Gamers Research Articles

Robotic Medtronic Hugo™ RAS System Is Now Reality: Introduction to a New Simulation Platform for Training Residents.

The use of robotic surgery (RS) in urology has grown exponentially in the last decade, but RS training has lagged behind. The launch of new robotic platforms has paved the way for the creation of innovative robotics training systems. The aim of our study is to test the new training system from Hugo™ RAS System-Medtronic. Between July 2020 and September 2022, a total of 44 residents from urology, gynaecology and general surgery at our institution participated in advanced robotic simulation training using the Hugo™ RAS simulator. Information about sex, age, year of residency, hours spent playing video games, laparoscopic or robotic exposure and interest in robotics (90.9% declared an interest in robotics) was collected. The training program involved three robotic exercises, and the residents performed these exercises under the guidance of a robotics tutor. The residents' performance was assessed based on five parameters: timing, range of motion, panoramic view, conflict of instruments and exercise completion. Their performance was evaluated according to an objective Hugo system form and a subjective assessment by the tutor. After completing the training, the residents completed a Likert scale questionnaire to gauge their overall satisfaction. The rate of the residents' improvement in almost all parameters of the three exercises between the first and the last attempts was statistically significant (p < 0.02), indicating significant progress in the residents' robotic surgical skills during the training. The mean overall satisfaction score ± standard deviation (SD) was 9.4 ± 1.2, signifying a high level of satisfaction among the residents with the training program. In conclusion, these findings suggest that the training program utilizing the Hugo™ RAS System is effective in enhancing robotic surgical skills among residents and holds promise for the development of standardized robotics training programs in various surgical specialties.

College Student Video Gaming: Risk or Resilience for Mental Health?

Video gaming has become a popular method of entertainment for college students. Previous work indicates mixed results regarding the link between video gaming and mental health outcomes. However, little research has addressed how different genres of video games might produce various mental health outcomes. The current study examined whether video game genre enjoyment moderated the links between time spent playing video games and anxiety and stress in college students. College students responded to measures assessing various components of mental health indicating their engagement with various genres of video games. Results indicated no evidence of moderation in all genres of video games. The only significant association to emerge was that of time spent playing life simulation games and anxiety. Our findings demonstrate a minimal influence of video gaming on stress and anxiety levels among college students. Discussed are rationales for the null results and future directions for video game focused research.

Effect of Sedentary Lifestyle on the Oral Health in a Group of Iranian Children

Background: Sedentary life style may affect dental health, growth, and general well-being of children, requiring the participation of health care providers. The aim of the present study was to assess the relation between oral health (dental plaque index) and sedentary lifestyle pattern in children.&#x0D; Methods: In this cross-sectional and descriptive-analytical study, 219 children aged 8 to 12 from the schools of Shahrekord city were selected by cluster random sampling in 2021–2022. After obtaining informed consent, parents filled a questionnaire about their child lifestyle pattern. Children chew disclosing agent and then Plaque index was recorded by examination according to tooth coloring pattern. Data were analyzed using Spearman correlation coefficient, K-square in SPSS 22 software. The level of significance was considered less than 0.05.&#x0D; Results: The mean dental plaque index was 1.37±0.53 in the total population of Shahrekord children (1.23±0.49 in girls and 1.54±0.55 in boys). Children spend most of their time studying and watching television and spend less time on calls and listening to music. There was no significant relationship between the mean score of overall sedentary entertainment and plaque index (p-value=0.092). However, there was a direct and significant relation between watching television and computer games with dental plaque index (p-value˂0.05).&#x0D; Conclusion: Increasing sedentary entertainment in children, such as watching television or playing computer games, may affect children’s oral health. Therefore, it is important for dentists to consider children’s lifestyle as an influencing factor in oral health.

