Learn the science and ways to play video games that boost creativity and even support well-being.
Since video games first arrived in the 1970s, they have been the subject of debate and concern. Detractors argue that video games are harmful and need to be subject to legislative oversight and restrictions. However, since the inception of video games, hundreds of scientific studies have been conducted, and the findings show positive side effects outweigh the negative. The benefits of video games include social skills, cognitive development, physical rehabilitation, psychological well-being, and creativity.
Encourages Autonomy
A 2019 study comparing the effects of playing Minecraft, with or without instruction, found that video games that foster creative freedom can increase creativity under certain conditions. The main condition being autonomy. The researchers found that “Being told to be creative may have actually limited their options while playing, resulting in a less creative experience.” The researchers even found that playing first-person shooter games can potentially inspire creativity. This is because players have to think about strategy, make split-second decisions, and look for advantages in combat. (1)
Enhances Brain Flexibility & Increases Grey Matter
Research has found that action video games can influence cognitive abilities such as perception, attention, and reaction time. (2) This can even be used for real-world purposes such as training surgeons and rehabilitating individuals with perceptual or cognitive deficits. (3) The researchers found these positive effects occur because games require the player to keep track of many items at once, move quickly, and make split-second decisions. (4)
Improves Problem Solving Skills
Research has found that role-playing games that also require strategy boosted the problem-solving skills of adolescents and even led to improved grades in school. (5) The reason behind this is because video games teach; learning from mistakes, deep practice, facing different problems, and creative autonomy or approaching problems.
Stregthens Visual Abilities
Video games push a person’s visual system to the limits and force the brain to adapt. As a visual medium, video games typically require the player to make split-second decisions, distribute their attention, track multiple moving targets, and more. This is a lot of information to take in, which can exercise the eyes and improve spatial attention. This is the ability to quickly locate a target stimulus in a field of distractors. (6) One study found that first-person action video games could be used in rehabilitation therapy for people with vision problems such as amblyopia (or lazy eye) and general aging. (7) Another study found that VR games that involved physical motion could help stroke victims improve their ability to walk eventually. (8)
Improves Mood & Relieves Stress
Since the inception of video games, people have played to regulate their emotions and relax. Now research has found that video games contribute to positive emotions and stability for players that support mental health and well-being. Video games have also been linked to the development of skill acquisition and have been found to contribute to individual attitude and behavior changes. (9)
Teaches Leadership & Social Skills
With video games becoming more commonplace and the communities continuing to grow, people are gaining new benefits by having to train their leadership and social skills. Many video games require collaboration between people to accomplish certain tasks and even reward and encourage leadership. In a recent study, it was found that children that played video games had better social skills and were even found to be 1.88 times more likely to have improved performance in school. (10)
Helps People Experience New Perspectives
As technology improves, video games can show new perspectives we never thought imaginable. For example, there’s a VR game that lets people experience what it’s like to be a hawk and fly freely through the air. When it comes to creativity, experiencing different perspectives not only builds new connections in the brain it also encourages divergent thinking. This can lead to new ideas and break old thinking patterns. One study found that people who diversify their experiences by pushing themselves outside their ordinary everyday lives helps them to embrace new and uncommon ideas. (11)
Teaches Persistence
Creativity requires persistence. Thomas Edison said it well when asked about his failures while trying to invent a new battery, “I haven’t failed – I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Persistence benefits the creative process so we can learn from mistakes. With video games being goal-oriented where you either win or lose, they offer the opportunity to train this skill. One study found that people who play video games are more confident and treat each mistake as a learning opportunity as they progress towards their goal. (12)
Promotes Exploration & Curiosity
