Study: Average videogamer is 35, fat and depressed

by Stevie Smith - Aug 24 2009, 15:30

Debunking videogame stereotypes, but not necessarily in a good way, a new study into gaming habits has revealed that today’s average games player is not a pallid skinned, socially backward teenager but rather a 35-year-old couch potato prone to bouts of depression when not submerged in the escapism of virtual game worlds.

The study, conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention along with contributory research from Andrews University and Emory University, garnered its results after casting a critical eye over 552 adults aged between 19 and 90 in the region of Seattle-Tacoma.

With 249 of the study’s participants revealing themselves to be active gamers, some 56 percent were found to be male and overweight when compared to other male respondents who claimed not to have a penchant for videogames. Similarly, the study returned that female gamers are generally more likely to suffer from depression and have a less healthy disposition than non-gamers.

“Health risk factors differentiated adult video game players from non-players,” outlined National Center for Health Marketing researcher James Weaver in an official statement.”

“Video game players also reported lower extroversion [sociability], consistent with research on adolescents that linked video game playing to a sedentary lifestyle and overweight status, and to mental-health concerns,” he added.

According to the report, female gamers feeling pressured by the stresses and strains of everyday life are also far more likely to seek prolonged “digital self-medication” by losing themselves in a videogame in order to “literally take their minds off their worries.”

Those critical of the report have pointed to potential accuracy concerns linked to the study’s miniscule sample size and also its specific focus on just one small area of a massive North American user base.

Not that it matters, but this particular gamer happens to be 36, a kilo or two above optimum weight, a daily runner, a regular tennis player, and only ever experiences depression when weighing up available revenue against the wealth of gaming titles looming on the horizon.

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