Girls

AbstractIntroductionMost adolescents do not meet physical activity (PA) recommendations, especially girls. Physical inactivity has major physical and psychosocial deleterious effects on adolescents. Little is known about the effect of girl-only, extra-curricular PA programs designed for adolescents on physical and psychosocial outcomes. Hence, this systematic review assessed quantitative and qualitative studies evaluating the effects of such interventions. It also aimed at identifying recommendations to improve their implementation and efficacy.MethodsLiterature published until June 4, 2018, was searched in three electronic databases. Two reviewers independently assessed the methodological quality of studies presenting results on physical and psychosocial outcomes, not those presenting solely implementation recommendations.ResultsSeventeen quantitative and qualitative studies describing 10 different PA programs were included. Six of these studies provided recommendations for implementation only. The overall quality of the studies assessing the effects on physical and psychosocial outcomes was moderate, with an average score of 58%. The PA programs assessed did not lead to clear improvements in PA levels or other physical outcomes. Concerning psychosocial results, there is some evidence that the programs could improve dimensions of the self-esteem construct.ConclusionFuture studies should assess the effect of girl-only, extra-curricular PA programs on the health-related habits, such as reduction of sedentary time among adolescents and sleep duration. More studies evaluating the psychosocial effects as a primary outcome are recommended to obtain a clearer understanding of the benefits. This review gathers recommendations to improve the efficacy of future extra-curricular PA programs designed to increase PA levels in girls.

Download Full-text

Defining Spirituality in Healthcare: A Systematic Review and Conceptual Framework

Frontiers in Psychology ◽

10.3389/fpsyg.2021.756080 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Marina Aline de Brito Sena ◽

Rodolfo Furlan Damiano ◽

Giancarlo Lucchetti ◽

Mario Fernando Prieto Peres

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Health Care ◽

Reference Lists ◽

Scientific Literature ◽

Large Body ◽

Final Analysis ◽

Healthcare Research ◽

Scientific Journals ◽

Eligibility Criteria ◽

Individual Aspect

Objective: To investigate the definitions of spirituality in the healthcare field, identifying its main dimensions and proposing a framework that operationalizes the understanding of this concept.Methods: This is a systematic review following the PRISMA guideline (PROSPERO: CRD42021262091), searching for spirituality definitions published in scientific journals. Searches were carried out in PubMed (all articles listed up to October 2020) and in the reference lists of the articles found in the database, followed by selection under specific eligibility criteria.Results: From a total of 493 articles, 166 were included in the final analysis, showing that there is a large body of scientific literature proposing and analyzing spirituality definitions. In these articles, 24 spirituality dimensions were found, most commonly related to the connectedness and meaning of life. Spirituality was presented as a human and individual aspect. These findings led us to construct a framework that represents spirituality as a quantifiable construct.Conclusions: Understanding spirituality is an important aspect for healthcare research and clinical practice. This proposed framework may help to better understand the complexity of this topic, where advances are desirable, given the relevance it has acquired for integral health care.

Download Full-text

Career Counseling Interventions for Video Game Players

Journal of Career Development ◽

10.1177/0894845318793537 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 47 (2) ◽

pp. 207-219 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Shékina Rochat ◽

Jérôme Armengol

Keyword(s):

Video Games ◽

Career Counseling ◽

Video Game ◽

Leisure Activity ◽

Personality Types ◽

Video Game Play ◽

Vocational Personality ◽

The Third ◽

Counseling Interventions ◽

Game Players

Video games are becoming ubiquitous in Western societies. However, this virtual leisure has received little attention from researchers in career counseling, leaving career counselors relatively unprepared to work with video game players. In this article, we propose three types of interventions to capitalize on the benefits of playing video games to foster the career counseling process. The first intervention aims to identify and transfer the skills that video game players develop through their leisure activity. The second intervention highlights how video game players’ narrative may reveal vocational personality types. The third intervention proposes to turn career counseling tasks into a game to increase motivation to achieve it. The strengths and limitations of these interventions are underlined, as well as the potential of career counseling sessions to help remedy problematic video game play.

Download Full-text

The effectiveness of interventions to improve psychosocial outcomes in parents of children with appearance‐affecting health conditions: A systematic review

Child Care Health and Development ◽

10.1111/cch.12805 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 47 (1) ◽

pp. 15-30

Author(s):

Bruna Costa ◽

Maia Thornton ◽

Ella Guest ◽

Jane Meyrick ◽

Heidi Williamson

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Psychosocial Outcomes ◽

Health Conditions

Download Full-text

The Hitman Study

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040/a000010 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 99-108 ◽

Cited By ~ 76

Author(s):

Christopher J. Ferguson ◽

Stephanie M. Rueda

Keyword(s):

Experimental Study ◽

Young Adults ◽

Aggressive Behavior ◽

Video Game ◽

Real Life ◽

Mood Management ◽

Video Game Play ◽

Video Game Playing ◽

Violent Video Game ◽

The Social

This article explores commonly discussed theories of violent video game effects: the social learning, mood management, and catharsis hypotheses. An experimental study was carried out to examine violent video game effects. In this study, 103 young adults were given a frustration task and then randomized to play no game, a nonviolent game, a violent game with good versus evil theme (i.e., playing as a good character taking on evil), or a violent game in which they played as a “bad guy.” Results indicated that randomized video game play had no effect on aggressive behavior; real-life violent video game-playing history, however, was predictive of decreased hostile feelings and decreased depression following the frustration task. Results do not support a link between violent video games and aggressive behavior, but do suggest that violent games reduce depression and hostile feelings in players through mood management.

Download Full-text