Emotion dysregulation and Internet gaming disorder in young people: Mediating effects of negative affect and metacognitions

BackgroundRecent studies have found that emotion dysregulation, negative affect, and metacognitions about online gaming are risk factors for Internet gaming disorder (IGD). However, few studies investigated the mechanisms underlying these interactions. The present study aimed to explore the relationships between emotion dysregulation and IGD, and the mediating effects of negative affect and metacognitions about online gaming. MethodsAn online survey was conducted with young people (aged 10–24 years) who played video games. 1768 participants were included in this study. Observed variables, including emotion dysregulation, IGD, depression, anxiety, and metacognitions, were measured with self-report scales. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the relationships among the variables. ResultsThe results showed that emotion dysregulation positively predicted IGD through a fully mediated model which included the independent mediating effects of negative affect and metacognitions about online gaming and their sequential mediating effect. The model explained 76.1 % of the variance in IGD. LimitationsThis was a cross-sectional study which could not infer causality. ConclusionsThis study emphasizes that negative affect and metacognitions about online gaming mediate the effect of emotion dysregulation on IGD; moreover, metacognition may be a proximal factor of IGD. Thus, improving emotional regulation and modifying maladaptive metacognitions in young people may improve the prevention and treatment of IGD.

Gaming in Its Social and Political Context of Recent Years

This article is the first of two articles in the series, where the goal is to analyze the social function of gaming as a modern social institution. The purpose of the article is to analyze the situation that has developed inside and outside the game environment — communities of people who have been playing computer games for a long time, including those who do it on a professional level. The modern game environment is characterized by wide coverage and involvement of various groups of society; First of all, we are primarily interested in the target preferences of young people. The author proceeds from the position that in the matters of transmitting socio-cultural codes, game developers are influenced by the media and other social agents. The basic theories for analysis were the provisions of the Chicago school (in particular, sociological and psychological approaches) and part of the provisions of cultural Marxism (G. Marcuse). The analysis of the game environment was carried out through the provisions of the theatrical performance approach, flow states (flow is a feeling of happiness) and in the context of a challenge to the values of an industrial society from the perspective of a post-industrial society. For this purpose, the coverage of post-apocalyptic scenarios in games and their role in mind control were analyzed.

Comparison of Animation Distraction Versus Local Anesthetic Application for Pain Alleviation in Children Undergoing Intravenous Cannulation: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background Medical procedures induce behavioral discomfort, fear, and worry in children and their families, worsening their agony. Reading, playing video games, and watching television lessen anxiety and discomfort. This study aims to compare the pain reduction in children using animation distraction and two percent lignocaine with the control group undergoing intravenous (IV) cannulation using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) at a tertiary care hospital inKolenchery, Kerala, South India, and to study the clinico-social factors influencing pain reduction in children undergoing IV cannulation. Materials and methods This is an open-label, randomized controlled trial study of 60 children admitted in a pediatric ward, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), or emergency department randomly assigned to either two percent lignocaine application, animation distraction, or control during intravenous cannulation. Children aged six to twelve years requiring IV cannulation for different illnesses were included. Twenty children were randomly assigned to the lignocaine group, twenty to the distraction group, and twenty to the control group. The visual analogue scale was used to measure the subjective pain intensity of the children during IV cannulation. We did statistical analysis using SPSS software version 21 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). Results Age, gender, previous history of cannulation, site, and size of the cannula were not significantly different between the groups. We did not relate the education of the mother to the VAS scores. The mean VAS score for pain at zero, one, and five minutes was lower in the distraction group compared to the lignocaine and control groups. The mean VAS score for pain at zero, one, and five minutes was not superior among the lignocaine group compared to the control group. Conclusion Based on the findings, animation distraction is preferable to lignocaine to alleviate pain in childrenrequiring IV cannulation for a variety of disorders.Distraction is one of the nonpharmacological techniques that seek to alleviate pain by encouraging the patient to focus on something other than the current procedure. In addition to reducing pain and anxiety during excruciating invasive interventions, distraction techniques reduce the number of interventions required and allow for the completion of interventions in less time.

