Playing with Words: The Experience of Self-disclosure in Intergenerational Gaming

Abstract

While small and large technological miracles have undoubtedly made our lives easier, they have potentially also made a significant part of our daily social routine obsolete. People live in the same space but rarely spend quality time together, interacting and bonding. One of the solutions to enhance family relationships may lie in the technology itself—video games. Previous research having shown the sociability of video games, and in this study, we examined their potential in creating closer family relationships, especially among different generations. Participants (n = 183) were asked to play video games together over a period of six weeks. Participants completed a modified version of the self-disclosure and relationship closeness inventories before and after the treatment and responded to a series of open-ended questions post-treatment. Results indicate an increase in breadth and depth of self-disclosure, and in relationship closeness in both younger and older adults. Gathering around a novel shared activity, both younger and older adults found new ways of connecting to their family members, whether through more frequent conversations, broader selection of topics, shared subjects, or pure entertainment. The findings suggest that video games can provide a platform for family communication, resulting in the rejuvenation and maintenance of intergenerational relationships.