Positive and Negative Effects of Video Games
With the technology advancing, the trend of video games can clearly be seen growing among the teenagers today. According to most teenagers, video games are one of the best recreational activity. Not only a pastime, but it is used as a fun activity and most teenagers and adults enjoy long hours of video gaming. With new controllers and joysticks, playing video games has been made easier and hence more preferable than any outdoor games by most teenagers today.
However, these video games can have adverse effects on children’s health and eyes if extensive addiction is developed. Most parents today are concerned with the number of hours their children are spending on these video games and whether it is good or bad for them. Generally, it is frowned upon and not really liked by the parents when they see their children getting addicted to these games.
The video games cannot be all that bad. They have many positive effects too. But everything in excess is bound to carry negativity as well.
Following are some of the most common positive and negative effects of video games.
Positive Effects of Video Games:
- Not all video games require you to slouch on to a couch in your living room and never move. Many video games have been recently introduced that do require some kind of physical activity. These are available for both consoles and computers. These help in getting on with some physical activity along with having some fun.
- With different variations in video games, many are available that involves the maintain of fitness, healthy living or nutrition for the player. Some games stimulate outdoor sports and can be seen as a fun alternative for outdoor exercises. Regardless of the weather outside, they can be done inside the house anytime. These may prove successful in giving gamers a fitness goal to live and keep a healthy lifestyle.
- Video games help in improving the hand-eye coordination which is a must to be quick and reflexive. They add up to the sports playing skills and general task performing skills of the teenagers.
- Video games are also helpful for children who lack the socializing ability and skill. Some teenagers fall under the introvert category and find it difficult to talk to people. But with video games and the sense of anonymity and security it offers, teenagers can overcome their fear of interaction and learn the art of opening up to people.
- Many complex video games teach the teenager how to learn quickly by enhancing their cognitive skills such as problem solving, decision making and reasoning.
- Good video games teach teenagers about good sportsmanship and fair-play. These values are important to be developed to maintain a healthy competition in everything.
- Not only are these video games a recreational activity, they are also really good stress busters. Teenagers face a lot of stress including studies, fitting in, parents’ expectations. Video games can be a great way to cool off and lighten up once in a while.
- Many online video games require teenagers to interact and cooperate with their teams. This induces a sense of Cooperation and team work which are important traits that must be developed in a teenager from the start.
Negative effects of Video Games:
- Most video games today are violent in nature. These can easily lead to the development of an aggressive behavior among the students. They may start believing in violence which is not good.
- When teenager spend long hours gaming, their addiction results in isolating them from the outer world. They are not able to socialize with the real world any more or are not interested in other activities such as reading, writing etc.
- Some video games induce wrong moral values in teenagers. This may be against the women, displaying them as weak.
- Long hours of video games results in weak academic performance. Addiction to these video games makes the teenagers lose their interest in studies and hence their performance suffers.
- Long hours of video gaming can have deteriorating effects on teenager’s health. Long hours of screen exposure can weaken their eye sight. Extensive gaming hours can lead to back pains and posture malfunction because of sitting and not moving all day. Chances of headaches can also swoop in due to prolonged exposure of the computer screen.
As they say, excess of everything is bad. So, if you try to keep the habit of video gaming under control, it will serve you in all the positive ways. While the excess of the same will cause havoc on your health and lifestyle.
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