Digital Gaming Trends of Middle-Aged and Older Adults: A Sample from Turkey

Abstract

Background

Although the gaming habits of children, adolescents, and younger adults have been investigated in Turkey there has been less emphasis on the gaming patterns of middle-aged and older adults. The current study therefore investigated middle-aged and older adults' digital gaming habits, the aspects of digital games that they believe are enjoyable and any perceived psychological and cognitive advantages.

Methods

Of the 177 middle-aged and older adults aged between 55 and 85 years (M = 62) living in Turkey who partook in the study, data from 140 participants were analyzed. Participants completed the ‘Demographic Information Form’ and Engagement with Digital Games Questionnaire’ via a Qualtrics link that was distributed on social media platforms and using the convenience and snowball sampling technique.

Results

Findings of this study showed that out of the 57 digital game players, the majority (N = 34) reported to play puzzle games such as Candy Crush. Moreover, gamers indicated that they believed digital games had psychological and cognitive benefits.

Conclusion

Overall, the findings of the current study revealed that middle-aged and older adults enjoy playing digital games for fun, stress relief, and as a mental exercise regime.

Keywords

middle-aged and older adults digital games psychological and cognitive effects motivations for video game play Turkey

Background

Digital games are a popular leisure and entertainment activity (Entertainment Software Association, 2019; Tavinor, 2008). Although popular belief holds that these games are generally played by children, adolescents, and younger adults, reports show otherwise revealing that older adults (65 + years) also enjoy playing digital games (Entertainment Software Association, 2019). For example, the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) report revealed that between the years of 2016-2019 the number of gamers older than 50 years of age increased from 40 to 50 million players. The report further revealed that 50 percent of players indicated playing digital games daily totaling a weekly gameplay duration of five hours. Older adults play games that are familiar with simple rules, concepts, and interfaces (Chesham, Wyss, Müri, Mosimann & Nef, 2017; Vasconcelos, Silva, Caseiro, Nunes & Teixeira, 2012) such as casual puzzle games and casual action games (Blocker, Wright & Boot, 2014) that rely on mental simulation (Blocker et al., 2014; Chesham et al., 2017; Entertainment Software Association, 2019; Kaufman, Ma, Sauvé, Renaud & Kaufman, 2019; Nap, de Kort & IJsselsteijn, 2009). Older adults are neutral towards action games and dislike first person shooter games (Chesham et al., 2017).

Older adults play digital games for several reasons which include entertainment, to stay mentally fit, and reduce boredom and feelings of stress (AARP, 2019; Blocker et al., 2014; Kaufman, Sauvé, Renaud, Sixsmith & Mortenson, 2016; Nap et al., 2009; Whitbourne, Krauss & Akimoto, 2013). They further believe that digital games have beneficial effects on memory, reaction time, problem solving abilities, communication between family members, self-confidence, and loneliness (Kaufman et al., 2019). Older adults who do not play digital games believe that these games are not developed for them or that they are boring (AARP, 2019), which indicates the importance of developing games targeted for older audiences.

Digital Gaming in Turkey

As it is worldwide, digital games are a popular leisure activity in Turkey, with 30 million gamers (Güvenli İnternet Merkezi report, 2019). Despite the increasing number of gamers, studies regarding gaming in Turkey generally investigate gaming habits of children and young players (Dindar & Akbulut, 2014; Gökkaya & Deniz, 2014; Karakuş, Inan & Çağıltay, 2008; Kaşıkçı, Çağıltay, Karakuş, Kurşun & Ogan, 2014; Taylan, Topal & Ayas, 2018; Uluyol, Demiralay, Şahin & Eryilmaz, 2015; Yavuz & Tarlakazan, 2018) with limited research targeted at middle-aged and older adults. To date, information regarding middle-aged and older adults' digital gaming habits are obtained from studies that examine the purpose of computer and internet use in Turkey (Baran, Kurt & Tekeli, 2017; Becerikli, 2013; Şahin, 2019). For example, Şahin's (2019) study found that 62 of the 188 older adults, mainly between the ages of 65-70 years, connect to the Internet for three hours per week to play digital games. Although such findings are important, they are limited as they do not include information about games played offline and do not assess perceived possible benefits, motivation, preference for type of platform and genre, and aspects of gaming that middle-aged and older adults in Turkey enjoy. Considering that digital gameplay can have cognitive benefits such as improved reaction time in older adults (e.g., Clark, Lanphear & Riddick, 1987) obtaining information about older adults' gaming preferences is important in the design of games targeted at older audiences.

