The game that can give you 10 extra years of life

1. Johnson, S. (2014, July 24). Your brain on video games: Could they actually be good for you? Discover. Retrieved from: http://discovermagazine.com/2005/jul/brain-on-video-games

In this article, Steven Johnson outlines some reasons video games may actually be good for us, ideas he explores at greater length in his book Everything Bad is Good for You.

2. Granic, I., Lobel, A., & Engels, R. E. (2014). The benefits of playing video games. American Psychologist, 69(1), 66-78. doi:10.1037/a0034857

In this scholarly, peer-reviewed journal article, the authors explore some of the evidence that video games have benefits for us. This article is available to you via the Newman Library’s database at the link from the title and is attached below for your convenience.

The_benefits_of_playing_video_games(1).pdf

3. Jane McGonigal: The game that can give you 10 extra years of life

Duration: (19:31) User: n/a – Added: 7/9/12

YouTube URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfBpsV1Hwqs

Jane McGonigal is a game designer who speaks eloquently about how games can make things better.  Here is one of her TED Talks about how she created a “recovery” game that helps make people more resilient.

After preparing to participate by reading and/or viewing this week’s resources, respond to the discussion prompt below by creating a new thread in this week’s forum. Then respond to a thread posted by one of your peers. For more information on how your work will be evaluated, see the discussion board rubric in Course Information.

Read the article “Your Brain on Video Games” by Steven Johnson. Next, explore the scholarly research on this topic in more detail in the article by Granic, Lobel & Engels.  Then move on to the last part of the assignment, watching Jane McGonigal’s TED Talk. Finally, go to the discussion board and write a post that responds to the video and readings. (You are encouraged to also reference any optional materials you had time to review, in your discussion board post.)

Some ideas to consider:

• Did you have a point of view about online gaming before you reviewed this week’s readings and videos?  Has your point of view shifted?
• If you are a gamer yourself, talk about your personal experience with games in relation to the readings.
• If you are a parent or an aunt or uncle, would you allow or encourage kids in your care to play computer games?  Why? What ideas in the readings influence your point of view?