In most homes today, children spend most of their time on computers, mobile phones, tablets, television, and video games compared to the time they spend on books or other outdoor games. Video games specifically, affect the child’s development both positively and negatively.
Positive effects of video games on the personality development of a child
Playing video games helps the child develop logic in problem-solving. The skills required to win are not taught in school and for one to win a video game a high level of thinking must be involved. When a child plays video games, his brain is in a real workout and by this, his mental skills are enhanced. In games such as Angry Birds or Cut the Rope, a child must come up with creative ways to solve problems. The skills he gains here may help him to unscramble words or solve puzzles very quickly. To be able to unscramble words requires one to arrange words that are in disorder to make them understood or seen clearly.
In every moment while playing the game, the player must think fast, make fast analysis, and makes fast judgments. This mostly happens in action games. This could be a training tool in real-life situations for instance in training soldiers and surgeons. The personality of the child, in this case, is affected positively. If you are concerned parents about your children and think they are over-attached to video games, you could consult a professional therapist here. Even if your judgment is true, you need to learn how to act to reduce this attachment correctly.
In most games, a hand-eye harmonization skill is very essential especially in gunfire games where the character may be running and at the same time firing. The movements in the gamer’s hands and fingertips must be in coordination with how the brain is interpreting and also the reaction after interpretation. As research has shown, people can learn iconic, three-dimensional, and visual responsiveness skills from video games.
The young player is able to improve his reading and math skills as he reads to get instructions, track the game’s story, catch information from the game writings and also make measurable analyses to manage resources.
Persistence is also one of the positive characters a child acquires as he plays the game. He might fail to win the game in more difficult levels but does not give up so he keeps making trials until he succeeds and move to the subsequent level.
A child also develops pattern recognition because some games have interior logic in them and the gamer must discover the pattern in order to win. This ability will assist the child while
unscrambling letters and words and especially when solving crosswords and puzzles. The child may also acquire skills that enable him to play board games such as Scrabble and chess.
Children who play video games also develop super multitasking skills. They are able to focus on and do several activities simultaneously.
Most children who successfully unscramble difficult levels of a video game are able to lay smart strategies and goals that enable them to achieve their anticipation. They are also accurate in what they do. Such characters may grow to be the same in real-life situations.
The positive effects of video gaming clearly shape an intelligent character out of a child. If these positive mental skills achieved through playing these games could be practiced in real-life situations the personality of the child will be far much better compared to a child who does not play or just plays outdoors or reads books.
Negative Effects of Video Games on the Personality Development of a Child
There are a number of negative effects of video games on the personality development of a child. Some video games contain violence which causes the child to develop an aggressive personality in his thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. The child may end up acting violently and are less likely to act empathetically.
In violent games especially action video games, the player is rewarded after winning the game. For one to win you have to be violent enough to overcome the opponent. The child does activities such as killing, stabbing, and kicking in the game. The child might learn and adopt such behavior in real-life situations. Also, the moral sense is being misrepresented through these games. There has been research that suggests that players engage in dangerous behaviors such as smoking, irresponsible driving, alcohol drinking, and risky sex. Other vices the child might learn are revenge and the portrayal of women as weak. In cases where the child is playing online, the child may connect with immoral people who might teach him vulgar language and behavior.
Video games can also be abused in the sense that the child gets addicted. Gaming addiction is a mental disorder as it increases the child’s depression and nervousness levels which may actually damage the brain.
The child’s social life may also be affected. The child’s life may become isolated. In addition, the child’s performance in school will be poor because his focus is on the games, and spends less time in other activities such as doing homework, reading, participating in sports, and connecting with family and friends. Video game addicts also tend to engage in arguments a lot with their teachers and pick quarrels and fights with friends.
Though video games enhance concentration in short while they might damage long-term concentration, therefore, destroying children’s attention capability.
The effect of excessive video gaming can be the same as that of drugs and the vulnerability to addiction or other forms increases. This means the child can be more subjected to risky behavior in the future. The child might have difficulties distinguishing between reality and fiction.
Video games affect the child’s health because the child just sits in one position with less mobility. Obesity, video-induced attacks, and skeletal conditions are some of the health complications caused by excessive video gaming.
There is Importance in creating awareness over the effects of video games on the personality development of a child. As much as video games play an important role in helping the child developmentally, there are adverse effects that must be put into consideration. Parents should help the child have a balance in the time taken to participate in all the childhood activities and also control over them.
