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CrowdScience: Can video games help me or harm me?

Discussion & Talk

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06/08/2021 GMT

Can video games help me or harm me?

BBC World Service - CrowdScience, Can video games help me or harm me?

What’s the scientific evidence for how gaming affects us?

What’s the scientific evidence for how gaming affects us? Can playing video games really lead to violence, make us smarter, or become addictive?

Today, up to 3 billion people around the world play video games, from candy based mobile puzzles to virtual battlegrounds filled with weapons. Many people have turned to gaming during the pandemic as a way of staying connected – but what does science really say about the impact of gaming? 

Does playing violent video games lead to violence in the real world? Do brain training apps really work? How much gaming is too much – can videogames really be addictive? And how can videogames help us to explore difficult issues like death, grief and loss?

Alex Lathbridge and Anand Jagatia look at the evidence and play some games along the way, speaking to psychologists, doctors and game designers about the power of video games to change us - for better or worse.

With Adrian Hon, Professor Andrew Przybylski, Professor Pete Etchells, Professor Henrietta Bowden-Jones and Dr Sabine Harrer

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