Present Study

An objective of the current study was to provide a descriptive analysis of middle-aged and older adults’ gaming habits, perceived benefits, preferences, motivations for gameplay, and to compare the gaming habits of current and previous gamers in Turkey.

Methods

Research Objective

The current study is descriptive in nature and examines the digital gaming habits of middle-aged and older adults in Turkey. Information regarding whether participants currently play digital games or did so in the past, their gaming preferences, reasons for their gameplay or lack of, and any perceived psychological and cognitive benefits were sought.

Sample

Of the 177 middle-aged and older adults who partook in the study, 37 participants did not complete the information regarding their video gameplay attitudes hence were excluded from further analysis. The statistical analysis was carried out with a total of 140 participants. The age range of participants was between 55 and 85 years (M = 62), who mainly resided in metropolitan regions, had a university degree, and were retired. For further demographic information see Table 1. Participants provided consent on the online Informed Consent Form and approved that they were 55 years or older (an inclusion criterion). The research was approved by Başkent University’s research ethics committee (date: 12.05.2020, no: 17162298.600-404).

Table 1.

General Demographic Information.

Demographic categories	Frequency	Percentage	Average
Gender
Female	72	51.4%	-
Male	67	47.8%	-
Unspecified	1	0.7%	-
Age (M.)	-	-	62
55-64	116	82.9%
65-74	20	14%	-
75-84	3	2.1%	-
85+	1	0.7%	-
Residence
Metropolis	109	77.9%	-
City	20	14.3%	-
District	7	5%	-
Village	4	2.9%	-
Marital status
Married	103	73.6%	-
Single	6	4.3%	-
Divorced	22	15.7%	-
Widowed	9	6.4%	-
Occupational status
Employed	45	32.1%	-
Unemployed	10	7.1%	-
Retired	85	60.7%	-
Children
Yes	126	90%	-
No	14	10%	-
Number of children
1	42	30%	-
2	65	46.4%	-
3	13	9.3%	-
4	3	2.1%	-
5+	3	2.1%	-
Educational status
Primary school	7	5%	-
Middle school	2	1.4%	-
Highschool	19	13.6%	-
Undergraduate level	83	59.3%	-
Graduate level	27	19.3%	-
Uneducated, illiterate	1	0.7%	-
Uneducated, literate	1	0.7%	-
Demographic categories	Frequency	Percentage	Average
Income (M.)	-	-	10,651.97
Devices at home
Computer: Yes/No	119/21	85% / 15%	-
Cellphone: Yes/No	133/7	95% / 5%	-
Tablet: Yes/No	89/51	63.6% / 36.4%	-
Handheld console: Yes/No	3/137	2.1% / 97.9%	-
PlayStation: Yes/No	14/126	10% / 90%	-
Xbox: Yes/No	6/134	4.3% / 95.7%	-
Others	1	0.7% / 99.3%	-
No electronic devices	1	0.7% / 99.3%	-
Current gamers and non-gamers
Gamers	70	50%	-
Non-gamers	70	50%	-
Old gamers and non-gamers
Old gamers	41	58.6%	-
Non-gamers	29	41.4%	-
Gaming duration (Years) (M.)	Minimum	Maximum
Current gamers (n = 68)	1	45	10.63
Old gamers (n = 33)	1	30	7.32
Time passed since last gameplay for old gamers (Year) (M.) (n = 33)	1	35	4.11

Note. All participants in the sample stated that they do not have Nintendo Wii and Atari devices at home.

Instruments

Demographic Questionnaire

Background information such as age, sex, marital status, place of residence, average monthly income, and retirement status was obtained from participants.

