I always knew it. Whatever the warnings from my elders and betters, it was clear from an early age that playing computer games would neither make me blind nor lead me to “no good”. With early Parental Guidance warnings ringing in my ears (”You’ll never amount to anything at this rate”; “There’s more to life than flashing lights”), I plugged my Spectrum into a tape deck and struggled through level 4 of ‘Manic Miner’ all the same.

The thing is, I knew better. I had the evidence before me. The cinematic milestones of my pre-teen life - ‘Wargames’, ‘Tron’, ‘The Last Starfighter’ - all pointed to one of life’s eternal truths: playing computer games will help you save the earth. Not only that, you’ll also win the affections of your childhood sweetheart along the way. And possibly defeat an evil, faceless corporation - preferably with a sinister acronym like C.L.A.W.

In the intervening years, gaming systems have grown ever more complicated and ‘realistic’. But it’s not so much the fact that graphics have improved, or that you can now brandish your Wii stick above your head like a sword; more that most aspects of modern life now involve a degree of computer competence. Whether we’re talking desktop publishing or helicopter gunship warfare, learning about point-and-click technology is an essential career skill.

But you don’t have to take my word for it. You can take Dr Richard Wood’s instead. Dr Wood is a chartered psychologist and senior researcher at Nottingham Trent University, where he works for the International Gaming Research Unit (I.G.R.U.). And if any of my former teachers are reading this, I’d just like to reiterate that last sentence. “No good”? You never told me I could get a job researching the bloody things did you? And with its own sinister acronym thrown into the bargain.

But anyway, over to Dr Wood: “There’s a lot of hype focusing on the negative aspects of games, but in fact there’s a lot of positive reasons for playing games.” He dismisses the idea that games ‘addiction’ is a serious issue in the way that it is for people addicted to gambling, drugs or alcohol, or that there is any link between computer generated violence and actual violence. Meanwhile, Mark Griffiths, his colleague at Nottingham Trent (which is beginning to sound like the best educational institution in Britain), points out that computer games improve hand-to-eye co-ordination and spatial awareness, and can also be used to improve one’s health and fitness. And yes, you did read that last bit right. The newly launched ‘Active Games Project’ is examining how video games can be used to promote physical activity in children. Me? I want Dr Wood’s job.

By Mark Hooper (while waiting to usurp Dr Wood, Mark occupies himself as editor of www.channel4.com/music/)