Video games and “well-being”

This chapter aligns with the Council of Europe’s digital citizenship education (DCE)<br/>initiative by examining the complex relationship between video games and well-being.<br/>It explores gaming’s evolution and cultural impact, highlighting cognitive, emotional<br/>and social benefits, while emphasising the role of educators and industry in fostering<br/>a responsible gaming ecosystem. This chapter also considers the rise of “health<br/>games”, which combine engaging gameplay with evidence-based behaviour-change<br/>strategies to support wellness, education and medical or psychological treatments.<br/>Adaptive interfaces, such as biofeedback-driven systems in physical therapy (see<br/>Infobox 1), demonstrate the potential for personalised interventions. Developers<br/>are encouraged to design with audience needs – age, health literacy and cultural<br/>background – in mind, and to co-create with target demographics to ensure relevance,<br/>effectiveness and sustained meaningful engagement.<br/>Well-being is a complex and multidimensional construct, encompassing cognitive,<br/>emotional and social dimensions. Well-being in this text also literally refers to “being<br/>well”. While commercial video games may incidentally contribute to positive affect,<br/>relaxation or social engagement, this contribution critically examines how intentional<br/>game design can systematically target well-being as a primary objective or as a<br/>consequential outcome of meaningful engagement. Particular attention is given to<br/>applications within formal educational contexts, supported by a review of seminal<br/>scholarship and peer-reviewed research that evidences measurable enhancements to<br/>well-being through the integration of thoughtfully designed interactive experiences.<br/>This contribution highlights the vital role of educators in designing health games by<br/>ensuring medical accuracy and relevance, enabling games to target specific health<br/>outcomes safely and effectively. Developers share a responsibility to uphold ethical<br/>standards – prioritising transparency, informed consent and robust data privacy – so<br/>users remain protected and confident in the system. Inclusive, adaptable designs,<br/>such as adjustable difficulty levels, multi-language support and culturally sensitive<br/>content, further enhance accessibility and compatibility with assistive technologies.<br/>A notable example resulting from the author’s work is a third-party independent<br/>study by healthcare professionals (physiotherapists) who describe the created games<br/>as “visual computer feedback” where results demonstrated up to a 400% improvement<br/>in training-specific performance, with outcomes recognised for their “clinical<br/>rehabilitation impact” (Hagedorn and Holm 2010).<br/><br/>Frameworks of influence and positioning are shared while including relevant develop-mental<br/>design policies, regulations and recommended strategies, highlighting how<br/>emerging tools can drive future optimisation with health-associated personalisation<br/>through adaptation. Simple DNA cheek-swab kits already offer personalised<br/>health insights, from disease risk to nutrient absorption, delivering tailored advice<br/>on diet, fitness and lifestyle. Such personalised healthcare could eventually extend<br/>to gameplay recommendations within a future well-being index, supported by<br/>artificial intelligence (AI) enhanced gaming environments, as posited in the closing<br/>statement. Until then, one truth remains: engaging in fun, interesting games can<br/>boost happiness – and, by extension, well-being.