Survey Tackles College Gaming Stereotypes 36
Thanks to an anonymous reader for pointing to an AP/Yahoo story discussing a survey on college gaming, whose results seem to challenge stereotypes about videogames interfering with college studies. According to a researcher for the project, which surveyed college gamers throughout the US, "It's not taking the place of studying; nor is it taking away from other activities. What.. [college students] seem to have done is incorporated gaming into a very multitask-oriented lifestyle." In fact, playing games can even save you time, quips college gamer David McNulty, "It takes less time to play a few games than to go downtown or see a movie with your friends. It's easier to meet them online and shoot at them."
Games don't eat time? (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Games don't eat time? (Score:1)
Sure they do, but rarely lives. (Score:1)
This survey is just confirming what most gamers have known for years, but now perhaps the unwashed masses will believe it.
Not completely true (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Not completely true (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Not completely true (Score:5, Insightful)
Me, I like the idea of more and more people playing video games casually. More of them buying video games pumps more money into the industry as a whole, which causes more games to be released. This means that software developers can keep people like me (who play as many as 8-10 hours a day) occupied...not to mention more high-tech employment so that Slashdot participants can keep up their workday posting habits. :)
Re:Not completely true (Score:1)
From my ex
Re:Not completely true (Score:2)
Re:Not completely true (Score:5, Insightful)
You're assuming that those six hours would have otherwise been spent studying.
Re:Not completely true (Score:4, Insightful)
In answer to your question, they polled people who play 6+ hours a day, people who play 1 hour a day, people who play 1 hour a week, and people who don't play at all. The article states that while half of gamers (people that play games at all) felt that it detracted from their study time (this sounds about right, most of the people I know in college think that gaming cuts into their studies), the reality (as opposed to their perception) was that their study habits really didn't vary from the habits of those that didn't play games. In other words, the people that don't play games have plenty of distractions from their studies as well, or those that play games probably are the types that would study a lot more than they really need to
As someone else said, casual gaming is good for the industry. Not only does it pump money into it, but it also breeds more acceptance of it. Also, with the number of people that grew up with the Atari 2600 and now the NES, it's likely that we'll see more and more casual and hardcore gamers coming up, because more and more people started gaming at an early age and learned to balance gaming in their schedule as they saw fit.
Re:Not completely true (Score:1)
Re:Not completely true (Score:1)
I think it's a simple matter of having to cater to a certain percentage of students. There's a combination of the students that must get those top grades, needs extra attention, and asks all of those explicitly detailed questions (and then the students that just aren't going to do well no matter how hard they work) that extends the amount of time that is required to get as many students as possible to get a decent education.
Personally, I can ge
Re:Not completely true (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Not completely true (Score:3, Informative)
I agree here (and no surprise as I'm 25). What I'm finding, though, as I work in an environment where I am definitely the youngest person working in-house (we have a few my age or younger working mostly on the road), is that older people are slowly getting more into gaming, although they typically stay in the sports games and only occasionally go
saving time (Score:4, Insightful)
I did that one to many times, also (Score:1, Troll)
for 2 months straight I didn't go to class, all I did was play video games.
then one day I showed up to EM-4 and some body asked how I had done on the midterm.
the thing was I didn't even know there had been a midterm.
sigh....
I managed to squeek by with 50's in most of my classes, but still.
the study is full of shit games suck, and will lower your grades, trust me!
Further info (Score:4, Informative)
You can see their research fellows and what-not. As I am a college kid - I can tell you that every woman I know hates computer games save for solitare, and LAN parties are synonymous with sausage festivals.
Since I was skeptical - I noticed that the head researcher was a Steve Jones - doing internetworking since 1979 etc - maybe weighting some views in an attempt to make himself not look like so much of a tool?
socializing is talking/chatting/phoning real people - NOT masquerading as GHoSTFacEdKilLler93
end rant
Re:Further info (Score:1)
Re:Further info (Score:1)
I was at a LAN party this weekend. There were about 18 guys and 6 girls. Admittedly it's not an even ratio, but there were still females there.
Gaming and LANing is extremely social and many women know that. The females at the LAN party didn't game much. They were there to socialize.
Re:Further info (Score:2)
Re:hmm (Score:1)
Me, Myself & I (Score:4, Interesting)
At university I was known as "computer boy" by a group of girls, as they could all see me playing Championship Manager [sigames.com] for hours in my room. One of them married me eventually, so its not the problem it could be
My point is... Excessive drinking and partying made me fail my first year, not gameplaying.
nice to see (Score:4, Interesting)
Ye olde days (Score:4, Funny)
In my time, it was the arcade that did it. My first degree was from Street Fighter II University-- majored in Ryu/Ken with a minor in Chun Li.
I swear I didn't do anything else in first year. The arcade has since gone the way of the dodo. Heck at least in yer room all your books are there looking at you.
skewed survey. (Score:4, Funny)
That ought to blow the bell curve.
Sure, whatever. (Score:2)
One even skipped his finals...
Re:Sure, whatever. (Score:2)
I play more games than any of my friends and I am starting my phd in the fall. None of my firends from high school even made it through their undergrad.
Similar story (Score:2)
get it from the source (Score:2)