Game Addicts Can Maintain social skills

A study conducted by Australian psychology graduate Daniel Loton has shown that of all the things video games could passably hinder social skills are not one of them, Daniel Loton, found that 15 percent of 621 adult respondents to an on line survey were identified as "problem gamers" who spend more than 50 hours a week playing games.

If anything this study shows that gamers are not always the awkward nerd you expect to find with lacking social skills in fact Daniel Loton's study found that "only one percent of those gamers appeared to have poor social skills, specifically shyness, Loton said, contradicting the stereotype that video game fans tend to be lonely, geeky, and addicted to gaming because they are unable to socialize.

"Our findings strongly suggest that gaming doesn't cause social problems, and social problems are not driving people to gaming," Loton, from Victoria University, told Reuters.

"What is important to note is that even problem gamers did not exhibit significant signs of poor social skills or low self-esteem."

My first thought was heres another suit with a degree and no idea of the gaming life and what it offers doing a study but the truth is Loton admitted that he has always played video games.

Loton, spent the last two years conducting the study, which was based on mainly Australian and mainly male respondents.

While the findings in this study might not surprise the users here at the HQ the real goal of the study is still not answered, the real question is "from a clinical point of view, an addiction is a mental illness with very serious consequences. In this context, we need to ask whether gaming is responsible for causing people's lives to fall apart in the same way we see with gambling, alcohol or drug addiction."

I found this to be a really interesting study and real happy to see it was not the common study that points the finger of blame at gaming right out of the gate.

News-Source: Reuters.com