If you ever felt that guilt after grinding for video game gold instead of real-life money, then you can rest assured that the digital grind isn’t going to waste. A recent study has suggested playing MMO games (massively multiplayer online) actually helps people develop some workplace skills.
The study came from the University of Houston’s College of Engineering. Melika Shirmohammadi, assistant professor at the said college, has quite a lot of reassuring things to say for MMO gamers, as was reported by the Houston Chronicle:
“Online gaming often gets a bad reputation, but our study reveals a different story. We found that gaming can actually help people develop valuable workplace skills. Our research shows that gaming, when done in moderation, can be a way for people to grow both personally and professionally,” Melika Shirmohammadi claims.
Take note of the ‘moderation’ keyword. We might need to quantify or establish its meaning in this context.
In any case, Shirmohammadi and her colleagues published the study in Human Resource Development International back in October 2024. In it, they closely observed 23 participants (19 men, four women). And these aren’t just regular gamers– they’re reportedly among the top 10 percent elite in all the MMO games they played.
These participants’ ages also ranged from 20 to 41. All of them have jobs in varying fields. The study then examined the participants’ social and problem-solving skills in MMO games, including World of Warcraft.
Among the participants was a health and safety manager who credits his ability to manage and coordinate people to his dungeon raids in World of Warcraft. His leadership in his job apparently stemmed from arranging and executing successful raids in World of Warcraft.
“I have to act as a mentor and a guide to supervisors and managers, superintendents and all those guys that are in leadership and being able to find out what we need to do and guide them towards that.
It stems from …World of Warcraft. For example ‘What do we need to do to take down this boss and defeat this guy?’ … and then actually lead those guys, command them, and tell them, ‘Hey, this is happening, I need you guys to move now,’ and that type of thing,” said the anonymous participant.
The Study Has Its Limitations
The study’s authors, however, are aware that their sample size is tiny and their research needs further testing. After all, most of their participants were male and they seem to have no control group with which to compare their MMO gamers. They might need more participants and even cooperation from video game developers for more solid conclusions.
They still want researchers and academics to review the initially negative assumptions about MMO games and MMO gamers in the workplace. At the same time, the study is also an encouragement for video game developers to enhance aspects of their games that could contribute to learning while also minimizing elements that exacerbate addiction.
