Video gaming is becoming more popular, with an estimated 3 billion gamers worldwide (Clement, 2022), and thanks to cloud gaming, video gaming is even more accessible than ever before. However, as digital devices are becoming more omnipresent, and as they become more of a replacement for face-to-face interactions (Harley, 2022), we must consider how video games impact wellbeing and social functioning. It is especially paramount to consider global wellbeing, as most of research on this matter appears to have focused on psychological wellbeing only, discounting external influences on wellbeing like social circles, employment or finances.
Past literature shows that gaming has an overall positive impact on wellbeing outcomes. In studies of neurotypical players, video gaming brought about positive effects on cognitive stimulation, emotional regulation and quality of life (Barr & Copeland-Stewart, 2021; Zhao, 2022). Negative impacts revolve around the issues of increased aggression (Olejarnik and Romano, 2023) and decreased offline social capital (Tushya et al., 2023).
With regard to social functioning, gaming is an instrument that allows for social interactions. This has brought about positive effects for neurotypical players (Zhao, 2022), where they report socialising as one of the motivations for gameplay (Johnson et al., 2013). The positive impacts might be only observable if online interactions do not replace offline interactions (Harley, 2022).
However, there are issues with our current understanding of video game impacts on social functioning and wellbeing. Recent studies were conducted during the coronavirus pandemic when engagement with video games was the highest and beyond pre-pandemic levels. There are no investigations into the different behaviours in the online and offline spheres. Finally, no investigations considered the differential impacts on autistic and neurotypical players. In line with the following gaps, we formed research questions that we want to tackle:
RQ1: Can video game player wellbeing be considered multidimensional, comprising social functioning, mental health, physical health and life circumstances?
RQ2: What impact does long-term video gameplay have on multidimensional wellbeing?
RQ3: Is there a link between player multidimensional wellbeing and video game addiction?
RQ4: What recommendations and interventions can be offered to promote the positive impacts and target the negative impacts of video games?
To answer the above research questions, we devised a four-stage plan for the PhD thesis:
Stage 1: Construction and validation of a player multidimensional wellbeing scale (PMDWell)
Stage 2: Cross-sectional, longitudinal and national-level analysis of multidimensional wellbeing and video game engagement
Stage 3: Reflective observation of the impact of video games on multidimensional wellbeing before-, during- and after- exposure to video games
Stage 4: In-vivo behavioural experiments: mixed reality social interaction
Barr, M., & Copeland-Stewart, A. (2021). Playing Video Games During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Effects on Players’ Well-Being. Games and Culture, 17(1), 122–139. https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120211017036
Clement, J. (2022). Number of video game users worldwide from 2017 to 2027. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/748044/number-video-gamers-world/
Harley, D. (2022). Mindfulness in a Digital World. (1 ed.) (Palgrave Studies in Cyberpsychology). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-19407-8
Johnson, D., Jones, C., Scholes, L., & Carras, M. C. (2013). Videogames and Wellbeing: A Comprehensive Review.
Olejarnik SZ and Romano D (2023) Is playing violent video games a risk factor for aggressive behaviour? Adding narcissism, self-esteem and PEGI ratings to the debate. Front. Psychol. 14:1155807. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1155807
Pavlopoulou, G., Usher, C., & Pearson, A. (2022). ‘I can actually do it without any help or someone watching over me all the time and giving me constant instruction’: Autistic adolescent boys’ perspectives on engagement in online video gaming. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 40(4), 557–571. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/bjdp.12424
Tushya, Chhabra, D., & Abraham, B. (2023). Social Networking or Social Isolation? A Systematic Review on Socio-Relational Outcomes for Members of Online Gaming Communities. Games and Culture, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/15554120231201760
World Health Organization. (2019). 6C51 Gaming disorder. In International statistical classification of diseases and related health problems (11th ed.). https://icd.who.int/browse11/l-m/en#/http%253a%252f%252fid.who.int%252ficd%252fentity%252f1448597234
Zhao, F. (2022). The role of social video game play and relatedness in players’well-being [Master's thesis]. University of Oxford.
Olejarnik S. Z., & Romano, D. (2023) Is playing violent video games a risk factor for aggressive behaviour? Adding narcissism, self-esteem and PEGI ratings to the debate. Front. Psychol. 14:1155807. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1155807
Olejarnik, S. Z., & Romano, D. (2025). The PMDWell Framework: A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of Video Game Players’ Wellbeing. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 100806. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2025.100806
Olejarnik, S. Z., & Romano, D. (2025). Age-related differences in social functioning and the impact of gameplay hours on multidimensional wellbeing and video game addiction. [Monograph]
This author is supported by the Horizon Centre for Doctoral Training at the University of Nottingham (UKRI Grant No. EP/S023305/1).