Using Video Games to Improve the Sexual Health of Young People Aged 15 to 25 Years: Rapid Review

Abstract

Background Sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancies among young people remain public health concerns in many countries. To date, interventions that address these concerns have had limited success. Serious games are increasingly being used as educational tools in health and professional public education. Although acknowledged as having great potential, few studies have evaluated the use of serious games in sexual health education among young people, and to date, there have been no published reviews of these studies. Objective This study aims to assess the effects of video game–based sexual health interventions for risky sexual behavior in young people aged between 15 and 25 years. Methods A rapid review of randomized controlled trials and quasi–randomized controlled trials was performed. The search included the following bibliographic databases: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Embase, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and Scopus. A total of 2 reviewers independently screened 50% (35/70) of the retrieved articles during the full-text screening phase. Results From a total of 459 identified citations, after removing duplicates, 327 (71.2%) articles were deemed eligible for title and abstract screening. Of the 327 articles, 70 (21.4%) full texts were screened, from which 10 (3.1%) articles (evaluating 11 different games) were included in the review. The findings highlighted the considerable diversity in video game–based interventions and assessed sexual health outcomes. Although there were some promising findings in outcome studies using game-based interventions, the results across studies were mixed. Conclusions Although game interventions for sexual health have been in existence for almost three decades, relatively few studies have evaluated them, and the results of previous outcome studies have been mixed. Moreover, there is little clarity regarding which specific elements of a game facilitate positive outcomes. We provide recommendations for future researchers developing video game–based interventions to improve sexual health in young people.

Current attitudes on digital interactive fiction and text adventure games within learning contexts: A systematic literature review

“…The added element of "learner immersion" provides virtually endless possibilities to deliver material in ways that engages the learner beyond what is possible in most conventional texts. Additionally, the potential exists to expose the player to real-world scenarios without any of the repercussions that comes with making a false selection (Franco Vega et al, 2022;Sani-Bozkurt et al, 2017), building practical skills and knowledge normally acquired through real-world experiences.…”

“…An IF gamed entitled "Depression Quest" was released in 2013 and places the player in the role of a character suffering from clinical depression, resulting in mixed reactions from players due to the sensitive nature of the content (Consalvo & Phelps, 2020). Another study describes two text adventure games that explore romance and sexual themes, challenging the teenage player to navigate uncomfortable simulated scenarios with desirable and undesirable outcomes (Franco Vega et al, 2022). Another IF assists adolescents with autism by simulating social scenarios for the purposes of gaining skills that they may apply in their everyday lives (Sani-Bozkurt et al, 2017).…”