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The effects of videogaming on children and teenagers
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The effects of videogaming on children and teenagers
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"Today, in the United States, 91% of children between the ages of 2 and 17 play videogames, and a nationally representative study of U.S. teenagers found that up to 99% of boys and 94% of girls play these games" (Granic, Label and Engels 1). Video games have become virtually ubiquitous, belonging to almost every single modern day family. The market’s popularity, as well as its disapproval, has increased dramatically ever since they were invented. Many critics have been arguing for the past couple decades or so that these electronic games have destroyed the lives of children by making them sedentary and obese. However, recent studies support that video games are not harming children, but in fact are providing them with several benefits that they can incorporate in their everyday lives. Improvements have been found in cognition, social behaviors, emotional well-being, and many other areas that are necessary for a child’s growth and success. All children should use video games as an essential tool to make their worlds easier and more understandable. One of the most important areas that video games benefit is cognition, which is how people process and receive knowledge. Video games improve problem-solving abilities (Granic, Label and Engels 4). Additionally, they augment spatial working memory and visual search abilities (Oei and Patterson 13). Experience video gamers have developed adept behaviors such as problem perception and self-observance (Hayes and Silberman 19). Furthermore, video games have different beneficial effects on cognition depending on what type of games they are (Oei and Patterson 15). Puzzle games, such as Tetris, help improve people’s mental rotation skills (Oei and Patterson 1). Action video games... ... middle of paper ... ...sychologist 69.1 (2014): 66-78. PsycARTICLES. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. Griffiths, Mark. "The Educational Benefits Of Videogames." Education & Health 20.3 (2002): 47-51. Professional Development Collection. Web. 4 Feb. 2014. Hayes, Elisabeth, and Lauren Silberman. "INCORPORATING VIDEO GAMES INTO PHYSICAL EDUCATION." Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 78.3 (2007): 18-24. ProQuest. Web. 6 Feb. 2014. Oei, Adam C., and Michael D. Patterson. "Enhancing Cognition With Video Games: A Multiple Game Training Study." Plos ONE 8.3 (2013): 1-16. Academic Search Premier. Web. 4 Feb. 2014. Olson, Cheryl K. "Children's Motivations For Video Game Play In The Context Of Normal Development." Review Of General Psychology 14.2 (2010): 180-187. PsycARTICLES. Web. 4 Feb. 2014. White, William B., Jr. "What Value are Video Games?" USA Today 03 1992: 74. ProQuest. Web. 6 Feb. 2014 .
Adachi, Paul J.C. and Willoughby, Teena. “Do Video Games Promote Positive Youth Development?” Journal of Adolescent Research 28.2 (2012): 155-165. Web. 12
Video games have improved a lot since they were first introduced. They have also made a lot of impacts in our generation by making gamers more social, teaching children through educational video games, and how video games can improve our health. Furthermore, the articles show many different ways that proves that video games aren’t bad for you physically and emotionally. Since video games were introduced they have changed our society.
This essay will attempt to prove, that statements made regarding the inappropriateness of video games are untrue. The advantage of playing video games can be proven in their ability to enhance learning, hand-eye coordination, and this in turn can enable children and teenagers to do better in school. Violent video games can help overcome anxiety by providing entertainment without leaving the house, taking everyday stresses out on the characters in the game instead of real life, takes the adolescent’s minds off worries and stress of the outside world, and encourages children to stay out of trouble. Video games c...
AsapSCIENCE. “Can Video Games Make You Smarter?” Youtube. 10 January 2014. Web. 1 May 2014.
One way in which video games can be beneficial is by supporting individuals’ intellectual development in the areas of problem solving and logic. Games like Cut the Rope, Angry Birds and The Incredible Machine require players to solve a puzzle under time limited conditions. When people are playing these games, they practice their critical thinking skills and creativity, which are both important components of intelligence.
Many kids like Tommy, who spend most of their childhood and adolescences emerged in imaginary lands rather than dealing with the real world at hand, become socially anxious and have low self-esteem later in life. Instead of thriving with a career and family, they relapse back to the same virtual interaction they had as a child. They float through life barely able to support themselves or result to living with their parents. Adulthood seems to them a mere task they must complete in order to continue their gaming. Excessive videogame play for children and adolescents cause social anxiety, depression, and aggression because more time is spent alone engrossed in dynamic storylines and complex situations than outside building face-to-face relationships and other healthy social skills that better prepare them for their future.
