Should videogames be considered more healthy and beneficial to kids and teens rather than damaging ?
Videogames are something many see as pointless. Especially by people such as parents, its seen as something that slows you down or wastes your time. But, when you look into it, videogames have the potential to be something special. They actually help us a lot compared to when they hinder us in many ways. So, which way should it be viewed as?
the main issues I cover.
Positive physical aspects of videogaming
Games helping to influence your creativity
Ways video games help you mentally
Video games as a profession.
What were the results of your survey? Describe your findings here.
"Should videogames be considered more healthy and beneficial to kids and teens rather than damaging?"
People who said Yes-18
People who said No-7
( 72% said yes, 28% said no)
Interview Summary
Overall, It was seen that a majority of teens agreed and said yes, specifically the person I interviewed, which was my best friend. He said yes as he mainly pointed out that not only do video games boost morale and make them happy, but also several types of games help with their mind thinking skills (decisions, reactions, etc.) Those who said no said so because video games distract us from the real world and give us an unnecessary means of living. Overall, however, they do not change his nor my decision.
Your Personal Opinion
In my opinion, video games should be considered healthy and beneficial to kids and teens as it helps us cope with our daily struggles and help us dive into a experience to our benefit when executed right and not just always used as a waste of time. Of all the research I did, I can say i've experienced all of the topics that were covered. When playing physical videogames, I felt energized. When playing tactical games, I felt concentrated and focusely engaged. When playing stress relieving games, I felt relaxed and creative. Sure, games could keep you distracted from other important games, and you could addictingly over-work yourself towards them, but at that point its really a fault on your end. Overall, to me, videogames are a pleasant experience that helps in in many aspects that should be respected rather than maliciously judged.
Defending your world from alien invasion,slaying dragons, battling others in a contest to become number one ,or bouncing on the heads of turtles to save the same princess who gets trapped every time? Does this ring a bell? If you're anything like me, you've already tried them all, or at least some. Of course, not literally, but I'm sure you've all played some sort of video game that has allowed you to do something insane and amazing that you wouldn't otherwise be able to accomplish. Of course that's what video games are for. Video games give people a chance to escape reality and enter a new one, free of problems, anxieties, and stress in exchange for a space where they can express their creativity, relaxation, and enjoyment. However, many people in modern society, especially elders/parents, believe videogames are more of a burden to kids. They believe video games slow kids and teens down, and distract them from making any kind of “beneficial” or “educational” progress in their daily lives. In reality, this is heavily over-exaggerated. In a survey conducted on Curie high school students regarding the idea of whether video games should be considered more healthy and beneficial to kids and teens rather than damaging, the answers were almost half and half, but the majority said yes. .Nevertheless, this shows that this topic needs more insight from many perspectives, and it must be proven and understood that video games aren't hindering the development of teens and kids, but are actually secretly helping them in ways that show that we truly take them for granted.
One way we can look into how video games help us is by taking a look at how it helps on a physical level. When people think of video games, they usually always think eyes being damaged and backs having an awkward posture. However, there's actually a ton of ways to show how video games affect our body positively. In an article by Recordhead named “10 Reasons Why Playing Video Games is Good for Your Brain”, it mentions how “there are video games that actually boost your physical health noticeably rather than hindering it.Games like WiiFit or Dance Dance Revolution require the player to get up and get active. “.While this positive effect of video games is not technically about your brain, it is still a significant benefit to mention. With the emergence of many fitness video games, it is easy to get a workout while playing an exciting video game. These video games are good for your health and can be a great way to break a sweat without having to head to the gym. Now it's quite obvious that physical games make you get…physical, but what about all the other, “normal” video games? Well, they also help you in a way too. In another article by Trevor Phillips titled “Benefits of Video Games For Kids & Adults”, it describes several ways video games advance our bodies, and in this case, it's our vision. As long as you’re not staring at the screen for 10 hours straight (or sitting two feet away), which would cause eye strain, playing video games can actually make for better vision. In a study mentioned in the article ,10 male students who were not gamers were trained for 30 hours in first-person action games and then tested against 10 non-gamers. The students who played were able to see objects more clearly in cluttered spaces because of improved spatial resolution. They were able to train their brains to see smaller details, because in each game, those details turned out to be important.
Another way we can benefit from video games is how they help us mentally. One of the biggest reasons we play video games is for us to be mentally content. It helps us relax, or can get us energized and active. This is proved in a source by Vince Steffano of ID Tech titled “yes… videogames are good for your body”.For instance,in the text it states “games like Civilization and SimCity teach problem solving on a more “global” level. In SimCity, players lay out and plan a city, and must think ahead to consider how something like the tax rate may help or hurt the growth of their city, or how street planning and certain zones may impact growth.” It emphasizes the ways games actually teach us things we can use in our current and future actions. Games can teach problem solving and strategy, making them valuable tools for kids and teens. Another example is further emphasized in the article, however this time, it focuses on our mental wellbeing, not in terms of thinking, but of feeling. Something that is definitely overlooked is that video games have the potential to play such a major role in helping us with our mental health. In the same article previously mentioned, it states “It found that there’s mounting scientific evidence supporting the potential for video games to improve mental health outcomes, especially for people who can’t access other types of treatment due to cost or location….research found evidence that video games could help alleviate symptoms of depression, such as the loss of pleasure. The video games “Minecraft” and “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” also fostered social connectedness and reduced loneliness.” It proves how much we take these games for granted. Video Gaming has become such a comfort tool for us, it's become natural to view it as something to help us relax, not something to show we’re rebellious or lazy. Teens can go through a lot in their lives, and to be able to finish their day, lie down, and enjoy some happiness in the form of video games emphasizes how we take these things for granted.