Engagement with Digital Games Questionnaire

In line with the AARP (2019) report, the Engagement with Digital Games Questionnaire (EDGQ) was developed by the researchers to assess middle-aged and older adults’ digital gaming trends. This questionnaire included 26 questions such as whether participants play digital games, if so which platforms they use to play games, the genre of games they play, duration of their gameplay, and regarding their perceived benefits of gaming, their motivation for gameplay or reasons why they do not play digital games. A pilot study was carried out with five older adults to determine how well the EDGQ was understood and received by the middle and old aged adults. Feedback was received in terms of the comprehensibility of the questions and difficulty during the study, and adjustments to EDGQ were made accordingly.

Research Protocol

Participants completed the Demographic Questionnaire and the EDGQ distributed via a Qualtrics link on social media platforms. Furthermore, using the convenience and snowball sampling technique the link was sent to family members and acquaintances of the authors and in some cases younger family members assisted older adults to complete the questionnaire by reading the questions and entering the answers. The link was further distributed to other potential participants using the snowball sampling technique. Participants provided their birth date and those who had a birth date after the year of 1965 meaning that they were younger than 55 years of age were informed and excluded from further partaking in the study. Upon completion of the questionnaire, participants were provided with the Debrief Form and thanked for their participation. Completion of the questionnaires took approximately 45 minutes. Data was collected between July-October 2020.

Statistical Analysis

The statistical program SPSS for Windows version 26 was used for the statistical analysis of the data. Frequency analysis, chi-square and regression analysis, and independent samples t-tests were carried out to determine the characteristics of players' gaming experience.

Results

Frequency analysis showed that 50 percent of the participants in the current study reported playing digital games with no significant difference in the number of males and females that report playing digital games, χ²(2, N = 140) = 4.81, p = .090. Frequency analysis further showed that middle-aged and older adults' report playing digital games every day of the week, mainly at home, using their mobile phone, personal computer, or tablet. They prefer puzzle genres and games such as Candy Crush and mainly play digital games that are single player and of moderate difficulty (see Table 2 for further information about gaming preferences).

Table 2.

Gaming Habits of Old Gamers/Current Gamers.

