Playing video games BENEFITS mental health, Oxford University scientist claims

Shafaq News/ Playing video games could have a positive impact on a person's wellbeing, scientists at the University of Oxford have claimed. 

According to Daily Mail, Researchers at the Oxford Internet Institute accessed the data of two games, in order to investigate the relationship between game play behavior and mental health.

The scientists, who worked with Electronic Arts and Nintendo of America, found that players experiencing genuine enjoyment from the games saw an improvement in their mental health.

Professor Andrew Przybylski, lead author of the study and director of research at the Oxford Internet Institute, said the findings show 'video games aren't necessarily bad for your health' and there are other psychological factors which have a significant effect on a person's wellbeing.

Players experiencing genuine enjoyment from the games experience more positive wellbeing, the paper claims.

Professor Przybylski added, 'Policymakers urgently require reliable, robust, and credible evidence that illuminates the influences video games may have on global mental health,' the paper concludes.

The study comes just months after scientists at Massey University, the University of Tasmania and Stetson University reviewed multiple long-term studies into video games and aggression.

They found playing violent video games such as Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty did not make children more aggressive.

The study was led by Chris Ferguson, a psychology professor at Stetson University in Florida, who previously dismissed the causal link between video games and violent behavior.

In their paper, which was published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, researchers said: 'Studies do not appear to support substantive long-term links between aggressive game content and youth aggression.'