The Effect of Video Games and Video Game Playing Time on the Performance of Computerized Accounting Lesson

In this study, it is aimed to determine the effect of video game playing time on academic performance of students who play video games and take computerized accounting courses at Uşak University and attend computerized accounting courses. The data obtained with the questionnaire applied to a total of seventy students within the scope of the study were analyzed with the SPSS 26 statistical analysis program. The findings obtained from the study revealed that the majority of the students played video games for 1-2 hours a day on average and preferred Akınsoft software in the computerized accounting course. Other findings obtained from the study show that playing video games accelerates the learning process, using computer, keyboard, mouse, etc. in computerized accounting course. It has been revealed that it provides practicality in the use of technological tools, provides practicality in the creation of accounting slips, facilitates the detection of errors in incorrectly created accounting slips, and enables the different accounting package programs to be investigated curiously. In addition, another finding obtained within the scope of the study revealed that the duration of playing video games contributed to the academic performance of the computerized accounting course at a low level

The Prevalence of Video Game Addiction and Its Relation to Anxiety, Depression, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Children and Adolescents in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background and objective Video games have become a popular source of entertainment among children and adolescents, not only targeting the young generation but also increasingly popular among older demographics as well. This study aimed to assess the association between video game addiction and depression, anxiety, and attention deficit hyperactivitydisorder (ADHD) among children and adolescents in Saudi Arabia. Materials and methods This was a cross-sectional studyinvolving Saudi adolescents aged 12-16 years. A self-administered online survey was distributed on social media (Twitter, WhatsApp, and Snapchat). The surveyaddressed sociodemographic characteristics (i.e., age, gender, area of residence city, etc.). Arabic versions of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), the seven-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (PHQ-GAD7), the ADHD Rating Scale-IV (ADHD-RS), and the seven-item GameAddiction Scale(GAS-7) questionnaires were distributed as well, including Arabic terms for depression, anxiety, and ADHD. Results A total of 393 surveys were completed (males: 58.3% vs. females: 41.7%). Of note, 63.1% of the respondents reported playing video games every day with an average of more than five hours of gaming time per day (25.2%). The prevalence of video game addiction was 62.1%. Independent risk factors of video game addiction included being young in age, playing video games every day, playing more than three hours per day, and playing multiplayer games. Furthermore, our findings suggestthat a higher video game addiction score is correlated with higher scores in inattention, anxiety, and depression. Conclusion This study found a high prevalence of video game addiction amongSaudi children and adolescents. Excessivevideo game playing negatively influences mental health and leads to issues including anxiety, depression, and ADHD. Also, younger males with an increased rate of regular playtime were more likely to exhibit video game addiction in comparison to the rest of the population. Further research is required to more comprehensively assess the prevalence rate of video game addiction and its effect on the mental health of the younger generation within the region.

In search of finalizing and validating digital learning tools supporting all in acquiring full literacy.

Unlike many believe, accurate and fluent basic reading skill (ie. to decode text) is not enough for learning knowledge via reading. More than 10 years ago a digital learning game supporting the first step towards full literacy, i.e., GraphoGame (GG) was developed by the first author with his colleagues in the University of Jyväskylä, Finland. It trains the acquisition of basic reading skills, i.e., learning to sound out written language. Nowadays, when almost everyone in the world has an opportunity to use this GG, it is time to start supporting the acquisition of full literacy (FL). FL is necessary for efficient learning in school, where reading the schoolbooks successfully is essential. The present plan aims to help globally almost all who read whatever orthography to start from the earliest possible grade during which children have learned the mastery of the basic reading skill to immediately continue taking the next step to reach FL. Unlike common beliefs, support of FL is mostly needed among those who read transparent orthographies (reading by the majority of readers of alphabetic writings) which are easier to sound out due to consistency between spoken and written units at grapheme-phoneme level. This makes readers able to sound any written item which is pronounceable with only a little help of knowing what it means. Therefore, children tend to become inclined to not pay enough attention to the meaning but concentrate on decoding the text letter-by-letter. They had to learn from the beginning to approach the goal of reading, mediation of the meaning of the text. Readers of nontransparent English need to attend morphology for correct sounding. The continuing fall of OECD's Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) results, e.g., in Finland reveals that especially boys are not any more interested in reading outside school which would be natural way to reach the main goal of reading, FL. What could be a better way to help boys towards FL than motivating them to play computer games which requires reading comprehension. The new digital ComprehensionGame designed by the first author motivates pupils to read in effective way by concurrently elevating their school achievements by connecting the training to daily reading lessons. This article describes our efforts to elaborate and validate this new digital tool by starting from populations of learners who need it most in Africa and in Finland.

