Gamers – Stop the Stereotype and Start Talking About The Positive Effects of Gaming

Video games are a huge industry. Nearly 227 million Americans play video games — that’s 85% of the population under 35. But gamers are often looked down upon by people who don’t understand or appreciate their passion. Gamers are portrayed as overindulgent, indolent and unproductive. It’s time to stop the stereotype and start talking about the positive effects of gaming.

A gamer is someone who enjoys playing video games for long periods of time, either alone or with others. They may also use the internet to connect with other gamers. This includes playing online multiplayer games, using gaming forums and joining gaming communities. There are many different types of games available, including action, role-playing and strategy. The average gamer spends over two hours a day playing video games.

Gamers are usually highly creative, always looking for new ways to beat a level or master a game. This is a skill that can be transferred into real life, as it requires the ability to think on your feet and strategize in fast-paced environments. It can also help improve your multitasking skills, as most games require you to simultaneously look at the enemy onscreen, keep track of your health and ammo, move your character and communicate with other players over a microphone.

Those who identify as ‘Hearts’ are social gamers who value the community within their games. Whether it is a party chat in a shooter or an MMORPG, these gamers want to interact with other gamers and go on adventures with them. These gamers are most likely to be found on gaming communities such as Reddit and Steam.

The final group, Logics, are gamers who believe that the games they play help develop their strategic thinking and reasoning skills. They are also the most likely to believe that games do a good job of portraying female characters and are more entertaining than TV. They are also the least likely to believe that video games are a waste of time and promote violence.

These four groups are a simplified version of the latent class analysis, which has many other subgroups. The important point to remember is that there are many different kinds of gamers and not all of them fit into the stereotypes you hear. So the next time you’re tempted to sneer at “gamers”, just remember that they’re just like you – passionate about what they love and dedicated to it. They’re just trying to find a way to meet their motivational needs, and gaming is an awesome tool for that.