How video games are impacting your child’s development

A deep dive into the world of video games for parents, along with 5 reasons you should let kids play and 5 things to keep in check

95% of children played video and simulation games on devices, per a study by Singapore’s NIE in 2013

Most parents today will attest to the fact that kids of all ages have become inseparable from the plethora of smart devices existent around them. Most of all, it is the omnipresent smartphone which provides instant gratification within a few seconds. This is far superior versus gaming consoles such as Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo or the good old PC which take atleast a minute or two to load up. And statistics agree that consoles and computers are fast losing ground to smartphones and tablets, with 90% of gamers playing on smartphones or tablets or both today.

As a result of this convenience of smartphones, the age for getting introduced to electronic gadgets and video games has also dropped dramatically. Within just 2 years of Android release in late 2008, mobile gaming among kids had jumped to a staggering 38% by 2011. Kids aged 2–5 were the biggest drivers of this growth of mobile video game penetration among children.

It is indeed quite astonishing that children who barely understand language are becoming well-versed in communicating with these touch devices.

The gateway into the world of video game has been split wide open with the advent of smartphones. This gateway was something which used to be guarded by the family TV or PC for the kids of ’80s and ’90s. The compounding effect to this fast spread is provided by the millions of apps available on the PlayStore, bulk of which are free to download. It effectively leaves no room for boredom. Parents reading this may feel nostalgic about their childhood days, when the same board game or video game was played repeatedly until the board wore out or enough pocket money was gathered to purchase a new video game.

Kids under 8 are spending 2–2.5 hours every day in front of the screen

If you are a parent reading this, there is a high probability your child spends a lot of time in front of the screen either on video games or watching videos. Keeping children totally away from screen doesn’t seem to be an option anymore, and I had written a blog earlier outlining how responsible and controlled tech use could infact be quite beneficial for your child.

With this background, let’s dive deeper into the world of video games.

Classification of Video Games

Video games cover a vast array of subjects and themes made for people of all ages. It is important to understand the different types of games and their ratings so you as parents can make a good judgment about what is appropriate for your children. Some different types of games include:

• Action: Fast-paced games which emphasize physical challenges. Fighting and shooting games for example fall in this category

• Adventure: Games which typically involve a fantasy story-line. Progress is dependent on a collective set of decisions made by the player, which could include puzzle solving and item collection, and may or may not involve fast-paced action

• Arcade: Broadest category of gaming, which finds its origins in coin-slot machines such as Pinball

• Sports: Games simulating sports such as racing and football

• Educational and Puzzles: Educational games aim to teach basic concepts to the pre-teen player using game as a vehicle. Puzzles are a subset of educational games which hone your child’s thinking and logic skills

• Strategy: Games which require tactful and skillful thinking and planning in order to progress and win. Games which involve placement and movement of troops, for example, will fall under this genre

• Simulation: These games are designed to closely simulate real or fictional reality, such as aircraft simulations which tasks the player with flying an aircraft

It is important to note here that a game may qualify under multiple types from above (a popular example could be Grand Theft Auto, which can be considered as an action, adventure, sports and simulation game). Moreover, the gameplays (i.e. manner in which the players interact with the games) could be single-player, or multi-player played with friends or other players over the internet.

GIF from Grand Theft Auto

Each video game is shipped with an age rating assigned by self-regulated organizations. These organizations are sometimes part of the local motion picture rating system and/or are sponsored by the government. Some of these bodies include PEGI (for India, Europe) and ESRB for North America. However, very few jurisdictions (like UK and Australia) have passed laws for adherence to these age ratings while making the sale of any video game. Most countries do not legally enforce these age ratings on video games.

86% of parents admit that they don’t follow age restrictions on video games, compared to just 23% who said they didn’t follow age restrictions on movies

While age ratings should not be treated as a one-size-fits-all, parents should take precaution, exercise their own judgement and not allow games rated for children who are ‘many’ years older than their child’s age. The opinion for what should be the ‘many’ in the prior sentence should be at parents’ discretion, however common wisdom shared over internet suggests 2–3 years to be the higher limit for such concessions.