Possible Effects of Playing Video Games With Explicit Violence on Player Aggression

Video games have become the most significant phenomenon of popular culture, and one of the most widespread forms of entertainment in society of the Industrial Revolution 4.0. This prevalence corresponds with profitability, and the video game industry records the highest revenues in the cultural and entertainment industries. Simultaneously, the level of the scientific study of the phenomenon and its impact remains disproportionately small, while moral panic and the banalized and oversimplified accusation of video games for causing violence and evil in people are the dominant social attitude and reaction. That is why the influence of playing violent video games on the development of aggression and violent behavior in individuals has been thoroughly researched. While some studies indicate that gaming has no effect at all, or even a cathartic effect, others claim that playing violent video games is associated with increased aggression and antisocial behavior. The aim of this paper is to examine the effects of explicit violence in video games on the aggressiveness and violence of players of such games. Using various analytical methods, by exploring stereotypes, cultural factors, and the potential negative effects of playing violent video games, this comprehensive analysis challenges the incorrect preconception that video games inherently encourage real-world violence. While acknowledging certain negative effects like the promotion of a culture of competitive militarism and desensitization to violence in the real world, this paper recommends responsible gaming, parental control and guidance, and positive social influence as crucial factor in shaping moral attitudes and behavior.

The Impact of Color on Players in Human-machine Interaction in Games

The objective of this research is to identify how color affects game players in human-machine interaction. Recently, driven by the faster development and popularity of computer games, the game designers start to use a variety of techniques to enhance players experiences and interests in a certain video game. Colors influence game players experiences and their behaviors. To make this research influential and convincing, the author mainly utilizes the quantitative research method to explore how color affects the users emotions in games. Questionnaires are adopted by randomly selecting almost 100 video game players, who are suggested to respond to their attitudes towards and options for color in influencing their interests and perceptions of a certain game. The findings show that colors can allow players to feel interaction and vitality, provide visual continuity, enhance data visualization, etc. Above all, colors convey more useful information for the human-machine interaction in games, and colors first come to players eyes. Therefore, the application of colors plays an essential role in the interface of human-machine interaction to some extent.

A thematic analysis of bereaved adults' meaning-making experience of loss through playing video games.

Recalling personal memories on the loss and deriving new meanings from them is deemed necessary for adapting to bereavement. Recent studies suggest that games can afford players meaningful experiences that can support players through stressful life events, but its potential on the meaning-making of loss has not been much explored. To address this gap, we investigated the bereaved players' experiences of playing commercial video games that elicited their personal memories of loss and what meanings they derived from those experiences. Twelve adult players with bereavement experiences (six male, six female, age range: 20-31) played two video games (Bear's Restaurant and Spiritfarer). Their experiences during and after gameplay were tracked via play diaries and in-depth interviews. Data was analyzed using thematic analysis method. We discovered seven themes on the meanings that players made from their gameplay experience: "Recalling memories", "Avoiding engagement with the pain", "Recognizing positive emotions", "Acknowledging the deceased's perspective", "Reviewing the meaning of loss", "Planning a better future", and "Fulfilling a wish". Our findings indicate that bereaved players recalled and related their autobiographical memories to their in-game experiences. Furthermore, they derived new meanings on both the loss and their post-loss life after playing video games. We discuss how video games can provide a unique meaning-making experience to bereaved players by affording them an agency to actively reconstruct their narrative of loss and facilitating the sharing of grief.

Super Smash Sisters: Critical Literacy, Gender, and Video Games in the Elementary Classroom

ABSTRACT This study investigates how young elementary children engage with conceptions of gender in connection to video gameplay in the language arts classroom. During a three-week unit on video game literacies in a multiage lab school, children learned about, played, discussed, and wrote about video games. Student writing, game reviews, and literature discussion transcripts illuminated critical thinking around gender in connection to video games when explored as texts in school. While teachers commonly value literacy experiences centred around books, this research demonstrates how video games can serve as texts for critical analysis by sharing the valuable critical literacy experiences of two focal students from the study. Recommendations for teachers who want to explore incorporating video games in the English Language Arts classrooms are provided.

Study on Sports, Extracurricular Activities, Electronic Device Usage Factors Associated with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in Taiwanese Preschoolers.

