The Positive Effects of Video Games on the Human Mind

Abstract

In order to gain insight into how to create a successful game, a developer should learn about the end user of the product, the player. For this exact reason, there must be a deeper understanding of the effects games can have on the one who plays them. The main question addressed in this paper is “How can the games positively affect the player on a psychological and emotional level?”. This question has been divided into 3 different sub-question. To answer them, a combination of thematic analysis and literature study was used. Multiple studies have been previously made on the relationship between video games and the human mind, either focusing on the negative or on the positive effects. This paper has a new approach, consisting of dividing the benefits into categories determined by the main reason a player chooses to play games. The main 6 categories were established empirically, and 200 answers were arranged under the category most fitting for each. A total of 14 benefits were found for the previously mentioned categories. Additionally, 5 less noticeable benefits have been included into a new category.