online games

Games for the 50+: A New Outlet for Mentoring

Posted on 05/13/2013 by | Home & Family blogger | Comments

Home & Family | Technology | Your LifeOver the past few weeks, I’ve written about the gaming study by Dr. Jennifer Jacobs Henderson, associate professor and department chair, and Dr. Aaron Delwiche, associate professor, of the Department of Communication at Trinity University. For the final installment in this series, I want to focus on a very interesting insight from Drs. Henderson and Delwiche — many older gamers really like the mentoring aspect of multiplayer online games. It’s not about the competition but about helping others. As we …

Games for the 50+: Games Provide Family Caregivers With Time to Recharge

Posted on 05/6/2013 by | Home & Family blogger | Comments

Caregiving | Home & Family | TechnologyI’ve been writing about the landmark gaming study by Dr. Jennifer Jacobs Henderson, associate professor and department chair, and Dr. Aaron Delwiche, associate professor, of the Department of Communication at Trinity University. Their study is based on over 32,000 users of  Wizard101, an online multiplayer game that surprisingly has a large number of 50+ users. One of the biggest surprises to us at AARP are the findings that show gaming benefits for caregivers and those who have gone through a …

Games for the 50+: Grandparents & Grandchildren Find Adventures, Memories

Posted on 04/23/2013 by | Home & Family blogger | Comments

Home & Family | Technology | Your LifeOver 60 percent of Americans over the age 50 are grandparents. But, as the average age of a first-time grandparent in the United States is 48, there are also a number of grandparents under 50, too. So, grandparents are something we feel is important to understand at AARP. We know that grandparents want to increase the connection to their grandkids and want to help get them on the right path in life. But, there are barriers — distance or physical …

Games for the 50+: Strengthening Friendships

Posted on 04/15/2013 by | Home & Family blogger | Comments

Home & Family | Relationships | Technology | Your LifeIn my last blog post, I described a very large study of 32,000 users of the free online multiplayer game, Wizard101. The study found that not only were the Wizard101 subscribers over 50 playing more every week compared to younger users, but that they also reported social benefits from playing the game, including the ability to make new friends and stay connected to old friends. The virtual world aspect of Wizard101 and similar games provide participants with an opportunity to …

Games for the 50+: Benefits Include Socialization, Activity

Posted on 04/8/2013 by | Home & Family blogger | Comments

Caregiving | Home & Family | Relationships | TechnologyAt a conference last year, several of us at AARP had the chance to hear about the ways in which the 50-plus and those not quite 50 find benefits in playing online multiplayer games.  There are several parts of that last statement that tend to elicit pushback from others — first, many believe online multiplayer video games are played by teens or young millennial men.  Second, the idea of a multiplayer video game may elicit images of violent games which …

The Wonderful Wiz

Posted on 09/11/2009 by | General News | Comments

EntertainmentI can remember the very first time I saw The Wizard of Oz. I sat cross-legged on my parents bed, staring up at the television. I don’t think I moved an inch until the Wicked Witch and Dorothy fought in the castle hallway, sending me running! This year is the 70th Anniversary of the classic film and if you’re like me you still watch the movie whenever it’s on tv…even if it’s half way done! Fast forward to a particularly …

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