ArticleAustralasian psychiatry : bulletin of Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists2022
Exploring the possible mental health and wellbeing benefits of video games for adult players: A cross-sectional study.
Article in Australasian psychiatry : bulletin of Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- The tangled ways to classify games: A systematic review of how games are classified in psychological research.PloS one · 2024Pooled it
- Examining the transdiagnostic role of coping motives and experiential avoidance in the relationship between generalized anxiety disorder and addictive behaviours.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2026Article
- Internet Gaming Disorder and Nonmedical Prescription Drug Use: The Moderating Role of Student Status.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Article
- Achievement Motivation, Meaning in Life, and Well-Being Among Video Game Players.Brain sciences · 2026Article
- Causal effect of video gaming on mental well-being in Japan 2020-2022.Nature human behaviour · 2024Article
- Article
- Practical psychiatry: Taking gaming seriously - a primer for psychiatrists on gamers and gaming culture.Australasian psychiatry : bulletin of Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThere is mixed evidence on the psychological effects of video games. While excessive use can be harmful, moderate use can have emotional, psychological and social benefits, with games successfully used in treating anxiety and depression. More data are required to understand how and for whom these benefits occur. This paper aims to identify correlations between video game genre, player demographics, wellbeing, and the in-play psychological processes for adult players.
methodAdult gamers (
results88.4% of participants experienced emotional benefits from gaming, with stronger benefits experienced by younger players in all categories. The genres most strongly correlated with psychological benefits were music games, role-playing games and survival horror games. Multiplayer online battle arena games had lower scores for psychological and emotional wellbeing.
conclusionsCertain genres have stronger correlations with beneficial mechanisms, while some may be detrimental to players. These results may guide experimental studies to measure the directionality and strength of these correlations and can also impact practical aspects in development of therapeutic games to treat mental distress.
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Registered trials
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