Video Games and Their Effect on Children
Video Games were first introduced in the 1970s and rapidly caught on as a major leisure activity especially among children within a decade. Children these days spend more time watching TV or playing video games than any other activity save sleeping. Since video games are a relatively recent phenomenon research about its effects on children cannot be considered conclusive. However, most studies so far indicate that video games can have both positive and negative effects on children depending on the time spent in the activity and the type of video games played.
The Positive Effects
Most early researches in the effect of video games on children indicated that they had an overall positive effect on children.
Introduction to Computers
Video games were a friendly way to introduce children to the use of computers and improved their hand-eye co-ordination. Some older studies also indicated that children who played video games were highly motivated, intelligent, and achievement oriented individuals who generally performed better in their school studies. ("Video games: Cause for concern?") Educational video games could be used in classrooms and at home as useful learning tools.
Interactive
The positive aspect of video games is that it is an interactive activity as compared to the totally passive past time of viewing television. Hence if video game playing replaces TV viewing it can be considered to be a better past time for children and this is what the earlier studies about the effect of video games on children had concentrated on.
Stress Relief
Some children, especially in the adolescent age find video game playing to be a stress-relieving activity that can get one's mind off the problems. Wasting some 'bad guys' in front of the video screen is much better than relieving your frustrations by getting into actual fights. This is known as the 'catharsis' theory, which suggests that playing aggressive video games have a relaxing effect, by channeling and releasing of aggression.
Other Benefits
Other benefits include developing a sense of personal competence, experiencing power and control in the face of threat and chaos, and developing useful skills of concentration and logical analysis. (Mitchell) If video games are played with parents or other...
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