Curiosity is an important aspect of human life and the creative process. Curiosity helps the learning process, motivates us out of our comfort zones, and boosts well-being. Video games are excellent tools for exploration and curiosity. Whatever the video game may be, genres that balance uncertainty and structure are suited to invoke curiosity. (13) In one study, using video games to encourage curiosity and learning has shown that video games can yield a 7%–40% positive learning increase over standard learning through lectures. (14)
Improves Focus and Hand/Eye Coordination
People tend to be most creative when they are in a flow state, and having improved hand/eye coordination can help with this. One study found that even just one hour of playing video games can have positive effects on the brain and increase performance associated with attention. (15) In a 2013 study, surgeons who played video games as a warmup before surgery were faster and made fewer mistakes. (16)
- Jorge A. Blanco-Herrera, Douglas A. Gentile, Jeffrey N. Rokkum. Video Games can Increase Creativity, but with Caveats. Creativity Research Journal, 2019; 31 (2): 119 DOI: 10.1080/10400419.2019.1594524
- Adam Eichenbaum, Daphne Bavelier, C. Shawn. (n.d.). Video Games – Play That Can Do Serious Good. American Journal of Play. https://www.journalofplay.org/sites/www.journalofplay.org/files/pdf-articles/7-1-article-video-games.pdf
- Glass, B. D., Maddox, W. T., & Love, B. C. (2013). Real-time strategy game training: Emergence of a cognitive flexibility trait. PLoS ONE, 8(8), e70350. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0070350
- Gong, D., He, H., Liu, D., Ma, W., Dong, L., Luo, C., & Yao, D. (2015). Enhanced functional connectivity and increased gray matter volume of insula related to action video game playing. Scientific Reports, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/srep09763
- Isabela Granic, Adam Lobel, and Rutger C. M. E. Engels, Radboud University Nijmegen. (2013). The Benefits of Playing Video Games. American Psychologist, 69(1), 66-78. https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2013/11/video-games
- Dye, M. W., & Bavelier, D. (2004). Playing video games enhances visual attention in children. Journal of Vision, 4(11), 40-40. https://doi.org/10.1167/4.11.40
- Gambacorta, C., Nahum, M., Vedamurthy, I., Bayliss, J., Jordan, J., Bavelier, D., & Levi, D. M. (2018). An action video game for the treatment of amblyopia in children: A feasibility study. Vision Research, 148, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.visres.2018.04.005
- Kim, J. (2018). Effects of a virtual reality video game exercise program on upper extremity function and daily living activities in stroke patients. Journal of Physical Therapy Science, 30(12), 1408-1411. https://doi.org/10.1589/jpts.30.1408
- Jones, C. M., Scholes, L., Johnson, D., Katsikitis, M., & Carras, M. C. (2014). Gaming well: links between videogames and flourishing mental health. Frontiers in psychology, 5, 260. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00260
- Kovess-Masfety, V., Keyes, K., Hamilton, A., Hanson, G., Bitfoi, A., Golitz, D., Koç, C., Kuijpers, R., Lesinskiene, S., Mihova, Z., Otten, R., Fermanian, C., & Pez, O. (2016). Is time spent playing video games associated with mental health, cognitive and social skills in young children? Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 51(3), 349-357. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-016-1179-6
- Gocłowska, M. A., Damian, R. I., & Mor, S. (2018). The diversifying experience model: Taking a broader conceptual view of the multiculturalism–creativity link. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 49(2), 303-322. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022022116650258
- Neys, J. L., Jansz, J., & Tan, E. S. (2014). Exploring persistence in gaming: The role of self-determination and social identity. Computers in Human Behavior, 37, 196-209. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2014.04.047
- Gómez-Maureira, M. A., & Kniestedt, I. (2019). Exploring video games that invoke curiosity. Entertainment Computing, 32, 100320. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.entcom.2019.100320
- Kilb, D., Rohrlick, D., Yang, A., Choo, Y., Ma, L., & Ruzic, R. (2014). The game of curiosity: Using Videogames to cultivate future scientists. Seismological Research Letters, 85(4), 923-929. https://doi.org/10.1785/0220130182
- One hour of video gaming can increase the brain’s ability to focus. (2018, February 18). Neuroscience News. https://neurosciencenews.com/focus-video-gaming-8513/
- Rosser, J. C. (2007). The impact of video games on training surgeons in the 21st century. Archives of Surgery, 142(2), 181. https://doi.org/10.1001/archsurg.142.2.181
Zach is an international writer, photographer, filmmaker, martial artist, and creator of Creative Enso, the Zen art of creative living. His goal is to empower and inspire creatives to live healthier, happier, and more creative lifestyles.
