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Can Mobile Digital Games Benefit Older Adults’ Health?

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Mobile e-Health

Part of the book series: Human–Computer Interaction Series ((HCIS))

Abstract

Aging adults face many challenges, including declining physical and cognitive abilities, loss of companions and social support, family changes, loss of professional identity, changing lifestyles, and increasing likelihood of developing chronic and debilitating disease. Evidence suggests that digital games can improve older adults’ quality of life through improved physical, cognitive, and social health as well as general psychological wellbeing and emotional health. Benefits demonstrated in research studies have varied with game characteristics, study methodologies, and outcome measures, so generalising across studies is difficult, but our review highlights the potential for mobile digital games to improve older adults’ lives as they increasingly appear on common, accessible mobile devices.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by AGE-WELL NCE Inc., a member of Canada’s Networks of Centres of Excellence program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa, 145, Jean-Jacques-Lussier, Ottawa, ON, K1N 6N5, Canada

    Emmanuel Duplàa

  2. Faculty of Education, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada

    David Kaufman & Alice Ireland

  3. Department of Education, Téléuniversité, Université du Québec, QC, Canada

    Louise Sauvé

  4. Faculty of Communication, Université de Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada

    Lise Renaud

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Correspondence to Emmanuel Duplàa .

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  1. Health & Wellbeing Priority Research Area, School of Health, Wellbeing & Social Care, Faculty of Wellbeing, Education & Language Studies, The Open University, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom

    Hannah R. Marston

  2. School of Nursing, University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, British Columbia, Canada

    Shannon Freeman

  3. Centre for Innovative Ageing, School of Human and Health Sciences, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom

    Charles Musselwhite

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Duplàa, E., Kaufman, D., Sauvé, L., Renaud, L., Ireland, A. (2017). Can Mobile Digital Games Benefit Older Adults’ Health?. In: Marston, H., Freeman, S., Musselwhite, C. (eds) Mobile e-Health. Human–Computer Interaction Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60672-9_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60672-9_6

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-60671-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-60672-9

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

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