Study: Gamers May Be Losing Touch With Reality
On the first day of my Sensation and Perception class back in college, the professor walked in, looked out the window and said- "See that apple tree out there? How do we know it's really there? And how do we know it's an apple tree?"
Well, hardcore gamers might've seen an apple tree with...with...rocket launchers hanging from the branches! No, that's not what this study implies, but I still think it's funny.
According to a recent study by Nottingham Trent University and Stockholm University, there may be a new psychological phenomenon unique to avid videogame players. It seems that some gamers "involuntarily integrate elements of video game playing into real life," which means they're sorta losing touch with reality. For instance, one participant in the study said he started seeing health bars appear over people's heads, while other participants reported seeing in-game menus, altered real-life situations, and even dissociative experiences, like moving a finger to press a controller button when not holding a controller.
The study group consisted of 42 "frequent video game players" with ages between 15 and 21, in order to demonstrate any possible long-term effects of games through the analysis of Game Transfer Phenomena (GTP). So yes, that's what would be happening if the apples turned into rocket launchers in my aforementioned exaggerated example. GTP can occur both intentionally and involuntarily it seems, and this can also result in automatic behavior pertaining to interaction and imitation. You know, like actually imitating something you did in the game.
Unsurprisingly, participants said GTP tends to disappear when their game time decreases, and half actually said they use elements of games to help them solve real-life problems. If you want to read more, you'll have to pick up the July-September 2011 issue of the International Journal of Cyber Behavior, Psychology and Learning. ...did you know such a journal existed?
Tags: gaming, video games, game culture, game reality
9/21/2011 10:28:23 AM Ben Dutka
Put this on your webpage or blog:
Email this to a friend
Follow PSX Extreme on Twitter
Comments (80 posts)
AcHiLLiA
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 12:57:04 PM
Dukemz_UK
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 3:18:56 PM
The Doom
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 8:19:11 PM
"...dammit..." :(
Akuma07
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 9:04:15 PM
Jed
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 12:51:29 AM
maxpontiac
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:53:04 AM
Qwarktast1c
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:54:58 AM
AcHiLLiA
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 12:46:34 PM
Neo_Aeon666
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 4:01:55 PM
Neo_Aeon666
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 4:02:50 PM
oONewcloudOo
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:54:15 AM
Reply
AcHiLLiA
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 12:47:55 PM
Underdog15
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:56:12 AM
Reply
Apparently, I woke her up because I was jabbing her in the ribs with my hand saying "I need to get the kill!"
Man, do I hate when that story comes up at dinner parties......
Clamedeus
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:01:08 AM
AcHiLLiA
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 12:50:53 PM
Underdog15
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 1:16:40 PM
We love us some Borderlands or AC:B, but then we spend all our time talking about the game we're playing. :p Which is better gaming, for sure, but not as good for socializing. It's why CoD is video gaming lite. Anyone can master it.
Akuma07
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 9:05:15 PM
Fane1024
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 9:17:21 PM
Underdog15
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 3:56:47 PM
StubbornScorpio
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:57:14 AM
Reply
WorldEndsWithMe
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:58:51 AM
Reply
One time I was driving, basically on autopilot, and went by an old rusted out husk of 1950's chevrolet and nearly thought I was playing Fallout 3. This of course happened after being engrossed in it for weeks.
onimushafantasy
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:56:01 AM
Last edited by onimushafantasy on 9/21/2011 11:56:34 AM
Akuma07
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 9:07:07 PM
VampDeLeon
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:03:14 AM
Reply
Clamedeus
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:12:37 AM
I also have weird dreams where I'm jumping off a very tall building slamming down to the ground on my feet, and an explosion of air goes around me buildings crumbling and I'm flying across the ground and trails of dirt and everything following by. :p It was awesome, but I do know what's real and not real I'm not going to imitate it in real life Lol.
I love dreams because you can do what you want to do that you can't do in real life, fly like superman, rip a building out from it's foundation and throw it at a villain or something. Epic stuff lol.
WorldEndsWithMe
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:17:42 AM
Jed
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 1:13:54 AM
Highlander
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:15:59 AM
Reply
So, although it's perhaps somewhat significant to officially recognize that this happens with games, long time gamers should already know this intuitively. I mean, I remember back in the mid 80's playing Elite on my ancient 8-bit 6502 based BBC Micro, and seeing wireframe spaceships when I managed to tear myself away from the game.
