Russian gamers were far from the most depressed. USA in the lead

The gaming brand My.Games, part of the Mail.ru Group, has published the results of an international study on mental health among online gamers.

Russian gamers were far from the most depressed.  USA in the lead

The survey was conducted among PC gamers and distributed by mental health foundations. In total, more than 21 thousand gamers around the world took part in the study, of which 7 thousand are in Russia.

Interestingly, when comparing their psychological state before the pandemic and after, many Russian players noted improvements. So, 55% of the respondents considered their condition before the pandemic to be stable, and today – 83%. Thus, the mental health of gamers in Russia, according to their feedback and feelings during the pandemic, did not deteriorate, but, on the contrary, stabilized.

Russian gamers were far from the most depressed.  USA in the lead

Every fifth (20%) player several times a year faces depression and anxiety caused by stress. The most “depressed” players were from the USA (33%), followed by England (32%), and Russia ranks third with a large gap behind the leaders (20%).

Almost all respondents (97%) play online games and most of them (83%) communicate with other players. Virtual communication with strangers remained at the same level for the majority of players (71%), and about a quarter of those surveyed (28%) began to communicate more actively with friends through online games.

According to experts, the games made it possible to compensate for the lack of communication associated with the pandemic and the self-isolation regime. 41% of those surveyed noted that virtual communication in games allowed them to maintain a closer connection with other people.

Most players in Russia have a positive attitude towards interacting with other people in online games. At the same time, at least half of the respondents at least occasionally encountered psychological violence in the virtual space – aggression (52%), insults (53%) and trolling (49%). Other serious manifestations of cyberbullying (humiliation, harassment, threats, bullying and boycotting) were much less common.

At the same time, players meet aggression in Russia more often than in Germany (53% versus 51%), than in France (53% versus 37%), Spain (53% versus 42%), and the USA (53% versus 51%).

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