Playing games on a smartphone all day or while walking is not a good habit, and can even be dangerous. However, recent research has revealed that playing games on smartphones can also have a good impact on mental health.
A recent study found that playing games on a smartphone can help people relieve anxiety or stress. This method can even be therapeutic for people who have moderate to high levels of anxiety every day, as reported by the Huffington Post (19/03).
These results were obtained by researchers after conducting a study of 75 people who had high levels of anxiety. Participants were asked to play a game on their iPod Touch for 25 to 45 minutes. The games being played are of course not random games, but games called attention-bias modification training.
The game makes anxious people focus on relaxing things like happy faces and makes them ignore bad things like angry-looking faces. This exercise is known to reduce anxiety in participants.
Afterwards, the researchers found that participants who played the game experienced lower anxiety compared to people who didn't play the game. They also found that even when played for a short time, the game was able to reduce anxiety and stress levels.
