Digital Games and Mental Health

Abstract

As more and more people worldwide play online games, identifying how games can help or harm players' mental health can be helpful for researchers and clinicians developing digital therapies through gaming. This chapter summarizes a scoping review focused on the relationship between digital games and mental health in the last decade. This type of review is designed to provide an overview of the existing evidence base on a particular topic. Of the 115 records selected after the first screening, 21 studies were included according to the inclusion criteria defined by the authors. From this scoping study, it is possible to recommend that even though video games are a real risk for addiction, they can work as digital therapies for psychosocial rehabilitation when administered with precaution in groups with mental disorders such as depression, high levels of anxiety, and ADHD. For this, a rigorous clinical assessment should be conducted that makes appropriate use of gamer typologies and evaluates the individual, emotional, and social factors that impact gamer behavior.

Memory Void: Digital Games Preservation in Portugal

“…However, in many countries, including Portugal, there is no institutional solution for the preservation of digital games. As discussed in other publications [Lima, Pinto, Gouveia, 2022;Lima et al, 2023;Lima, 2023], digital games continue to undergo a pathological cycle of constant forgetfulness and revival, fueled by the interests of institutional gatekeepers and different communities. Barwick et al [2011] compare what has been happening in digital game preservation with what happened in television program preservation.…”