Finally, one last way video games can benefit us kids/teens is that it quite literally can make our career for the future. Gaming as a profession is something that seems somewhat overlooked, but is actually really efficient and well developed, serving as a solid possibility for a teens career in the future. In a source by Maryville University titled “Video Game Jobs for Individuals Looking to Earn a Living in the Gaming Industry”, it gives the details of success gained from video gaming careers. It states “The bottom 10% of earners in the job made about $23,550 annually, while the top 10% earned as much as $65,510 each year”. For it being a category as simple as playing video games those kinds of numbers honestly aren't that bad. And that doesn't even mention the vast amount of actual specific jobs/careers you can get involving video gaming. A website created by e-sports, one of the biggest video gaming industries in the world, went more in the exploration of careers in video gaming,and it went to show there are plenty of jobs in the gaming market in various fields.In an article made by Mel Hawethorn of esports titled “Is gaming a career? Can you play video games as a viable career choice?”, it states “Game developers employ thousands of people, so do esports tournament companies and esports teams. There are plenty of jobs in gaming and all the industries tied to playing video games.From being a professional game player, to a game developer, to a game event organizer, there's pretty much almost a role for everything.Now yes, learning to code, design or test is hard work and will take a long time, but it’s also a highly in-demand and well-paid career option for those who master the skills involved.” Of course, there would be no gaming industry without people making games, so while it isn’t a world-famous streaming channel, jobs like that make those possible in the first place.The same is true for the event staff that makes those incredible League of Legends, Dota 2 and CS:GO competitions possible. Esports started out in basements, in small community halls, organized by a few players after work… and now there are dedicated esports stadiums all around the world. There are plenty of careers in this industry varying from project management to broadcasting production and everything in-between. These are things kids and teens used to dream of, and now that they are actual viable options for them to fulfill their future life with, it deserves more support from everyone to promote this as an option for teens to look towards so they dont waste their potential thinking games are nothing but an unhealthy hobby, when they can actually be the spark towards your future.
Video games, especially these days, are given such a falsely bad reputation. They are seen as something belonging to a degenerate. It has a huge split in opinions of its existence. But, overall its important to look deeper into things to truly understand them. Video games should truly be seen as a step in the future for us teens. The amount of things it provides and has provided for us is generally something that can't be replicated. It has provided us with comfort, imagination, and ideas to spark the future generation. Whether it be playing a game to feel reflexed, awake, and alive, or working to create an industry revolved around them to garner further support, its safe to say videogames are a blessing in disguise to children and teens, seen as something beneficial and helpful rather than pointless and hindering.
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Petry M. Nancy
Website URL: https://childmind.org/article/healthy-limits-on-video-games/
Date Published: 02/06/19
Date Viewed: 03/10//22
Website URL: https://recordhead.biz/10-reasons-video-games-is-good-for-you/
Date Published: 4/15/14
Date Viewed 3/31/22
Phillips, Trevor
Website URL: https://www.geico.com/living/home/technology/9-reasons-to-give-video-games-a-try/#:~:text=Video%20games%20can%20have%20mental,may%20also%20help%20relieve%20stress.
Date Published: 1/4/22
Date Viewed 3/30/22
Steffano, Vince
Website URL: https://www.idtech.com/blog/video-games-are-good-for-you
Date Published: 5/9/18
Date Viewed 3/31/22
Gyimesi, Jena
Website URL https://www.aarp.org/home-family/personal-technology/info-2021/video-games-brain-health.html
Date Published 4/20/21
Date Viewed 3/31/22
Brennan Dan
Website URL https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/mental-health-benefits-of-video-games
Date Published 10/25/21
Date Viewed 3/31/22
Blackmer Nicholas
Website URL https://www.verywellmind.com/video-games-could-treat-mental-illness-study-shows-5190213
Date Published 7/05/21
Date Viewed 3/31/22
Hawthorne Mel
Website URL https://www.esports.net/news/is-gaming-a-good-career/
Date Published 5/21/21
Date Viewed 3/31/22
Berg Brenda
Website URL https://an.athletenetwork.com/blog/becoming-an-esports-athlete
Date Published 7/15/21
Date Viewed 3/31/22
Website URL https://online.maryville.edu/blog/video-game-jobs/
Date Published 6/12/20
Date Viewed 3/31/22