Could playing video games help boost your career?
Could playing video games help boost your career?
Could playing video games help boost your career?
By Lydia Smith
November 23, 2020
Summary
When you think of things that can help you get up the ladder at work, gaming probably isn't the first to come to mind.
There's a growing body of research that suggests playing video games can help boost key skills that can be applied to real life workplace situations.
Gaming usually involves being thrown into problematic scenarios or facing challenges which test your ability to adapt to new situations and develop solutions.
When we play with other people, it forces us to assess our ability to communicate and work well in a team.
The games don't have to be educational either - studies have suggested action-based games can help sharpen people's cognitive abilities such as reaction speed.
A 2017 study led by Matthew Barr, a lecturer in information studies at the University of Glasgow, found that playing video games actually improved student communication skills, resourcefulness and adaptability - and may even have a role to play in higher education.
Previously validated, self-report instruments to measure adaptability, resourcefulness and communication skills were administered to both groups.
The intervention group, who played specified video games under controlled conditions, showed improvements in communication, adaptability, and resourcefulness scales compared to the control group.
"The findings suggest that such game-based learning interventions have a role to play in higher education," Barr said.
"Modern video games often require players to be adaptable and resourceful, and finding multiple ways of accomplishing a task. The way games are designed often encourages critical thinking and reflective learning, commonly cited as desirable attributes in graduates." Although some games are designed to test and improve things like memory, the games in the Glasgow study were all commercial titles for entertainment, including Minecraft and Lara Croft, among others.
Reference
Smith, L. (2020, November 23). Could playing video games help boost your career? Retrieved November 23, 2020, from https://sports.yahoo.com/could-playing-video-games-help-boost-your-career-060055851.html