Under the impact of the pandemic, electronic device usage has become the primary tool for learning. Due to social distancing restrictions, many sports facilities have been forced to close, resulting in changes in daily activities for preschool children. This research aimed to investigate the sports, extracurricular activities, and electronic device usage factors associated with chronic fatigue syndrome among Taiwanese preschoolers. Five-year-old preschoolers were randomly selected using a stratified multi-stage random cluster sampling method. The parents of the preschoolers completed the questionnaires, which contained items related to the symptoms of fatigue, extracurricular activities, and electronic device usage of their preschoolers. A total of 1536 valid questionnaires were returned. The data were then analyzed using descriptive statistics and the chi-square test. The following results were obtained: (1) the preschoolers who exercised at least three times per week, engaged in sweating exercise for at least 30 min at a time, had a continuous rhythmic exercise habit, and participated in a variety of exercise types experienced a lower degree of fatigue; (2) the preschoolers who engaged in extracurricular activities every day exhibited a higher degree of fatigue; (3) the preschoolers who watched television or used smartphones to pass the time due to boredom, watched television or used smartphones on holidays, played video games or surfed the Internet due to boredom, and played video games or surfed the Internet on holidays displayed a higher degree of fatigue. This research verified that regular exercise with various sports, extreme extracurricular activities, and laissez-faire electronic device usage are factors associated with fatigue syndrome in preschoolers. It is suggested to develop children's regular exercise habits, avoid excessive extracurricular activities, and guide their electronic device usage.

Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of the Gaming Motivation Scale.

Gaming motivations are a central aspect of playing video games, and their importance to understanding both healthy and problematic gaming behavior has been increasingly elucidated. In this study, we aimed to translate the 18-item Gaming Motivation Scale (GAMS-18) to Persian and validate it in a population of Persian speaking gamers, specifically for the assessment of online gaming. After translation from English to Persian, content validity of the questionnaire was assessed by a panel of experts and test-retest reliability was calculated in a sample of 70 students. Data from an online survey of 791 Iranian online gamers were used for the assessment of construct validity using confirmatory factor analysis. The item content validity index and the scale content validity index for clarity and relevance ranged from 0.80 to 1.00. Internal consistency reliability of the GAMS-18 was 0.90 and the test-retest reliability was 0.89. The test-retest reliability of the GAMS-18 was 0.89, and the internal consistency was 0.90. The GAMS factors had acceptable correlation with other motivational scale such as Player Experience of Need Satisfaction. Incorporating the proposed additional error paths improved the model fit to an acceptable level. The Persian version of the GAMS can assess digital gaming behavior based on the six self-determination theory motivation types, and measures different aspects of motivation that other instruments. It is also demonstrated to have good reliability and validity and could be used in research on the motivations of online gamers in Persian-speaking populations.

Interrogating the notion of giving voice: designing for polyphony in game-based learning ecologies

ABSTRACT This paper illuminates how a young person and adults learned to design for robust learning in the context of video-game play. We argue that consequential learning can emerge through the intentional design of learning spaces where normative conceptions of novice and expert are re-imagined. Our analyses revealed that everyday digital game play was a rich zone of learning, fostering principled polyphony: the orchestration and symphonic arrangement of multiple voices and tools. Drawing on a cultural historical approach, we show how young people and adults create new social futures, through robust collaboration and the creation of syncretic sociotechnical arrangements.

Do action video games make safer drivers? The effects of video game experience on simulated driving performance

Research suggests, action video games (AVGs) can benefit cognitive performance across multiple domains including attention, visual-spatial awareness, psychomotor control, and executive functioning. Many of these domains overlap with the skills needed to safely drive a vehicle. We therefore predicted that experience playing AVGs may be associated with improved driving performance and greater spare capacity. One-hundred-and-thirty-eight participants who varied in action video game experience, completed a driving simulation under distracted and non-distracted conditions. Driving performance was measured through participants’ ability to maintain a consistent speed and lane position, and their spare cognitive capacity (via detection response task; DRT). Results showed participants with experience playing AVGs performed significantly better than non-gamers, demonstrating lower speed variability, improved lane maintenance, and better performance on the DRT. The effects of distraction were predictably observed, though distraction negated the improvements to DRT response times for AVG players. These findings indicate action video game players had better driving performance and increased spare cognitive capacity compared to individuals who did not play AVGs and highlight a potential avenue for improving driver safety through video game use.