Categories	Frequency	Percentage
Gaming frequency
Daily	10/49	27%/72.2%
Few days in a week	14/15	37.8%/22.1%
One day a week	4/-	10.8%/-
Few days in a month	5/4	12.5%/5.9%
Less than a day in a month	4/-	10.8%/-
Player preference
Single player	31/50	83.8%/73.5%
Multiplayer	6/18	16.2%/26.5%
Gaming companions
Spouse/Partner	2/2	4.9%/2.9%
Children	4/-	9.8%/-
Grandchildren	-/-	-/-
Other relatives	-/-	-/-
Friends	5/11	12.2%/15.7%
Siblings	-/1	-/1.4%
Colleagues	-/1	-/1.4%
Children’s friends	-/-	-/-
Other	1/6	2.4%/8.6%
Online gaming (n = 37/66)
Yes	12/32	32.4%/48.5%
No	25/34	67.6%/51.5%
Online gaming companions (n = 37/66)
Strangers	10/23	24.4%/32.9%
Acquaintances from real life	3/11	7.3%/15.7%
Acquaintances from the game	-/4	-/5.7%
Family members	1/1	2.4%/1.4%
Acquaintances from other platforms	1/4	2.4%/5.7%
Gaming time (n = 41/66)
Morning (6.00 – 10.00)	1/7	2.4%/10%
Noon (10.00 – 12.00)	-/8	-/11.4%
Afternoon (12.00 – 18.00)	4/17	9.8%/24.3%
Evening (18.00 – 21.00)	12/19	29.3%/27.1%
Night (21.00 – 00.00)	20/42	48.8%/60%
After midnight (00.00 – 06.00)	4/4	9.8%/5.7%
Gaming location (n = 37/62)
Home	30/50	81.1%/80.6%
Waiting for someone	3/2	8.1%/3.2%
Waiting in queue	-/4	-/6.5%
On holiday	-/3	-/4.8%
Commuting	4/2	1/3.2%
Family visits	-/1	-/1.6%
Preferred gaming difficulty
Easy	7/8	18.9%/12.9%
Moderate	28/36	75.7%/58.1%
Difficult	2/18	5.4%/29%
Genre of first game played (n = 37/58)
Action	2/2	6.5%/3.4%
Racing	-/1	-/1.7%
Simulation	2/3	6.5%/5.2%
Puzzle	17/29	54.8%/50%
Trivia	2/1	6.5%/1.7%
Card games	3/6	9.7%/10.3%
Tabletop games	2/7	12.1%
Platforming games	1/-	3.2%/-
Strategy	-/1	-/1.7%
Does not recall	2/8	6.5%/13.8%
Genre of last game played (n = 37/57)
Action	-/2	-/3.5%
Racing	-/-	-/-
Simulation	1/2	3.3%/3.5%
Puzzle	12/34	40%/59.6%
Trivia	3/2	10%/3.5%
Card games	6/7	20%/12.3%
Tabletop games	3/7	10%/12.3%
Platforming games	-/-	-/-
Strategy	2/-	-/-
Does not recall	3/3	10%/5.3%
Reasons for gameplay (n = 37/55)
Having fun	5/9	16.7%/16.4%
Feeling of winning	3/8	10%/14.5%
Spending time/immersive	3/4	10%/7.3%
Reducing stress/relaxation	8/8	26.7%/14.5%
Mental gymnastics/ learning new things	11/25	36.7%/45.5%
Easy access	-/1	-/1.8%
Perceived cognitive effects of gameplay (n = 37/57)
Faster thought processes	4/18	12.9%/31.6%
Focus	2/7	6.5%/12.3%
Memory	-/3	-/5.3%
Vocabulary	2/4	6.5%/7%
Planning abilities	4/3	23.9%/5.3%
Physical abilities	3/-	9.7%/-
No perceived effect	16/22	51.6%/38.6%
Perceived psychological effects of gameplay (n = 37/62)
Quite negative	1/1	2.7%/1.6%
Partially negative	3/4	8.1%/6.5%
No effect	15/21	40.5%/33.9%
Partially positive	16/28	43.2%/45.2%
Quite positive	2/8	5.4%/12.9%
Reasons for psychological effects of gameplay (n = 37/62)
I don’t know/ no effect	10/9	27%/15%
Have a good time / pass time	5/7	13.5%/11.7%
Reduce stress / relaxation	18/35	48.6%/58.3%
Learning/ brain training	2/7	5.4%/11.7%
Negative emotions	2/2	5.4%/3.3%
Enjoyment gained from digital games (n = 37/62)
No enjoyment	4/1	10.8%/1.6%
Low level	9/8	24.3%/12.9%
Moderate level	21/38	56.8%/61.3%
High level	3/15	8.1%/24.2%

Gameplay Differences between Age Groups

To determine any differences in gameplay across age groups, age was grouped into three categories using 5-year intervals: 55-59 (n = 46), 60-64 (n = 70), and 65+ (n = 24). Fifty four percent of the 55-59 group, 44.3% of the 60-64 group, and 58.3% of the 65 + group indicated they were gamers. Furthermore, there was no significant relationship between age groups and gameplay frequency, χ²(8) = 4.6, p = .762 and they did not differ in terms of the current game played, χ²(14) = 12.9, p = .533 or in terms of perceived psychological, χ²(8) = 10.8, p = .215, and cognitive benefits χ²(14) = 20.2, p = .124.

Motivation, Psychological and Cognitive Benefits of Gameplay

Middle-aged and older adults report a variety of reasons for their gameplay which include playing to mentally stay fit, to have fun, reduce stress, for feelings of winning, and to pass time. Of these reasons they indicate that the most important are to have fun, reduce boredom, and mentally stay fit. Regarding whether middle-aged and older adults enjoy gameplay, the majority report moderate or high levels of pleasure from gameplay with fewer gamers reporting that they either do not enjoy games at all or gain a low level of pleasure from playing games. To determine whether type of game contributes to level of enjoyment, games were divided into two categories (i.e., puzzle games and other types of games)¹. An independent samples t-test revealed that there was a marginally significant difference between puzzle gamers and other type of gamers, t(85) = 1.94, p = .056, Mdiff = .28, SDdiff = .14; indicating a trend towards puzzle gamers finding games more enjoyable compared to other type of gamers.

