Abstract
This chapter provides readers with an overview of digital gaming trends across Europe and Australia, using current and up-to-date statistics detailing gaming preferences, demographics and digital device usage and ownership. Providing a contemporary overview of the literature in the field of digital gaming and ageing the authors aim to demonstrate the work that has been covered by international academics. These domains include a series of reviews which have focused on health rehabilitation and gaming, eHealth, digital gaming, fall prevention and active ageing. Further discussion focuses on the use and deployment of mobile health apps and digital gaming and how they are used within the field of ageing, in regard to gamification, chronic health conditions and the nature of interaction and engagement by users. Results are presented from the iStoppFalls project, whereby an ICT survey was deployed to ascertain participants ICT usage, ownership and behaviours. The results in this chapter focus primarily on digital games, how participants learnt to play games, their preferred game genres and online gaming habits. Common challenges are explored and discussed by the authors in regards to gaming research with recommendations proposed for future use and engagement of digital gaming, mobile health apps and wearables.
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Acknowledgements
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article: This project has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration under grant agreement no. 287361. The Australian arm is funded by an Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) EU collaboration grant (#1038210). The content of the manuscript does not represent the opinion of the European Community or NHMRC. The funding sources have no role in any aspects of this study. Yves J. Gschwind has been financially supported by a research grant from the Margarete and Walter Lichtenstein Foundation, Basel, Switzerland. All other authors are supported by the iStoppFalls project, European Community Grant Agreement 287361. On behalf of the iStoppFalls consortium, we would like to thank all the participants who took part in the study. Trial registration: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry Trial ID: ACTRN12614000096651. International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number: ISRCTN15932647.
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Marston, H.R., Kroll, M., Fink, D., Poveda, R., Gschwind, Y.J. (2017). Digital Game Technology and Older Adults. In: Marston, H., Freeman, S., Musselwhite, C. (eds) Mobile e-Health. Human–Computer Interaction Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60672-9_7
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