Videogames have been an increasing part of the younger generation’s culture and experience for roughly 40 years. Over that time, videogames, and the people who play them have developed some negative reputations. Videogames have been said to lead to children acting violently. People who play videogames, particularly “too often” or who continue to play past adolescence can be seen as isolating themselves. But is any of this true? Do videogames cause this much harm, or do they actually have potential benefits?
It turns out that the research does not back up the idea that videogames cause violent behaviors, and even most parents believe they do not cause such behaviors. A study from Harvard University shows that 66% of teens play videogames which involve violence, but that 62% of their parents believe the games do not affect their child’s behavior one way or the other. In fact, federal crime statistics show a significant decrease in violent crime among youths since 1996, even as video game sales have soared in that same time.
Researchers have looked for a causal link between videogames and violent behavior for years, and have largely agreed that this link does not exist. The American Psychiatric Association has stated “scant evidence has emerged that makes any causal or [even] correlational connection between playing violent videogames and actually committing violent activities.” To really drive home the point, it was said that “the data on bananas causing suicide is about as conclusive.” In fact, even the supreme court agrees, having struck down a California law banning the sale of violent video games to children in 2011, disagreeing with the evidence they proposed in support of the law. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote that “these studies have been rejected by every court to consider them, and with good reason: they do not prove that violent videogames cause minors to act aggressively.”
So, are videogames isolating? No, similar to our last stereotype, this one is largely agreed to be incorrect as well. More than 70% of those who play videogames play with friends, and there are millions of people across the world who play massive multiplayer online videogames. Not only are gamers not isolating, they are also not psychologically removed from others like the shut-ins they can be described as. It has been found that those who play even violent videogames often incorporate cooperation in the game, and are more likely to be helpful to others even in the real world.
So, videogames aren’t evil, but aren’t they still a waste of time? Wrong again – I should probably stop putting words in your mouth if I’m just going to make you be wrong every time, that’s lame. Anyway, research has shown that videogames may strengthen many different cognitive abilities including navigation, reasoning, and memory. Particularly in shooter video games, it was found that these games improve a person’s ability to perceive objects in three dimensions as well as academic courses designed to teach the same skills. Playing videogames can also help the development of problem-solving skills.
Videogames have potential for even more surprising advantages. They have been shown to successfully treat individuals with lazy eyes. It has also been shown that some action-based videogames improved performance in locating a target quickly in a field of distractors, or items they are not specifically looking for. This is associated with improvements in driving ability as well. Interestingly, videogames can even improve impulsive behaviors. Similarly, videogames have been shown to lead to significantly improved performance in engaging in multiple tasks simultaneously, which could also be beneficial in tasks such as driving. Playing videogames have been associated with improving dyslexic children’s scores on tests of reading, and even combating mental decline. Especially with elderly participants, who may be seeing a decline in some areas cognitively, videogames have been show to result in improvement in cognitive flexibility, attention, working memory, and abstract reasoning.
Sorry kids, this doesn’t mean that you can play videogames all day long. First, current recommendations for total screen time per day are approximately 2 hours. This sounds ridiculous in our day and age, between phones, TVs, computers, and videogames, and it is true that many people will not meet this recommendation, but it is good to keep in mind. Most of us do not meet the recommendation for how much water to drink in a day (2.7 – 3.7 liters a day for adults), but it is good to know the recommendation to at least aim in that direction. Also, even with as many benefits have been found for videogames, they cannot fix everything. We still need to get fresh air and exercise, eat healthily, and continue to learn, as children and adults. But at least it is good to know that videogames aren’t evil.
- John Bajorek