Most gamers report belief in the positive psychological effects of digital gameplay such as stress-reducing properties and cognitive benefits such as improvement in their speed of cognitive processing. On the other hand, some middle-aged and older adults report that they believe games have a negative effect on their psychological well-being or no psychological and cognitive effect (see Table 2). Regarding psychological effects, an independent samples t-test showed that puzzle gamers (N = 46, M = 3.80, SD = .78) were more positively affected by gaming compared other type of gamers (N = 41, M = 3.34, SD = .88), t(85) = 2.60, p = .011, Mdiff = .46, SEdiff = .18, although there were no significant differences regarding reasons for the psychological effect. No statistical differences were found between type of game played and perceived cognitive benefits, χ²(7) = 3.66, p = .819.

Multinomial logistic regressions further showed no significant relationship between gameplay frequency and motivation for playing games χ²(5) = 4.56, p = .472 and perceived cognitive effects of gameplay, χ²(7) = 7.13, p = .416. Frequency of gameplay and perceived psychological effects of gameplay was statistically significant, χ²(4) = 9.87, p = .043, showing that participants who engage in gameplay for stress relief play games more frequently compared to those who report no psychological effect, p = .011, 95% CI [-0.94, -0.13].

Reason for Not Playing Digital Games

Frequency analysis showed that participants who played games in the past (i.e., previous players) stopped playing games because they could not make time for gaming (11.4%). Other reasons why gameplay ceased included that they do not like the new digital games (6.4%), new digital games do not attract attention and are boring (6.4%), that new games are developed for younger audiences (5%), they do not know how to use technology they have available to play games (5%), and that new digital games will create security issues (1.4%). Regarding participants who never played games, they report dislike in gaming (9.3%), that digital games do not attract their attention and that they are boring (7.1%), belief that games are developed for younger audiences (5.7%), preference to play games that are not digital (3.6%), lack of time to play games (3.6%), that they do not know how to use technology to play games (2.9%).

Learning about New Devices and New Games

Frequency analysis shows that middle-aged and older adults agree / strongly agree that they obtain information about new games from their friends (65.4%), children / grandchildren (56.3%), and relatives (44.8%) and mainly learn to play a new game via the help of their children / grandchildren. Regarding learning information about new electronic devices, they agree / strongly agree that they obtain information from their children / grandchildren (85.4%), friends (79.3%), and relatives (56.9%) and learn to use electronic devices mainly via the help of their children / grandchildren. Middle-aged and older adults further report their digital game shopping is influenced mainly by their friends while their electronic device shopping is influenced by their children / grandchildren.

Differences between Current and Previous Players

Independent samples t-tests and chi-square analyses were carried out to determine differences between previous gamers and current gamers in terms of frequency of gameplay, enjoyment, skill, and reasons for gameplay. Results showed that previous gamers reported playing games less frequently (M = 2.54, SD = 1.56) compared to current gamers (M = 1.40, SD = .78), t(103) = -5.03, p < .001. Moreover, current gamers (M = 3.08, SD = .660) reported that they enjoy playing digital games more than previous gamers (M = 2.62, SD = .794), t(97) = 3.10, p = .003. In terms of level of skill related to gaming, current gamers (M = 2.16, SD = .632) perceived themselves to be more skilled than previous gamers (M = 1.86, SD = .481), t(97) = 2.457 , p = .016. Regarding reasons for gameplay, current gamers (M_fun = 3.50, SD_fun = .656; N_skill = 58, M_skill = 3.26, SD_skill = .928; N_challenge = 58, M_challenge = 2.91, SD_challenge = .978) were more likely to play games to have fun, t(88) = 2.37, p = .020; jog their mental skills, t(88) = 2.16 , p = .033; and challenge themselves and solve problems, t(88) = 2.18, p = .32, compared to previous gamers (N_fun = 32, M_fun = 3.09, SD_fun = .963; N_skill = 32, M_skill = 2.78, SD_skill = 1.128; N_challenge = 32, M_challenge = 2.41, SD_challenge = 1.188). Analyses further revealed that there was no significant difference between current gamers and previous gamers in terms of the perceived cognitive, χ²(7, N = 97) = 13.48, p = .061, and psychological effects of gaming, χ²(4, N = 97) = 3.51, p = .501. There were also no significant differences between these groups in terms of the first game genre χ²(9, N = 89) = 6.44, p = .695 and the current/last game genre, χ²(7, N = 87) = 9.24, p = .236, they played.

