Depression is from Videogames
posted Saturday Aug 22, 2009 by Scott Ertz
Are you in your thirties, overweight and depressed? According to a new study conducted by the CDC, chances are, that's you. Congratulations. The study claims gamers have "lower extraversion, consistent with research on adolescents that linked video-game playing to a sedentary lifestyle and overweight status, and to mental-health concerns."
The study also showed a variance between gamer males and females. Males tend to be more overweight, and females tend to be more depressed and generally in poor health.
Now, I take offense to this, and not just because I am a firm backer of the videogame spelling of the word. I have been a videogamer since I first played Pong on an Atari 2600, and have never been considered overweight or depressed. In fact, days where I have had a bad day, I often will use a gaming world to make myself feel better. That being said, I have an interpretation of your findings, Center for Disease Control.
Maybe it is possible that you discovered that more people play videogames or associate themselves as gamers when they are depressed because it is an escape. Or perhaps you discovered people are depressed in general because you conducted your study in Seattle, Washington where people just miss the sunlight.
Either way, I cannot accept the notion that videogames lead to depression or poor health. What about you guys?