Scales are easy once you realize that there's only really 7 of them you need to learn. Use a fingerboard diagram and just think of it like learning 7 new chords except the notes are all played seperately.
An easy way to practice them is to play scales over your favorite songs. Like, somtimes I'll just sit in front of the TV and play scales to the background music on tv shows for instance.
As far as helping you in playing chords...basically anything new that you work on will benifit your playing, even if it's just training your fingers to stretch more or improving your dampening techniques.