Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2008 Jan;34(1):74-82.
doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2007.09.027.

Playing for real: video games and stories for health-related behavior change

Tom Baranowski  1 , Richard Buday, Debbe I Thompson, Janice Baranowski
Affiliations
Review

Playing for real: video games and stories for health-related behavior change

Tom Baranowski et al. Am J Prev Med. 2008 Jan.

Abstract

Background: Video games provide extensive player involvement for large numbers of children and adults, and thereby provide a channel for delivering health behavior change experiences and messages in an engaging and entertaining format.

Method: Twenty-seven articles were identified on 25 video games that promoted health-related behavior change through December 2006.

Results: Most of the articles demonstrated positive health-related changes from playing the video games. Variability in what was reported about the games and measures employed precluded systematically relating characteristics of the games to outcomes. Many of these games merged the immersive, attention-maintaining properties of stories and fantasy, the engaging properties of interactivity, and behavior-change technology (e.g., tailored messages, goal setting). Stories in video games allow for modeling, vicarious identifying experiences, and learning a story's "moral," among other change possibilities.

Conclusions: Research is needed on the optimal use of game-based stories, fantasy, interactivity, and behavior change technology in promoting health-related behavior change.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

  • A meta-analysis of serious digital games for healthy lifestyle promotion.
    DeSmet A, Van Ryckeghem D, Compernolle S, Baranowski T, Thompson D, Crombez G, Poels K, Van Lippevelde W, Bastiaensens S, Van Cleemput K, Vandebosch H, De Bourdeaudhuij I. DeSmet A, et al. Prev Med. 2014 Dec;69:95-107. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2014.08.026. Epub 2014 Aug 27. Prev Med. 2014. PMID: 25172024 Free PMC article.
  • Prose Fiction as a Narrative Companion for a Vegetable Parenting Videogame.
    Brand L, Beltran A, Buday R, O'Connor T, Hughes S, Baranowski J, Diep C, Lu AS, Baranowski T. Brand L, et al. Games Health J. 2015 Aug;4(4):305-11. doi: 10.1089/g4h.2014.0143. Epub 2015 Apr 14. Games Health J. 2015. PMID: 26182218 Free PMC article.
  • Peer Play.
    Scott HK, Cogburn M. Scott HK, et al. 2023 Jul 4. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan–. 2023 Jul 4. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan–. PMID: 30020595 Free Books & Documents.
  • [Serious video games in pediatrics].
    Drummond D, Tesnière A, Hadchouel A. Drummond D, et al. Arch Pediatr. 2018 Jan;25(1):48-54. doi: 10.1016/j.arcped.2017.10.028. Epub 2017 Dec 19. Arch Pediatr. 2018. PMID: 29269184 Review. French.
  • [Game-based approaches to prevention and health promotion: serious games and gamification].
    Tolks D, Lampert C, Dadaczynski K, Maslon E, Paulus P, Sailer M. Tolks D, et al. Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz. 2020 Jun;63(6):698-707. doi: 10.1007/s00103-020-03156-1. Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz. 2020. PMID: 32451596 Review. German.
See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Baranowski T, Cullen KW, Nicklas T, Thompson D, Baranowski J. School-based obesity prevention: a blueprint for taming the epidemic. Am J Health Behav. 2002;26:486–93. - PubMed
    1. Summerbell C, Waters E, Edmunds L, Kelly S, Brown T, Campbell K. Interventions for preventing obesity in children. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2005;(3):CD001871. - PubMed
    1. Roberts D, Foehr U, Rideout V. Generation M: media in the lives of 8–18 year olds. Kaiser Family Foundation Study. 2005:12.
    1. McKee R. Story, substance, structure, style and the principles of screenwriting. New York: HarperCollins; 1997.
    1. Contento I, Balch GI, Bronner YL, et al. The effectiveness of nutrition education and implications for nutrition education policy, programs, and research: a review of research. J Nutr Educ. 1995;27:277–418.

Publication types