Gaming promotes life skills according to IBM exec
by Alexis Kassan 
Dec 31st 2008 at 11:00AM
Filed under: Fantasy, News items, Consoles, MMOFPS
Gamers have become something of a stereotype in recent times. In everything from the job market to South Park, players are perceived as nerdy, pimply-faced, basement-dwellers with no social skills who do nothing outside of work other than play the game of their choosing. But now we have some pretty high-level defense of our beloved past-time.
David Laux, head of games and interactive entertainment at IBM, has listed a myriad of positive skills gained by gamers from the problems they must face and overcome. Specifically mentioned is teaming in World of Warcraft as it emphasizes building diverse teams to accomplish tasks. It's certainly a breath of fresh air to hear such reassurances from someone in the capacity to hire.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Meanwhile said on 11:28AM 12-31-2008
Guess that explains why so many MMOs feel like a second job.
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MeowCat said on 12:27PM 12-31-2008
Darn. I opened this article with the hope of finding some research based evidence but instead found opinion. It is time we do some real research on this topic. There is some out there but that literature is in its infancy. Even if the opinion comes from an intelligent, reputable source it pales in the face of quantifiable evidence based in rigorous research design. Some general questions to explore include 1) what skills improve 2), are those skills transferable and non-trivial and 3) are the improvements significant? I truly believe that many computer games can influence people in a positive way but I’m thirsting for more evidence.
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE.
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