Video games and kids! What a dreadful connection you might think. However not everything is good or bad. There are some pros and cons. While video games were largely labelled as for adults or not good for young minds, there are certain benefits of playing a video game.
- Some video games help in eye-hand coordination. Using buttons and controllers in shooting games help with these coordination aspects
- Some games are reflex-oriented. They help kids improve their reflexes and provides better ways to react to environmental stimulation
- Motion sensored games help kids get mobile when they have to stay indoors due to weather. At the same time they get to learn skills along with their body movements.
- Federation of American Scientists claim that playing on video games enabled the children’s higher order thinking skills, interpretative analysis, reasoning, etc
- Simulation games help in understanding physics and science concepts really well. Flying aircrafts, altimeter checks, driving, force, acceleration etc are well understood with simulation
- With multiplayer modes, kids learn to work in pairs or in teams. This help them coordinate their actions with other players.
Video games can lead to addiction. The negative impact of playing video games are –
- Playing for a long time period
- Thinking of games when studying or doing other activities
- Want to flee real life
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Lying to family and playing
- Irritable when not allowed to play or stop playing
Other prominent physical and behavioural changes seen due to playing video games is –
- Becoming violent and aggressive
- Poor academic performance
- Damages the concentration span for kids
- Vision gets affected accompanied by dizziness
- Tendency to get anti-social
- Can’t manage time
- Confused between fantasy and reality
- Pick up slangs and wrong language
While there are both pros and cons, it is upto us as parents to keep a check on their game times and keep them relevant to their skill and age level. By doing so, the pros of the gaming can be realised and one can avoid the negative impact.
