Geek therapy is a way of integrating nerd-culture artifacts into the therapeutic process as a means of building rapport with clients. This modality can help people with gaming and fantasy proclivities find points of resonance between make-believe and real-world concerns. All therapy approaches basically strive for similar successes, and does…
A new study finds that fewer than two hours of daily screen time can adversely affect a kid’s life satisfaction. Physical activity is crucial to wellbeing, and sedentary screen time interferes with exercise hours. Screen time guidelines can become more nuanced as children return to in-person learning. Experts recommend separating…
Good news for anyone who’s ever been criticized for playing too many video games: virtual building games like Minecraft can boost creativity. This, from researchers at Iowa State University. Researchers split 352 participants into four groups: one group played Minecraft with specific instructions; another played Minecraft without instructions; and…
The common belief is that video games cause aggression in real life—but research shows this isn’t the case. Cultivation theory summarizes this belief; however, a University of York study shows that violent video games doesn’t influence players to behave any certain way. That said, of course gaming can still have…
In the digital era, both children and adults have been looking to video games for entertainment more and more often. The number of players getting involved, even when looking at a single game alone, can be staggering; for example, as of June 2018, the popular video game Fortnite had more…
Let’s be honest, the media often gets a bad rap: social media platforms are criticized for being highlight reels, news networks are condemned for disseminating false or disheartening news, and movies as well as TV shows and video games are blamed for provoking violent behavior amongst viewers/users. But what about…
Some people spend hours with their eyes glued to their computer or TV screen and hands glued to the keyboard or controller in front of them—and others turn on their game console once every few days or weeks. In either regard, many believe that the effects of playing video games…
A popular topic of conversation (at least in the world of psychology) is whether or not video games make people more aggressive. For years, the bulk of research said yes, they certainly do; even the American Psychological Association declared violent video games—such as Halo and Call of Duty—a danger to…
My dad is an older, recently retired gentleman who is having some trouble keeping busy. During the summer he flourishes, as he loves to do work outside like mow the lawn, trim leaves, and plant new trees. But now that the temperature has dropped and the fall (almost winter) days…
Growing up, my two brothers and I loved to play all sorts of video games. We’d crowd onto the couch and battle each other in Halo 2 and Call of Duty on the Xbox. We’d spend hours creating our dream houses and families on Sims (with the help of some…
My brother is one of those kids that plays video games into the wee hours of the night. He gets home from school, throws his backpack on the floor, and runs to his computer. For the next couple hours, we don’t see him but oh, can we hear him—yelling at…
Let’s face it- video games are here to stay. With the next generation of consoles about to come out, it’s a great time to review a few ways to make gaming a positive addition to your family, rather than a negative one. 1. No gaming before bed. This includes the…