Videogames
There has been a rapid increase of the use of Videogames in the context of skill and behavioral learning. Studies show that learning environments are slowly shifting from the standard reading of books to video content in various academic worlds. This is no surprise, given the increasing rise of technological innovations, leading to the need to package learning materials in various formats and contents. Video games are gaining ground even in early learning sectors being that children are usually the greatest beneficiaries given their active senses in grasping visual concepts. It has shown to have significant effects on the efficiency of visuo-spatial skills, promotion of relationships, and the development of problem-solving skills. Given that it is a relatively new trend in the industry, video games have negatively influenced the learners. Whether in school or at home, individuals can become addicted to the visual content for entertainment at the expense of focusing on learning the intended message. It can also promote negative cognitive factors such as violence, aggression, anxiety, or stress. Based on the above highlights, the paper reviews some of the video games results in training skills and changing behaviors.
Videogames can have significant positive or negative effects on behavioral learning and visuo-spatial skills. There are more than two billion video game users worldwide (Fleming et al., 2017). It is common to find video games being enjoyed even by adults. Research suggests that gamers’ average age has significantly increased, with the current figures being estimated at 35 years (Frontiers, 2017).
Games can be played on both consoles, desktops, smartphones, or even on the tablets. Given the increased portability of such devices, people can learn new content and behaviors in any environment, including while commuting to school or work, and the spare time between class lessons or work shifts. Skills and behaviors like concentration, imagination, problem-solving, attention, retention of information, production, motivation, and social behaviors can all be improved through video gaming (Baranowski, Buday, Thompson & Baranowski, 2008). Young gamers, like teenagers who are struggling with bullying situations, can get help from the interactions with video games. It is proven that exposure to prosocial video games improves the behaviors of the gamers (Kolić-Vehovec, Smojver-Ažić, Martinac-Dorčić, & Rončević-Zubković, 2019).
The emergence of antibullying games can be incorporated to help the bystanders and victims to develop coping skills that are effective for their survival. Video games have specified and measurable goals, where gamers can develop repetitive skills useful for helping them fight many enemies and overcome multiple challenges (Kolić-Vehovec, Smojver-Ažić, Martinac-Dorčić, & Rončević-Zubković, 2019). Therefore, the learners or gamers can help identify the target behavior that exposes them to bullying, and then such limitations are improved through the selected video games platforms to help the victims challenge the victim’s power. However, this has a negative effect too since the bullies also interact with such platforms and improve techniques to harass their targets further. Explicit video game content can also promote destructive behaviors like theft, violence, or indulgence in sexual harassment (Quwaider, Alabed, & Duwairi, 2019).
Since video games allow the individuals to engage in activities that adopt a narrative, the gamers can be informed, influenced, and experience new meaning to conveying their experiences (Kolić-Vehovec, Smojver-Ažić, Martinac-Dorčić, & Rončević-Zubković, 2019). Visuospatial skills are useful for making learning an enjoyable experience. As the learners interact with the game characters, they memorize the content flow, improving their mastery of concepts and the interpretation of situations. The visuo-spatial skills are also shaped through immersion in the game and active experimentation. As a result, gamers develop a sense of constructive and experimental learning where they can identify, integrate, and analyze details, structures, and spatial relations in events.
Serious games can be developed to promote positive psychological effects. Video games can be used as therapeutic items to improve an individual’s mental health (Fleming et al., 2017). As the users get engaged in the video games to experience how the stories unfold, the results are useful in “reducing high attrition rates in naturalistically implemented internet-based interventions” (Fleming et al., 2017). The gamers can experience the state of flow and feel motivated to try and experience new skills to improve their environments. As a result, the overall wellbeing of the gamers can be improved. Gamers can learn to explore their environments and learn how to avoid and escape real-life problems (Eichenberg & Schott, 2017).
Videogames can also have negative psychological effects, specifically in the domain of emotional control. Video games are synonymous with addictions. “The amount of time spent playing video games has increased steadily, from 5.1 h/week in 2011 to 6.5 h/week in 2017” (Heiden, Braun, Müller & Egloff, 2019). The addicts end up missing out on their academic targets, leading to lower chances of attaining educational goals, developing problems with peers, and having poor social skills. “The degree of addictive video game use has been found to be related to personality traits such as low self-esteem and low self-efficacy anxiety, and aggression and even to clinical symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders” (Heiden, Braun, Müller & Egloff, 2019). The video game addicts thus end up with less or no social friends, some struggle with stress and maladaptive coping, loneliness, and lower psychosocial wellbeing (Domingues‐Montanari, 2017). The social relationships that gamers develop with virtual worlds are bad for their overall psychological health. Such gamers require social support from their families and close allies to enable them to see the world differently.
In conclusion, videogames have become increasingly integrated into people’s lives, typically spawning this interest from a young age. Research has shown that videogames can have significant effects on the efficiency of visuo-spatial skills, but more recently, it is believed to promote relationships and develop problem-solving skills. On the other hand, they can also have negative cognitive effects, specifically for emotional control. Considering these effects, the use of serious videogames for behavioral learning has increased rapidly. Serious games are viewed as games that are built with the aim of progressing a particular skill or cognitive ability rather than just for entertainment.