Playing Scrabble with friends, family or other players can provide a number of social and mental health benefits, even at the same time. In this article, WordsRated looks at each benefit the game can bring to players while playing the game and even in their personal lives.
- A 2024 survey found that 75% of UK adults like or love playing word games like Scrabble.
- In a separate 2011 survey, 18% of UK adults stated that Scrabble is their favorite board game (second only to Monopoly which was the favorite game of 22%).
- One study found that people who play Scrabble competitively are able to identify real words vs. fake words 20% faster than people who don’t play the game.
- This is particularly noticeable when tasked with reading words vertically, which non-players are not likely to practice often.
- Competitive players are also more likely to use a word’s visual appearance to determine whether it is a real word or not, in contrast to non-players who generally look to factor in a word’s meaning.
- Utilizing Scrabble as a learning tool can boost academic achievement related to vocabulary, due to the focused mental stimulation the game provides.
- A 2020 survey found that 76% of US adults feel that Scrabble is a game of skill, rather than a game of luck.
- This suggests that all players should be able to get better at Scrabble with regular practice, which in turn can maximize the personal benefits they receive from the game.
Vocabulary
The very nature of Scrabble is to analyze randomized letters on a rack, previously played words on the board and evaluate the best word to play based upon this information. As one of the most popular word games of all time, it is no surprise that Scrabble can have a great positive effect on its players’ vocabulary.
Regular players of the game will be more familiar with the use of prefixes and suffixes which are a vital part of the game in order to reuse previously played letters, alongside other word constructions. With time players should start to notice an increase in the size of their vocabulary and they may even gain a deeper knowledge of their definitions.
Intelligence
Previous studies have shown that playing word games can aid in the development of an individual’s cognitive capacity. This can be of particular benefit to individuals who struggle to learn through traditional learning methods, such as verbal or written exercises.
What’s more, players of an inquisitive nature are more likely to take an interest in the finer details of words played due to their thirst for knowledge. This can help them gain a better grasp of the subject areas they may not have previously explored.
Strategy
Although building lengthy words on each turn may at first seem like the best way to play the game, it is better to take a more strategic approach when playing Scrabble. Players should always analyze the state of the board and try to plan a few moves ahead, ensuring they can maximize their point score on each turn while minimizing that of their opponent.
Good habits from the game such as analyzing, predicting and balanced risk taking are also applicable to other areas of our lives. With regular practice, positive habits learned in Scrabble can influence us to make better life decisions.
Social
Scrabble is available as both a board game or an online game and it can be played by 2 – 4 players. Due to being a multiplayer game, players have the opportunity to frequently communicate (by talking or messages) with each other in casual games and must adhere to etiquette in tournament games.
The latest addition to the Scrabble lineup, Scrabble Together, even allows players to work together as a team to solve goal cards. Whichever version of Scrabble you prefer to play, you will have the opportunity to socialize by playing with friends, family or other players from all over the globe.
Emotions
Whether it is elation or anger, board games have the ability to bring out a wide-range of emotions in players of all ages and backgrounds. As such, everytime we play a round of our favorite board game, we have the opportunity to test our emotional control.
By stifling negative feelings that come from frustration and resisting the urge to play moves too quickly due to excitement, players can maintain a balanced approach in each game scenario to help them come to rational decisions. Regular players may find that they begin to have a calmer overall outlook on a day-to-day basis that leads to an improved quality of life.
Confidence
As with any game or challenge we encounter, Scrabble can be a great way to improve a person’s overall confidence. Upon each turn, players have to try to work out the best possible move that will score them a high number of points and leave them in a good situation for upcoming moves.
This process of decision making under pressure in front of other players requires self-confidence in one’s abilities. Confidence levels can increase as each player gets better at the game, which can later spread and help with relationships and in professional settings.
Creativity
In Scrabble, there are often a great number of possibilities that can be played on each turn. In order to find the best of these, players are forced to consider the letters available in their rack alongside those that have been played on the board and use judgment on the state of the game.
This trial and error pushes players to test their levels of creativity in different game situations to come up with a solution for the available letter combinations. This can benefit our ability to think outside the box in other scenarios where we feel our options are limited.
Concentration
People that struggle to remain focused on their daily tasks may find that Scrabble helps them to concentrate. Due to the standard format of the game, players need to spend a lot of time analyzing different letter combinations from their rack and board during their turn and also the turns of any other players.
Scrabble’s competitive element also adds a certain level of pressure to the player, pushing them to focus on the task at hand in order to play the best moves they can. Repeatedly going through the process of focusing and forming words should eventually boost concentration levels in a way that can be beneficial in other areas.
Enjoyment
Most importantly of all, Scrabble players should always remember the main reason why they started playing in the first place, because it is a fun activity! One of the main benefits of board games is that they are supposed to be an enjoyable and relaxing leisure activity shared with other people.
Due to this, people that enjoy playing Scrabble (especially in a casual setting) are likely to engage in conversation, jokes and friendly levels of competition during play. Having more fun experiences such as these can contribute to boosting our own happiness and overall satisfaction levels.