What's behind the phenomenon of gamer brain'

"When you retry the same pointless mini-game over and over because you want to get a better high score? When you walk around the invisible boundaries of a level, clicking the mouse just in case something happens? When you stay with a game longer than you should because you feel compelled to unlock that trophy or achievement? When you refuse to knock the difficulty down a level on a particularly evil boss, because that would be letting the game win? That's gamer brain."

"The former topic has fallen out of fashion now, after more than a decade's worth of scientific research failed to prove any causative link between video games and real-world violence. But studies on the positive effects of games have shown that performing complex tasks with your brain and hands is actually quite good for you, and that games can be beneficial for your emotional wellbeing and stress management."

Studies on gaming's effect on the brain usually focus on aggression or the cognitive benefits of playing games. Research failed to prove a causative link between video games and real-world violence after more than a decade of work. Positive-effect studies show that performing complex tasks with brain and hands benefits cognition, emotional wellbeing, and stress management. Gamer brain denotes a compulsion toward objectively pointless in-game achievements and obstinate mastery beyond normal motivation. Examples include repeating mini-games for high scores, probing invisible level boundaries, persisting to unlock trophies, and refusing to lower difficulty. Causes remain unclear, with possible bidirectional attraction between games and obstinate personalities.

Read at www.theguardian.com