This video game can trigger empathy in your child, says study

In case your child is too much into video games, you may have a chance to see him grow up to be more empathetic. That's what a recent study has revealed. Researchers have come up with a new video game that can bring in empathy among students as it is related to the brain's empathy circuitry.

By: Sreemoyee Chatterjee | | Updated: August 11, 2018 10:38 am

Trying ways to make your child empathetic? Video games, according to a recent study, can bring in more empathy in your child. Wondering how? Researchers from the University of Wisconsin (UW)-Madison have the answer as they have come up with a video game that can help develop empathy in students, as per a recent report published in the University’s official website – Wisconsin Public Radio. The study has been published in the Nature Partner Journal Science of Learning which highlights that this video game has a direct link to brain’s ’empathy circuitry’. Also Read - Obese people beware: Your weight may have a surprising impact on your brain function

The wonder game which is still at an experimental level is called ‘Crystals of Kaydor’ where the participating players are sent to a planet with aliens that don’t speak human language but possess human like facial expressions. Now, the human players who are sent to the other planet with the responsibility of helping the aliens, have to interpret their emotions to understand them. Also Read - Newborns' brain hardwired to see faces, places

As reported, Dr Richardson Davidson, director of UW-Madison’s Center for Healthy Minds, said: “We were able to see changes in the brains of eighth graders who played this game compared to a control group. Those kids that were playing our experimental game showed a shift in brain activity specifically in a circuit that we know to be involved in perspective taking, which is key for empathy.” Also Read - Scientists develop novel technique to measure empathy

“The research into how gaming could develop what he calls the brain’s ’empathy circuitry’ is only beginning. This study is a proof of concept that it is possible, and that the brain can be changed through this kind of practice over a very short period of time,” he added. According to him, this game would also play an effective role to benefit several students including those suffering from autism spectrum.

Tammi Kral, a graduate student from UW-Madison who led the study, reportedly said: “The realization that these skills are actually trainable with video games is important because they are predictors of emotional well-being and health throughout life, and can be practiced anytime — with or without video games.”

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Published : August 11, 2018 10:37 am | Updated:August 11, 2018 10:38 am

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