Gaming passion contributes to the definition and identification of problematic gaming

Even if for most people playing video games is a healthy leisure activity, a minority of vulnerable users present an excessive use associated to negative consequences (e.g., psychosocial maladjustment, sleep interference) and functional impairment. The current study first aims to identify psychological factors that contribute to discriminate highly involved (but healthy) gamers from problematic gamers. For that purpose, we used a cluster analysis approach to identify different groups of gamers based on their profiles of passion towards gaming (using the Dualistic Model of Passion). Another objective of the present study is to explore, using supervised machine-learning, how gaming disorder symptoms, assessed within the substance use disorder framework (e.g., tolerance, withdrawal), might be linked to harmonious and/or an obsessive passion for gaming. Three distinct clusters of gamers were identified based on their passion profiles, including risky gamers, engaged gamers, and casual gamers. Supervised machine-learning algorithms identified that specific gaming disorder symptoms (salience, mood modification, tolerance, low level of conflict) were predominantly related to harmonious passion, whereas others (withdrawal, high level of conflict, relapse) were more directly related to obsessive passion. Our results support the relevance of person-centered approaches to the treatment of problematic gaming.

Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity Among Students of Intermediate Schools in Basra

Background: Obesity is one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century and represents a serious health problem for low- and middle-income countries, particularly in urban settings. Its prevalence has increased at an alarming rate. Globally, more than 340 million children and adolescents aged 5–19 years are overweight or obese, and approximately two-third of them live in developing countries. Aim: The present study was implemented to assess the prevalence rates of overweight and obesity among adolescents in intermediate schools in Basrah, Iraq. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted during the second semester (between January 15 and May 30, 2013) among children attending public and private secondary schools in Basra city to determine the relationship between certain variables and the prevalence of overweight and obesity. Results: According to the study findings, the overall prevalence rates of overweight and obesity among adolescents aged 13–15 years in intermediate schools were 20.6% and 22.6%, respectively. Conclusions: A combination of decreased physical activity, sedentary behaviors (watching TV, playing video games, and using the internet), ingestion of unhealthy foods, and consumption of soft drinks may be responsible for the observed increased prevalence of overweight and obesity among adolescent students in Basra city.

Passive and social screen time in children with autism and in association with obesity.

Screen time has been identified as a risk factor for childhood obesity, but the media landscape has evolved rapidly. Children with autism tend to be heavy users of screens and have an elevated prevalence of obesity. We know little about screen use patterns among children with autism vs. typically developing (TD) peers and in association with obesity. Baseline data from 10,842 participants in the Adolescent Brain Cognition Development Study was used to characterize time spent with child-reported passive screen use (television/movies/watching videos), playing video games, and using social media. Duration of screen time by autism status and gender was summarized as mean time per day; obesity was defined using CDC/WHO criteria. A propensity score analysis was used to create a matched dataset for analysis. Overall, 1.7% of children were was identified as having autism. Significant mean differences were observed by autism status and gender for both passive viewing and playing video games. Compared to TD children, boys with autism spent more time (2.9 vs. 2.3 h, p < 0.001) watching TV, movies or videos, as did girls (3.0 vs. 2.0 h, p = 0.002). Compared to TD peers, boys with autism reported more video game time (102.7 vs. 77.5 min, p = 0.001), as did girls with autism (64.4 vs. 37.9 min, p = 0.03); girls with autism also spent more time on social media sites or video chat (45.5 vs. 21.9 min, p = 0.04). Overall, obesity prevalence increased with increasing screen time duration, significantly for passive screen time (p-value = 0.002) and texting (p-value = 0.02). Associations between obesity and screen time duration did not differ by autism status. Children with autism spend more time playing video games and on passive and social screen activities than their TD peers, with some variations by gender. High rates of social media use among girls with autism and multiplayer video game use among both boys and girls with autism may challenge the notion that the high levels of screen time reflect social isolation in the group. Given potential positive aspects of screen time in children with autism movement to focus on content and context is appropriate.