Cadbury Spots v Stripes Poll Reveals One in Two Risk Happiness Through Lack of Play

July 2, 2010 - PRLog -- Nearly one in three (30%) of the 2,304 adults polled by London 2012 sponsor, Cadbury, said they didn’t have time to play games ; just under one in five (19%) were too busy at work and almost one in four (23%) were too busy with family or other commitments. This was despite 68% of adults believing it was important to have time to play games.  

Dr Stuart Brown, M.D.  A medical doctor, psychiatrist, clinical researcher, and the founder of the National Institute for Play, who collaborated with Cadbury Spots v Stripes  on the report, advises that not finding time for play poses risks to happiness and success.

“When play is forgotten or repressed, serious personal and social consequences occur.  The consequences of play deprivation are regularly expressed through addictive disorders, smoldering depression, and fixed and rigid patterns of thinking and behaviour.
“As we become adults, taking time to play feels like a guilty pleasure—a distraction from “real” work and life.  But play actually helps us to become socially and emotionally competent humans, and equips us to cope with a changing world with flexibility and optimism. In fact, our ability to play throughout life is the single most important factor in determining our success and happiness. It is a biological drive as integral to our health as sleep or nutrition.”

The report also showed that only 14% of GB adults who have played a game in the last year had played a game with colleagues – people are more likely, in fact, to play games with their pets (17%) than with work friends. Dr Stuart Brown advises that businesses that don’t consider playful environments are not only neglecting their workers but could be limiting their profit as playful ways of work lead to more creative and adaptable workers and teams.

“Play is essential to our social skills, adaptability, intelligence, creativity, ability to problem solve, and more. It is through play that we learn how to resolve conflict and create community. Play is hardwired into our brains—it is the mechanism by which we become resilient, smart, and adaptable people. With advice and support employers can integrate play into their work environments and benefit not only society but also their profit margin.”
Other findings in the report include:

•   Competitive streak - Only 30% of people in Britain (who have played a game in the last year) play hard to try and win
•   All work and no play - 1 in 12 (8%) hadn’t played a game in over a year. All GB adults citied work and family commitments, lack of energy, no idea what to play, nobody to play with or nowhere to play as some of the reasons why not
•   Lonely Britain - 74% of people never play team sports and almost one fifth (18%) of the nation says they have nobody to play with
•   When asked their favourite childhood game, football was one of the most mentioned, followed by Monopoly
•   Quiz lovers: 25% of people in Britain most prefer to play quizzes, above board games (12%) and computer games (19%)

Norman Brodie, General Manager, Cadbury London 2012, commented:

“With the ultimate games heading to London in 2012 it seemed ironic that as a nation we can’t find the time to play. We hope to reignite the spirit of play in our role as Official Treat Provider of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games with our forthcoming programme Spots v Stripes , a campaign which gives people the tools, or maybe just the excuse they need, to bring back play into lives every day.”

Notes to Editors
Cadbury
Cadbury Spots v Stripes  will be officially launching on 1 August 2010. Spots v Stripes is the biggest, longest, most fun game ever and will help to inspire people to play games more often. To find out more information please visit http://www.spotsvstripes.com or http://www.facebook.com/cadburyspots or http://www.facebook.com/cadburystripes