Positive & negative effects of video games on teenagers

Teens and video games go hand-in-hand today. In fact, 97% of teens and kids in the US play video games at least for one hour every day. So, in what way do video games affect teenagers? The effects are both good and bad. We tell you about the positive and negative effects of video games. Let's begin with something positive.

Positive effects of video games on teenagers:
Yes, video games can be good for your child. Don't be shocked, we'll tell you why. Here are the reasons why virtual gaming can be good.

1. Improves cognitive functions:

Contrary to popular belief, video gaming can enhance multiple cognitive skills such as better allocation of attention, visual processing, memory, reasoning, and perception, according to a research published by the American Psychological Association.

Researchers have studied a meta-analysis of video games and concluded that the positive effects of violent games included improvement in a player's capability of thinking in different dimensions, just the way some academic courses do.

2. Hand and eye coordination:

Research has shown that teens can learn spatial, visual and eye-hand coordination skills from video games, especially from shooter games. Some games require a great deal of these skills to be successful. For example, players need to keep track of positions, speed, aim, directions and more. The brain processes all these data and coordinates with the hands since all the actions are performed with the keyboard or game controller.
Lead author of the research Isabela Granic from the Radboud University Nijmegen in The Netherlands, says, "This has critical implications for education and career development, as previous research has established the power of spatial skills for achievement in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics."

3. Quick thinking and accuracy:

The action in video games prepares the gamers to make smart decisions in split seconds. Also, they need acute attention to cope with unexpected changes in the game.

4. Work on dexterity:

Online gaming improves the movement of hands with the mouse and keyboard. They learn to use the shortcut functions on the keyboard and give quick responses.

5. Problem-solving abilities

Researchers suggest that video games can aid teens in developing problem-solving skills because while playing strategic video games like role-plays, young adolescents get better at solving problems.

6. Some games can improve moods and ward off anxiety

Games such as Angry Birds and Bejewelled II are straightforward and bring instant happiness or relaxation and improve moods. Researcher Granic calls it a "fundamental emotional benefit" kids can derive from video games. The games can also teach young people how to cope with failures.

7. Promote the theory of incremental intelligence

Teens, who are encouraged and praised for working on a puzzle or game, develop an idea of progressive knowledge, which is essentially believing that intelligence is not fixed and can be improved; it can be grown with effort and time. This way, video games provide an ideal ground for children to acquire such traits of thoughts.

8. Other benefits

Educational video games can teach school subjects more interactively, and pro-social games can increase empathy in teens.

The positive effects depend on the games your teen chooses to play. Violent and sexually explicit games are more negative than positive.

Negative effects of video games
The bad effects of video games are mostly related to the amount of play and the game content.

1. Aggression in teens:

One of the most detrimental effects of playing violent video games is increased aggression in children. A comprehensive meta-analysis involving more than 100 research papers has shown that exposure to violent video games is a causal risk factor for increased aggressive behavior (4).
Some researchers have claimed that violent video games can desensitize children to violence, and lower the likelihood of a pro-social behavior.

2. Addiction to gaming:

The term 'pathological gaming' or video game addiction is being widely discussed in the medical circles though it is not yet classified as any formal disorder in the US Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).
Pathological gamers are likely to develop anxiety, insomnia, social isolation, and depression.
Moreover, these factors are co-morbid in the sense that they can influence each other. Therefore, pathological gaming can result in depression, anxiety, or social phobia and the latter three can make the child more inclined and attracted to gaming.

3. Poor academic performance:

This is one of the side effects of video games on teens. Playing video games for long hours can affect your teen's performance in school. Studies have shown that a higher amount of time spent in playing onscreen games can be associated with lower academic performance.

A survey has shown that 47% of heavy online players got poor grades, while 23% of light users performed better than them.

4. Adverse effects on health:

Excessive gaming can have an adverse impact on the teen's health as they spend more time playing virtual games rather than having some physical exercise. This practice increases the risk of childhood obesity. Sometimes, children also skip meals and sleep to play games they are addicted to. The constant glare from the screen can also harm the child's eyesight in the long run.

You can avoid these negative effects on your children if you keep monitoring their activities.


The writer is a freelancer

-Sudipta Jana