Discussion

The aim of the current study was to investigate middle-aged and older adult’s digital gaming trends in Turkey. We sought to determine the types of games played, duration, and motivation for gameplay, whether middle-aged and older adults perceive any psychological and/or cognitive benefits of such play and gaming habit differences of current and previous players. Furthermore, we were interested in determining why older adults are not interested in digital gameplay. General findings of the current study show that 50 percent of the adults who participated in the study have been playing digital games on average for 10 years regardless of age group while 58 percent of the adults reported that they had played digital games in the past (M = 4 years prior). Such findings coupled with those of Şahin (2019) indicate that digital games are played and enjoyed by middle-aged and older adults in Turkey.

Regarding middle-aged and older adults, gaming preference findings show that current gamers generally prefer single player games, of moderate difficulty, that can be played using a mobile phone, personal computer, or tablet. Like their counterparts in other countries such as the United States of America (AARP, 2019), middle-aged and older adults in Turkey report a preference for puzzle games such as Candy Crush and enjoy card games such as Bridge Base Online and Okey. Adults in the current study who report playing puzzle games compared to those who play other types of games report having more positive perspectives regarding the psychological effects of games. Furthermore, regardless of the type of game played they further report that they believe video games have several benefits such as improved thinking abilities, improved ability to focus, and increased levels of attention. For these purposes, they have reported that they play games to remain mentally fit and to have fun, reduce boredom and relieve stress. Regarding stress relief, findings of the current study further show that adults who engage in gameplay for stress relief do so more frequently than those who report no psychological effect, indicating that gaming may be utilized as a coping strategy.

Cognitive and Psychological Beliefs Regarding Digital Games

Findings regarding perceived cognitive benefits of digital games need to be considered in light of the extant literature because whether cognitive abilities can improve via video gameplay is a matter of scholarly debate. For example, although past studies have shown that video gameplay can improve reaction times in older adults (e.g., Clark et al., 1987; Dustman, Emmerson, Steinhaus, Shearer & Dustman, 1992), such findings and alike have been critiqued on the basis that perceived benefits of game play may increase motivation and lead to enhanced performance for those in the experimental group compared to the control group (Boot et al., 2011; Boot, Simons, Stothart & Stutts, 2013). Any possible expectations thus need to be ruled out prior to claiming any cognitive benefits of video games (Boot et al., 2011; Boot et al., 2013). To this end, findings of the current study are indicative of the importance of this methodological improvement as some middle-aged and older adults do believe that video games may enhance their cognitive abilities while others believe that there are no cognitive benefits. This reveals possible biases towards video games that needs to be considered in studies aiming to determine the cognitive effects of video games in Turkey.

In a similar vein, the current study revealed that some middle-aged and older adults have positive beliefs about the psychological effects of video games (e.g., stress-reducing properties), which is similar to other findings about reduced feelings of loneliness and enhanced well-being in older adults (Kaufman, 2017). However, the current findings which are self-reported by current gamers need to be interpreted with caution as exposure to video games may bias attitudes in some individuals. For instance, Ferguson et al. (2017) found that older adults held negative beliefs about video games such as concerns about wasted time, addiction, and aggression effects, yet had fewer negative beliefs for the games they played as part of the study, even those considered violent in content. Such findings indicate that exposure to games may change perceptions of games, and that assessment using objective measures are needed.

