This 3-Minute Video Game Is Surprisingly Good at Spotting Depression
Researchers at New York University have developed a three-minute video game that may help identify clinical depression. The game measures how players respond to collecting apples, revealing differences in behavior between those with and without depression. The team aims to have the game approved as a diagnostic tool by the FDA, potentially allowing for easier tracking of depression symptoms.
- ▪The game was designed to identify a key aspect of depression by observing how players collect apples.
- ▪People with major depression switched to new trees earlier than healthy controls, indicating a lack of response to novel experiences.
- ▪The researchers hope the game could serve as a quick and accessible tool for assessing and monitoring depression symptoms.
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Though they’re not everyone’s cup of tea, video games can be some of the most fun you can have on a lazy day. The inherent bliss that comes with playing a video game just might help doctors tell whether someone has clinical depression, new research shows.cnx.cmd.push(function(){cnx({"playerId":"92b7b46b-43ed-4e0e-b21b-2c999302d9d7","settings":{"advertising":{"macros":{"AD_UNIT":"/23178111854/od.gizmodo.com/article","CHILD_UNIT":"article","POST_ID":"2000761315","POST_TYPE":"post","CHANNEL":"science","SECTION":"health","SUBSECTION":"","CATEGORIES":"health","TAGS":"depression,mental-health,video-games","NOP":"0"},"timeBeforeFirstAd":0}}}).render("cnx-player-main")}); Scientists at New York University developed a three-minute-long game designed to identify a key aspect of depression.
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