For a really long time, gaming has been treated with indulgence. In extreme cases, even with open hostility.
It was disregarded as a stultifying and detrimental entertainment, too childish for adults, and too mind-numbing for children.
Gamers were portrayed as social rejects, living in their parents’ basements and tucking into a bag of Doritos.
However, long gone are the days of contempt for the gamers. The general approach towards gaming industry is changing as it is exponentially growing and gaining prestige.
And that’s not all! The elements of gaming are entering more “serious” areas and reinventing the way we work.
Follow me to find out more about gaming and its positive influence on different businesses.
How Gaming Can Improve Your Employees’ Development
Even the most fervent opponents can’t argue with facts: gaming has many advantages, also in the workplace context.
It’s a well-known fact that playing games leads to the release of dopamine, leading to brain stimulation reward. This pleasurable phenomenon makes the game/work itself become a reward, motivating a player, and, in this case, an employee, to excel at their responsibilities. This positive reinforcement can leverage the employee to achieve greater productivity and develop an enthusiastic attitude towards work.
Moreover, playing video games speed up reaction time and stimulates players/employees to make the right decisions faster.
Fast decision-making, as well as quick reaction, are valuable traits that can significantly increase employees’ efficiency. Also, being psychologically arousing, games improve attention span and memory by about 30%.
Don’t even get me started on manual dexterity! In a study involving a group of surgeons, researchers found that those who played video games were faster at performing advanced procedures and made 37 percent fewer mistakes than those who didn’t.
Gaming For The Rescue
Apart from the advantages that I’ve mentioned before, video games can develop industry-specific skills. Take for example medical and firefighting trainings.
Instead of immediately subjecting medical students to a stressful environment of the surgery, it’s possible to let them practice on virtual patients.
One of the most famous training simulations is Osso VR. Founded in 2016, the virtual reality-based surgery training program is now used to train over a thousand surgeons a month worldwide. Played on Oculus Rift, Osso VR lets trainees experience medical procedures without the fear of error.
Simulation can also be used to train firefighters. The use of VR simulations eliminates hazards and allows for replicating incidents that can be difficult or costly to recreate in live training. It’s especially effective for theyoung fire recruits who have grown up with video gaming.
And that’s just the beginning of countless possibilities offered by video games. Gaming or game-based simulations can revolutionise many industries,
Work and Play
After many years of being disregarded as mindless entertainment, gaming is entering the “real” world.
It can be used to train employees in many industries and facilitate training, especially by realistically recreating life-threatening or high-risk situations.
However, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Fortunately, even playing for fun can help your employees develop useful skills and increase their productivity.
So, maybe buying a PS5 for the common space in your office is not a bad idea after all?
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