Experiencing Difference. What can we learn from video games regarding the experience of psychiatric diagnoses

Video games are sometimes thought to cause aggression, isolation or mental illness, despite the lack of conclusive evidence. The depiction of people with mental illness in video games is also often problematic, as the stereotype of the psychopathic character and of the mental institution as a setting for horror. However, more and more, artists use video games as a way to express their experiences with psychiatric diagnoses. Also, more and more games feature realistic and nuanced characters with a psychiatric diagnosis. With this project we want to investigate, using methodologies from disability studies and empirical philosophy, what we can learn from video games regarding the experience of a psychiatric diagnosis, especially autism, psychosis and depression.

Keywords:DIGITAL GAMES, PSYCHIATRY

Disciplines:Digital media, Other philosophy, ethics and religious studies not elsewhere classified, Art studies and sciences not elsewhere classified, Interactive media