5 Benefits of Video Games

1. Problem solving and logic: Games can help train your child’s mind to come up with creative ways to solve puzzles, recognize patterns as well as develop a sound logic and reasoning system. Scientific observation of artists and musicians tells us that when a certain skill is repeated multiple times, our brain forms new neural pathways and transmitters to decipher patterns and increase speed of problem solving
2. Perseverance and attention: A child may need to attempt to solve a level several times before succeeding, thereby learning about not giving up or quitting. Teaching children about initial failures and the joys of success is an important life-skill, that may need further reinforcement by the parents outside of video games in order for it to fully sink in to the child. Researchers have also shown that video game players display improvements in several types of attention, including sustained attention and selective attention.
3. Hand-eye coordination skills: Video games can help develop the skills to control motor functions without looking at them. Research has shown that kids learn to connect limb movements with spatial and visual movements through video games, an important skill required in nearly all sports and can even be beneficial in puzzle solving. In fact, soldiers, surgeons and pilots are advised to play video games to sharpen their hand-eye coordination
4. Team-work and parental bonding: Multiplayer games can help teach your child some valuable lessons in team-work such as importance of collaboration and respect for peers. Moreover, multi-player games provide a ripe opportunity for parents to bond with their children by playing alongside them
5. Fast and accurate decision-making: In a world which over-burdens itself with choices, fast decision-making is often treated as an underrated skill. Video games help your kid maintain a good level of accuracy in their decisions by learning to calculate all the dependent parameters quickly

5 Things to Keep in Check

A recent study found that kids are spending on average 15 hours a week playing video games

Most issues enlisted below arise due to unchecked gaming for several hours on end. ‘Addiction’ is a word that gets tossed around quite a lot these days, however, more often than not it is ‘over-indulgence’ which is mistaken to be addiction. Addiction results in severe impairment of daily activities, and you should consider seeking professional help if you feel your child has become addicted to video games. You can read more about it on this link. Anyways, parents should keep the following in mind as far as video games’ impact on their children is concerned:

1. Health issues: Over-indulgence by spending several hours in front of the screen can result in variety of disorders such as obesity, weak eyesight, sleep deprivation and poor development of joints and muscles. Parents should encourage prioritization of physical activities by their child through discussions, co-participation in physical activities or incentivizing physical activity over screen time
2. Social disconnect: Gone are the days when multi-player games required all players to be inside a single room on a single console. The internet has enabled multi-player gaming with friends or strangers and this can be done without ever leaving the room. It limits their interpersonal skill development and such kids can fail to make new friends easily, strike up conversations and feel bored and out of place at social gatherings
3. Academic issues: Excitement from the adrenaline rush provided by video games is luring versus spending time with books or preparing for tests. Such over-emphasis on video games results in distracted behaviour at school as well. It is imperative for parents to talk to their children about importance of academics, and take corrective actions if they see a performance deterioration because of increase in screen time
4. Exposure to wrong values: Video games are made for audience of all ages. Many games which are intended for mature audiences contain excessive violence, over-the-top sexuality, vulgar language, racism, and many other aspects that cannot be perceived by kids in the right manner. While video game companies conveniently shrug responsibility by stamping an age rating on it, many kids still play games which are rated far higher than their age. Parents should consider the prescribed age ratings, but they could also use other sources such as online review sites to form a better opinion on whether a particular game should be allowed or not
5. Ad bombardment: 95% of apps marketed to kids have some or the other form of advertisement, some of which are totally age-inappropriate, deceitful or harmful for the children. Young children especially find it hard to distinguish ad content from general media content. Disruption during a game may result in inadvertently clicking an inappropriate ad link. Using the app once themselves before handing over to the child should help parents check for any excessive or inappropriate advertising

While the world of video games has much to offer, whether it be teaching life skills or cognitive skills, an unchecked over-indulgence can result in many side-effects as well. In the end, parents are the best judge of their child’s development and upbringing. They must actively engage with their children to chart out a memorable childhood full of learning and fun.

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