Are Video Games Bad for Kids and Teens?
Video games have become integral to children’s lives and pop culture. It is because gaming is one of the largest industries in the world. No wonder parents are concerned about their children’s safety. In this article, you’ll learn about the dangers behind video games and get tips on how to keep your child safe online.
Videos Games, Facts and Statistics
Over the past years, mobile games and downloads among children have increased. During research on video gaming, the average daily time spent playing video games among 13- to 18-year-olds was 50 minutes.
Here’s a summary of what the video game statistics tell us among kids:
- Three million children in the US are addicted to video games.
- 50% of boys listed adult video games among their favorites.
- Boys often choose violent, aggressive, or bloodthirsty sports.
- 1 in 10 teenagers play video games instead of studying and attending class.
On the one hand, it is natural for children to love games, as they bring a unique experience to their lives. On the other hand, many games are violent and brutal and can hurt a young, unformed mind.
Why Video Games Are Suitable For Kids, 5 Reasons To Let Them Play
Although many parents consider video games a harmful activity for their children, this pastime can positively affect children.
1. Development Of Decision-Making Skills
All games, such as puzzles, strategies, RPGs, and arcades, share one common feature: the need to make decisions. To reach the second level, children must move forward and make their own choices.
Depending on the decisions children make, their progress will lead them to victory or failure. Thus, they learn to make choices to achieve a desired outcome.
2. Enhancing Logic And Creativity
Any action performed by the gamer leads them to reach specific objectives. They have to explore, plan, and experiment with different ways to solve a problem.
In most cases, the process involves logical thinking. However, in some cases, conventional ways of thinking don’t work. A child mu st think creatively to get the desired reward or move to the next level.
3. Hand-Eye Coordination
Children who play shooters or RPGs must focus and carefully move their characters. A player must keep track of his avatar’s position, direction, speed, score, and tee.
A child’s brain has to process information quickly and coordinate it with the eyes and hands so that the child can perform the corresponding actions on his keyboard.
4. Visual-Spatial Learning
According to research, children who play video games develop their visual-spatial skills more intensively than those who don’t. They process visual information quickly. Studies also show that video games help develop spatial skills in a short amount of time.
5. Multitasking
As games become increasingly complex, players must control multiple items and perform different tasks simultaneously. Reacting quickly and switching between these tasks is crucial if a player wants to win. So, multitasking skills come in handy.
Multitasking is essential in strategy games, where a child needs to create items, hire units, and watch enemy actions simultaneously.
Why Video Games Are Bad For Kids, 4 Reasons to Ban Them
There is no doubt that many sports have beneficial effects on children. However, most kids prefer games where they can kill the walking dead, violently damage an opponent, or drive a sports car at high speeds.
Such games can hurt children and their health, both physical and mental.
1. Game Addiction
In most cases, this negative effect occurs when children start spending too much time playing online games. Children must be online constantly because they require young people to interact with other players in real-time.
Otherwise, they will miss important events, and opponents will destroy their cities and characters.
2. Aggression And Anxiety
It’s no secret that violent games promote aggression in children. Research shows that children who play aggressive games experience a lack of empathy for others and antisocial behavior.
However, other studies suggest that violent video games have temporary and short-term effects on gamers.
3. Adverse Health Effects
This is fine if a child spends limited time on a PC or tablet. However, if children choose games over other activities, they may experience issues with their physical health.
Children who eat regularly due to sports may suffer from stomach ailments. Or they may suffer from sleep disorders if they change their rest time to play games.
4. Decreased Academic Performance
Video games engage and fascinate young people with their graphics, plot, and possibilities—all things kids can’t get in real life. It is no wonder that children prefer to play to study.
As a result, children perform poorly academically, which can negatively impact their future careers.
Kids and Video Games: How Parents Can Find a Balance
As you can see from the facts in this article, most children play video games. And those games don’t necessarily affect them negatively. Good or bad effects can be experienced depending on the video game type.
Before banning a child from playing games, parents must understand that games are a gateway to a world of unique possibilities. So, kids will only give up such an exciting activity with a fight.
Parents must find a way to balance their children’s time in games, sports and other activities. A parental control app, such as NexaSpy, can be a solution.
With NexaSpy, parents can monitor what their kids do on their smartphones during the day. They can block violent games, control what content their kids can browse online, and record keystrokes and smartphone screens.
Conclusion
Video games are a big deal for kids, with both good and bad sides. While they can enhance skills like decision-making and creativity, some games can lead to addiction, aggression, and health issues. The key is balance. Instead of banning games, parents can use tools like NexaSpy, a parental control app, to keep an eye on their kids’ phone activities. It helps strike a balance; ensuring kids enjoy games responsibly while staying safe online. It’s all about finding that sweet spot in the gaming world for our little ones.