Studies that utilize physiological measures in addition to self-report data reveal varied findings. On the one hand, lower levels of perceived stress, heart rate and systolic and diastolic blood pressure in young adults following playing with a casual video game (Desai, Gupta, Andersen, Ronnestrand & Wong, 2021) and no negative effect of violent video games such as increased aggression levels are found (Kühn, Kugler, Schmalen, Weichenberger, Witt & Gallinat, 2019). On the other hand, increased aggressive feelings, aggressive cognition, aggressive behaviors, and physiological arousal (increased heart rate) following violent video gameplay are reported (Barlett & Rodeheffer, 2009; Zhang, Cao & Tian, 2020). Further, von der Heiden, Braun, Müller and Egloff (2019) found that self-reported problematic gameplay was positively related to self-reports of depression, anxiety, hostility, self-blame and behavioral disengagement. Several mediating factors such as game content (Greitemeyer, 2022), realism of violent content (Barlett & Rodeheffer, 2009), type of controller used (Barlett, Harris & Baldassaro, 2007), and role models (Konijn, Nije Bijvank & Bushman, 2007) increase the difficulty in determining the psychological effects of video games. Based on this, the current findings regarding middle-aged and older adults' beliefs about the psychological effects of games should not be interpreted as an increase in well-being or reduced levels of stress following video game engagement. Further research that discerns the effects of video game play is needed.

Disengagement from Gaming

In relation to gaming habits, there is a dearth of research that examines disengagement from gaming, especially among older adults. The current findings regarding why middle-aged and older adults have stopped playing games thus serve an important role in allowing for better understanding of the factors related to gaming. Past research (Van Rooij, Daneels, Liu, Anrijs & Van Looy, 2017) indicates that when there is disruption to the motives that allow for engaged gameplay, disengagement can occur. For example, with children when games no longer allow for achievement, they lack competition and are non-arousing and non-enjoyable gaming can cease. Considering that playing to have fun is a motive for middle-aged and older adults, though to a lesser extent for previous gamers, it is possible that this motivating aspect is no longer fulfilled leading to disengagement. Middle-aged and older adults in the current study express dislike for new games, that new games are boring and unattractive, developed for younger audiences, or that they could pose a security issue. This suggests that new games may not be enjoyable and fun for middle-aged and older adults leading to a loss of interest and disengagement. In relation to enjoyment of gameplay, current gamers report a higher level of enjoyment compared to previous gamers, yet whether enjoyment fosters continued play or those who continue play simply enjoy games is unclear.

On the other hand, similar to other studies (Bergstrom, 2019) lack of time to play games was a major reason why middle-aged and older adults quit gaming. Whether this is a temporary or permanent break and if permanent the reasons such as burnout due to the amount of time and energy needed to invest in gaming (Bergstrom, 2019) could be investigated. This would be of interest because motives to play games include to pass time and relaxation yet whether such motives can lead to negative outcomes such as burnout will allow us to better understand gaming and its effects upon players. Furthermore, Van Rooij et al.’s (2017) research reveals that investment in gaming skill is a motivating aspect of gaming. Considering that current gamers report a higher level of skill in gaming compared to previous gamers, it may be possible that previous gamers had less investment in their gaming skill leading to disengagement from gaming. Current gamers also report a higher frequency of gameplay and whether better gaming skill leads to more frequent gameplay or gaming skills develop via continued play is unclear. This calls for further research to investigate which factors are the mediators and which are an outcome of gameplay.

Reason for Not Playing Digital Games

Regarding why middle-aged and older adults have never adopted gaming as an activity, one factor which overlaps with past research is the belief that digital games are boring and of no interest to them or developed for younger audiences. Such findings and those discussed earlier regarding ceased gaming indicate the importance of designing digital games targeted at older audiences based on factors that they find enjoyable in games. Adults in the current study have reported that they enjoy games which allow feelings of winning and a workout for the brain, that help with reducing stress, and include components that are fun and the presence of colorful images and a variety of shapes. It seems that adults enjoy games that are visually attractive. It may be important to further determine aspects considered fun by middle-aged and older adults. Based on adult’s game preferences in the current study, games that can be easily played using a keyboard or mobile phone keys, are of moderate difficulty with a slower pace, that require logic to solve problems, and require minimum amount of multiple task coordination, both physically and mentally, may be important factors to consider when designing games for older audiences.

