October 31, 2024
7.1 Alzheimer’s, Social Connectivity and Online Multiplayer Gaming
The feeling of caring and lasting relationships, and belonging are fundamental social needs. I came across a remarkable documentary on Netflix titled “ The Remarkable Life of Ibelin”. We all feel that video games are just shooting and violence and only for children. That’s what we saw in video parlors. When we were growing up, that’s how video games were. But the above video shattered my myth. The World of Warcraft is a multiplayer game, with social interactions across many people.
Just like in a real world, you can interact with players in different roles and ways and establish friendships. You can have an avatar that is different, more meaningful, less fearful, more true to yourself. But just like in real life, you can garner social connections, social wellbeing in the game, or just like in life, can create social isolation and ill being and loneliness. This does not depend on how many hours you play but how you play. If you are harmonious and passionate in the game, your character generates social wellbeing but if you are inflexible and passionate in the game, the game would not contribute to your social wellbeing feelings. How remarkable is that!
But here are the implications. You are bedridden and sick. Why that makes you sad? Because you are not being useful, socially connected and you don’t matter to anyone, life goes on. Rather than being sad in bed, why not connect virtually and be who and how you want to be in the virtual world? Your sickness does not matter and you can live a productive life by coming across people and helping them whichever way you can through virtual relationships. Can you do this by passively watching TV? But that’s what they make you do, in the hospital or at home.
Yes, maybe you can read a book, listen to music, but that is complete isolation, the only connection is between the author and you. Again there is no real contribution by you. Given your limitations, you can still be productive in the virtual world or The World of Warcraft, where real people are interacting in avatars, they don’t know you are sick or bedridden. Imagine the people in old age homes, nursing homes, hospice care, single spouse with mobility challenges, depression and anxiety sufferers, and kids with autism or social phobias. Given an idle mind is a devil’s workshop, why not make it busy with massively multiplayer online role playing games (MMORPG) when you truly cannot get up?. Wouldn’t this benefit Alzheimer’s, and dementia patients? Research proves that.