The Benefits of Playing Video Games

A recent study suggests that children and adolescents play games for various reasons other than just to

Gimme GameZ!

have fun.  In their interviews,  kids and teenagers reported that they played video games to de-stress, fulfill emotional needs, for the challenge, and used violent games to deal and let go of anger.  Yes you heard that right,  violent video games are being used to help them avoid displaying aggression in their real life. The study includes boys and girls and present findings for both.

“Electronic games are now an everyday part of childhood and adolescence. The debate has moved from whether children should play video games to how to maximize potential benefits and to identify and minimize potential harms. To do this, we must understand what motivates children to play electronic games and what needs the games meet. Drawing on a survey of 1,254 middle school children, focus groups with boys and their parents, and findings from other quantitative and qualitative research, the author describes a variety of motivations for video game play (including games with violent content) and how these may vary based on factors such as mood, environment, personality, and developmental stage. The findings are put into the context of normal development, and suggestions are given for parents, educators, and researchers.” (Olson, 2010)

Any thoughts?

You can find the article here http://www.apa.org/pubs/journa…..-2-180.pdf