Effect of Online Gaming on Positive and Negative Affect and Psychological Wellbeing

India is ranked 5th globally in game downloads on Q2 2016 and is
touted to reach the $1 billion mark by 2021. Though there is scant
research in this significantly growing field of human behavior, the
existing research indicates that addiction to gaming has more negative
consequences than positive. Given the growing market of this field
and its impact on human beings, especially the youth, online gaming
is a topic that demands serious research. The objective of the present
study was to examine the effect of online gaming, with a specific
focus on the game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), on the
psychological wellbeing of Indian adolescents and young adults. For
this purpose, 102 participants (mean age=20) were asked to complete
a questionnaire online. Findings from the study reflected a positive
correlation between playing PUBG and positive experience (p<.05)
and negative experience (p<.01), and a negative correlation between
playing PUBG and psychological wellbeing (p<.01). Owing to the
popularity of PUBG, the study provides significant insights into the
effect of PUBG on the psychological wellbeing of young adults and
adolescents. It reveals that playing PUBG has simultaneous positive
and negative effects, which means that it has detrimental as well as
beneficial effects. At the same time, excessive engagement of PUBG
leads to negative psychological impact.