WorldEndsWithMe
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:28:16 AM
main_event05
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:22:31 AM
Reply
duomaxwell007
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:59:32 AM
Reply
Deleted User
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:59:33 AM
Reply
duomaxwell007
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 11:59:36 AM
Reply
main_event05
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 12:06:20 PM
Reply
Underdog15
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 12:11:17 PM
WolfCrimson
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 12:08:38 PM
Reply
BigStack007
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 12:12:33 PM
Reply
Lawless SXE
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 1:49:37 PM
Highlander
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 1:05:08 PM
Underdog15
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 1:18:57 PM
Sometimes I catch myself talking about my "RL" (real life) friends. It was a pretty common term when I played FFXI. People regularly refer to their gaming friends and their "RL" friends. Or, "Hey, I might get one of my RL friends to play this game!" lol
Excelsior1
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 1:24:25 PM
Reply
i can't say i have ever experienced this gtp. what i have done is day dream about games when i am out and about in the real world. for some reason i like to day dream about roaming around in the atomic wastelands of fallout 3 scavenging for food when i go to the grocery store. i see nothing wrong with this. it's called using your imagination. thank god humans have this abilty to escape from reality becuase life forces us in to a lot of mundane tasks.
Last edited by Excelsior1 on 9/21/2011 1:25:48 PM
BIGRED15
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 1:28:58 PM
Reply
Lawless SXE
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 1:48:39 PM
Reply
I think it's only natural for a hobby or some aspect of a hobby to bleed into everyday life. Maybe you should have asked Bogost his thoughts on this. He's not a psychologist, but still.
sha4dowknight05
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 2:05:17 PM
Reply
Nas Is Like
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 2:12:17 PM
Reply
CanadianGuy420
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 2:52:40 PM
Reply
Nas Is Like
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 4:48:59 PM
CanadianGuy420
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 5:35:15 PM
BubbaSLiM
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 3:33:53 PM
Reply
That was your biggest mistake, you picked an immature age group in the first place! You give a 15 year old white kid from an upscale neighborhood a Too Short CD and I promise in two weeks he will believe he is a pimp and even go so far as to dress the part!
Run the same study with an age group between the 30's and 40's and I think you'll find that as gamers age they become just as grounded as their non-gaming neighbors!
UK_MrSim_UK
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 4:01:22 PM
Reply
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 7:23:24 PM
SolidFantasy
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 4:42:11 PM
Reply
If nothing else it really makes me think of all the funny applications VGs could have on your reality.
Lairfan
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 5:57:50 PM
Reply
In my experience, most normal people only get low-intensity stuff of this variety, and its not really reserved for video games, its more of a thing that happens after performing repetitive things for several hours at a time. Luckily, I've got a good grip on reality (at least, I think I do) and these "phenomena" never last more than a few seconds for me. Although admittedly it is really weird to see something in real life that makes you think you're in a game, or feel like you're pressing a button when you're not.
The real thing that games affect me with, though, are my dreams. After playing certain games for an extended time, I usually get some vivid dreams about em.
Sometimes they can be really cool. I had an Uncharted 2 dream once where I went through all the major setpieces in the game in one long sequence; freaking badass is all I can say.
And other times, they can give me some pretty crazy nightmares. The worst one I've ever had was for Dead Space 2, because it was so vivid and what happened was absolutely horrid on a personal level. I mean, it was seriously f***ed up, maybe even more so than the game in certain respects. I'll just leave it at that.
Overall though, interesting study. I'd like to see how this GTP affects older gamers though. I'm sure there's a lot fewer of us seeing health bars and dialogue options than there are amongst the youngsters.
Last edited by Lairfan on 9/21/2011 5:59:39 PM
JackDillinger89
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 6:05:50 PM
Reply
SubjectiveTruth
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 8:09:11 PM
Reply
If this had any real merrit, it would all ready have had a much more serious effect than it has.
How many people where invovled in the study and how many reported, "Seeing health bars over peoples head". That one just has a seriously creepy tone to it when you think about it.
Could there possibly be underlying issues that could explain these persons reports?
The most important thing for me is too see the numbers because if these statements have only been made by say 2 people in a large sample the magazine may be exaggerating the claims to attract attention.
Then I got to remembering...Once when I was a kid I woke up in a weird dream state where I was sure I was in a situation very similar to MGS2, which I had been playing a lot lately. (I was pretty young at the time) I could see my that I was in my house but I thought I was somewhere else. Only in retrospect do I remember being in my house, at the time I was sure I wasn't. I also remember drinking water from the tap, which at our house is usually great. At that time I distinctly remember it tasting awful. Nothing like water. Anyways I think the conclusion at the time was that I had a high fever and was very dehydrated but who knows.
Akuma07
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 9:13:13 PM
Reply
I doubt this thing really exists in the real world, unless there is some sort of mental condition.
In other words, if this is SERIOUSLY happening to you, there is something SERIOUSLY wrong with you, and its nothing to do with playing games!
If you are that detached from reality, that you cannot tell the difference between virtual reality and reality, then you belong in a mental institution, because you are a danger to society.
Warrior Poet
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:07:37 PM
Reply
___________
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 4:00:17 AM
Reply
Underdog15
Thursday, September 22, 2011 @ 3:58:49 PM
Ultimate_Balla
Saturday, September 24, 2011 @ 1:27:24 PM
Reply
BikerSaint
Thursday, September 29, 2011 @ 6:26:40 AM
Reply

See Full Image









Clamedeus
Reply
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:45:35 AM