ReportSpringer Science and Business Media LLC
Causal Effect of Video Gaming on Mental Well-Being in Japan 2020–2022
1 Jan 202417 pages~74 min full read
Winning a gaming console lottery during the 2020–2022 Japanese supply shortages reduced psychological distress by 0.1 to 0.6 standard deviations, establishing a positive causal link between gaming and mental well-being.
The positive impact of video games on mental health and life satisfaction follows a threshold effect, with benefits beginning to decline after three hours of daily play.
Nintendo Switch ownership provides the most pronounced well-being improvements for adolescents and female users, while the PlayStation 5 yields stronger benefits for adult males and dedicated gamers.
The study utilized data from over 97,000 respondents to isolate the effects of gaming from self-selection bias, effectively challenging prior correlational research that linked gaming to negative mental health outcomes.
The observed psychological benefits were likely amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic environment in Japan, where gaming functioned as a critical tool for digital engagement and stress mitigation during periods of social isolation.
Advanced statistical methods, including instrumental variable causal forests and propensity score matching, confirm that moderate video game consumption serves as an effective intervention for improving psychological health.
Evidence from a natural experiment conducted in Japan between 2020 and 2022 demonstrates that video game ownership and increased play time exert a positive causal influence on mental well-being and life satisfaction. By leveraging the unique lottery-based distribution of gaming consoles during pandemic-related supply shortages, researchers analyzed data from over 97,000 respondents to isolate the effects of gaming from self-selection bias. The findings indicate that winning a console lottery reduced psychological distress by 0.1 to 0.6 standard deviations, directly challenging traditional correlational studies that often associate gaming with negative mental health outcomes.
The magnitude of these psychological benefits varies significantly across different demographic groups and hardware platforms. Machine learning analysis reveals that the Nintendo Switch offers more pronounced well-being improvements for adolescents and female users, whereas the PlayStation 5 provides stronger positive effects for adult males and dedicated gamers. While the overall impact of gaming remains positive, the data suggests a threshold of diminishing returns, as the benefits to mental health and life satisfaction begin to decline after three hours of daily play.
The scope of this research is specifically focused on the Japanese market during the COVID-19 pandemic, a period characterized by heightened social isolation and restricted physical activity. These environmental factors may have amplified the observed positive effects, as gaming served as a primary tool for digital engagement and stress mitigation. Despite these contextual considerations, the use of instrumental variable causal forests and propensity score matching provides a rigorous statistical foundation for the conclusion that moderate video game consumption serves as an effective intervention for improving psychological health.