Presently, video games aren’t merely toys that negatively influence the youth. They have become an alternative means for people to learn and train for work. Games teach values and essential information, and motivate its players to achieve goals. Soldiers and doctors benefit from video games as well. The collaboration of game developers and educators helps improve the quality of educational games. At present, as technology progresses, one can truly see that video games have become an important factor in learning.
Since the Early 70’s video games have been giving a bad name. Parents state that video games rot the minds of children and are influencing them do be violent. These accusations are far from the truth. In my research I found that there are many positive effects of gaming. Some of these effects are increased skills, creativity, general knowledge, and also help those in need. Parents can also take proper precautions and look into a game before buying it to see if it meets the criteria discussed in this paper.
Social scientists have been examining the effect that video games have on behavior. From the introduction of video games in the 1980s, there have been numerous research studies to this effect (Andersen & Taylor, 2008). The issue has become even more significant in the modern context because these video games have become bloodier and more realistic than ever before. Even though boys play these games more than girls in America, the consumption of video games has generally been high. Carey (2013) indicates that 32% of these gamers are below the age of 18. Therefore, it would be crucial to evaluate the effects that these video games have on the behavior of such children.
The average adolescent spends a major part of the normal week watching or interacting with some form of the media’s products. Video games are one of these media based mediums and have become increasingly popular since the 1980’s. According to a report in Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, "Female gamers spent an average of 44 minutes playing on the weekdays and one hour and four minutes playing on the weekends, and male gamers spent an average of 58 minutes playing on the weekdays and one hour and 37 minutes playing on the weekends" ("Video Game Play Among Adolescents"). What can we understand from this evidence? The fact is that adolescents, male or female, are spending tremendous amounts of time each day sitting in front of a screen with a controller in hand.
There have been several studies conducted on learning and serious games, for example, a recent study by the Office of Naval Research found that video game players performed ten to twenty percent better in perceptual and cognitive ability than non-game players, and that video games helped adults process information faster(Steinberg,2012). Another study by the Federation of American Scientists found that students re...
There are several negative stereotypes associated with video games and those who play them; some of these may often hold true. However, there are plenty of learning opportunities in video games. While the direct purpose of some games is to educate or train, other games that do not directly have this purpose can still become a learning experience for the player. As Ntiedo Etuk, president of the educational video game company Tabula Digital said, “The traditional view of video games has been that they are distractions from the task of learning” (Electronic Education Report 1). Video games are an effective tool for learning and retaining skills both inside and outside the classroom environment. The basic cycle of game play--the introduction to the game, game play, collaboration, improvement of these between each round, and evaluation at the end of the game (Klievink and Janssen 159)--are nearly parallel to the traditional classroom learning cycle of reading a textbook or listening to a lecture, taking a quiz, studying, focusing on items missed on the quiz, and taking a test or exam. Within this cycle, there are many opportunities to develop and perfect both educational, life, and occupational skills.
Nowadays, video games are frequently accused of having detrimental effects on children and adolescents. The main arguments against video games are that they lead to addiction, that they provoke violence, and that they impair social development. Whether or not such claims are true has not been determined with certainty as scientific studies have produced contradictory results. Nevertheless, video games also have beneficial effects, which tend to be underrated, as they do not receive the same level of media coverage that adverse ones do, and are thus unknown to the general public. Some of the positive effects of playing video games on mental development include: stimulating analytical thinking, improving concentration, and encouraging planning and anticipation (“Video game controversies”).
Video games are used to improve physical health. Playing video games does not mean being inactive. New and improved video games involve and incorporate different types of movement in the actual game. Certain video games can reduce fat causing global weight loss (Recio 143). By turning game systems into exercise, new generation games draw people into activities and get heart rates pumping. Schools have incorporated video games into part of their physical education program. Children’s waists lines have gone down by inches due to playing video games in gym class. In gym, the machines teach things like balance, timing, and coordina...
This report will analyze each individual information source and provide a review of the findings. The report will interpret both the good and bad effects of video games on children. Scope The purpose of this report is to know both the good and bad influences of video games on children’s behavior and mind. Parents aren’t aware of what video games may lead their children to, thus an informative report was required to give insights about this important topic.