Adults in the current study further report that they do not engage in digital gameplay due to a lack of knowledge on how to use technology (e.g., a mobile phone) to play games. And those who currently play games obtain help regarding the use of technology from their children / grandchildren, relatives, and friends. Such findings are similar to Peek et al. (2016) who report that advice regarding technology to older adults is offered by their children, partners, relatives, and peers. The current study was limited in determining whether middle-aged and older adults in the current study were satisfied with the support they received. This would be an important question to address because Xiong and Zuo (2019) has found that emotional support from families is more important than cognitive support which may be due to differences in concerns, needs, and perspectives across generations wherein younger family members may not be aware of the types of information needed by older adults to improve their mobile internet literacy. The findings of the current study coupled with those of past findings illustrate the necessity of establishing workshops that enable middle-aged and older adults to obtain information on the use of technology, which they could use to play games. Furthermore, considering that the use of technology is prevalent in several life domains such as internet banking, virtual shopping, and making virtual appointments, the importance of such workshops becomes essential to allow older adults the ability to function independently in society and learn safeguard practices against online fraud. This is important as some middle-aged and older adults reported that they quit playing games because they believe new digital games could create security issues.

Limitations and Suggestions for Future Research

One limitation of the current study was the small sample size, and with most of the responses possibly coming from people interested in the topic limits generalizability of the findings to older adults across Turkey and to the wider public. It is recommended that future studies replicate the current findings using a larger sample size. Furthermore, in addition to social media platforms the questionnaire link was distributed using the convenience and snowball sampling technique, which perhaps may have allowed the recruitment of participants who do not use computers, yet because this was not systematically controlled sampling bias in computer use is a possibility. Although ownership of electronic devices does not necessarily mean use of, findings of the current study reveal that owning a tablet was a significant predictor of digital gameplay². It is therefore important that future studies recruit participants that do and do not use a computer when obtaining information regarding video game habits of older adults and examine whether computer literacy predicts digital gameplay in Turkey.

A further potential response bias may have occurred influencing the validity of the results regarding receiving help to learn about technology mainly from family members because some older adults received assistance from their younger relatives to complete the questionnaire which was distributed via a link using technological devices. This help could have led some of the adults to indicate that they receive help from their younger relatives and family members. Since, knowledge of some younger relatives helping the adults complete the questionnaire was obtained first hand and not by asking (all) participants on the questionnaire whether they received assistance in completing the questionnaire the extent of this potential bias is difficult to determine. Given that the findings are in line with others (e.g., Peek et al., 2016) showing that older adults receive help from family members when learning about technology indicates that there is some credibility to the current findings. Yet, until further research with larger sample sizes that enquire about help received to complete the questionnaire is obtained the current findings should be interpreted with caution.

Middle-aged and older adults in the current study held certain beliefs about the psychological and cognitive effects of video games, which needs to be clarified in line with the methodological improvements suggested by past research (e.g., Boot et al., 2011; Boot et al., 2013). Furthermore, considering that some adults enjoy playing games and others have either stopped playing or never have due to beliefs that games are developed for younger audiences or boring, it is important that research determines the type of content middle-aged and older adults prefer in games that could help in game design for older populations.

Conclusion

Overall, the current findings show that some middle-aged and older adults in Turkey enjoy playing digital games mainly of the puzzle genre.

Footnotes

Declaration of conflicting interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

ORCID iD

ilmiye Secer

Notes

Author Biographies

İlmiye Seçer received her Doctor of Philosophy Degree (Cognitive Psychology) from Deakin University in 2010 and is currently working as a full-time lecturer at Koç University.

Elif Öykü Us received her Master of Science (Social Psychology) degree from Başkent University in 2019, and is a PhD candidate in the Department of Cognitive Sciences, METU. She currently works as a lecturer at Başkent University, Department of Psychology.

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