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Serious games for the treatment or prevention of depression: a systematic review

journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-18, 07:07 authored by Fleming, TM, Cheek, C, Merry, SN, Thabrew, H, Heather BridgmanHeather Bridgman, Stasiak, K, Shepherd, M, Perry, Y, Hetrick, S
Serious games (computerised interventions which utilise gaming for serious purposes) have been shown to support improved outcomes in several health conditions. We aimed to review evidence regarding serious games for depression. We undertook electronic searches of PsycInfo, EMBASE and Medline, using terms relevant to computer games and depression. We included fulltext articles published in English in peer-reviewed literature since 2000, where the intervention was designed to treat or prevent depression and which included pre-and post-intervention measurement of depression. Nine studies relating to a total of six interventions met inclusion criteria. Most studies were small and were carried out by the developers of the programs. All were tested with young people (ages between 9 and 25 years). Most reported promising results with some positive impact on depression although one universal program had mixed results. Serious gaming interventions show promise for depression, however evidence is currently very limited.

History

Publication title

Revista de Psicopatologia y Psicologia Clinica

Volume

19

Pagination

227-242

ISSN

1136-5420

Department/School

Tasmanian School of Medicine

Publisher

Asociacion Espanola de Psicologia Clinica y Psicopatologia

Place of publication

Spain

Rights statement

Copyright 2014 Asociación Española de Psicología Clínica y Psicopatología

Repository Status

  • Restricted

Socio-economic Objectives

Mental health

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