The classic family gaming rivalry!
I remember that while growing up my parents had a rule, “no gaming from Monday through Thursday”. Only Friday through Sunday were my gaming nights. Well, that rule from 30 years ago followed me all the way through high school, even to my senior year! Was it a good rule? For my parents, yes… me? Well, maybe 🙂
What accompanied that rule was that when I came home, I played outside for at least a couple of hours, and then there was homework followed by dinner, some television time and then off to bed. However, this was around 30 years ago; there was no internet, no online gaming, no social media or cell phones, etc. Yes, this is dating me as old, lol, but the point is that the world we, and our children, live in today is very different. Technology has changed everything – including the environments in which our kids are being raised. Entire relationships are had online. Parents attend meetings with their kids’ teachers through Skype. Things have changed so much since the internet became a household standard since 1995; then again since online console gaming in 1999 with the Sega Dreamcast, and yet again since 2002 with the original Xbox.[1] With the addition of smart device gaming, children have vast ways to game, anytime and from anywhere, but that begs to ask the question – should your child be allow to game during a school night?
Maybe to the surprise of most parents reading this, the answer is yes. Children have a lot more to deal with than we did in our day, from cyber-bullying to lack of sleep because of far busier schedules than we ever had at their age.[2] With the explosion of technology and connectedness in our lives, endless research has studied its effects on people. A study by researchers at Columbia Mailman School of Public Health and colleagues at Paris Descartes University assessed the association between the amount of time spent playing video games and children’s mental health and cognitive and social skills. They found that high video game usage was associated with a 1.75 times the odds of high intellectual functioning and 1.88 times the odds of high overall school competence![3] In another study:
“Researchers analyzed the video game-playing habits of more than 3,000 children, aged 6 to 11, across Europe back in 2010. They found that children who played at least five hours a week had fewer psychological problems than students who didn’t play video games as much, and were rated by their teachers as better students, both academically and in social adjustment.”[4]
As we adults we work our 40-hour work week; for most, that is more realistically is around 50+ hours, now in this day and age. Most of us have our own stress-relieving habits, such as going drinking with our friends once or twice a week or having some wine each night at home to wind down… so why would it be different for a child to use gaming to relieve stress and escape the day’s events?
A great stress relieving game that is also great for special needs.
So with that, here are some reasons why gaming during a school night, done right, is good for your child:
- Social skills. For children, interaction comes in different ways and forms, and gaming is one of them. A child (your child) who may be shy in person may be more inclined to be more outgoing while gaming with others, as they’re entrenched in the gaming universe that lets them take on a different persona. Maybe that child who is shy can be a charismatic leader while gaming. This can help a child to be more confident when growing up and later have better leadership skills. Depending on the game, the same could be said for teamwork skills, cooperation, strategy, decision-making and more.
- It has been shown that, with good gaming habits, gaming can be used as a stress reliever for a child or teen during the week. Gaming for an hour has shown that it can help destress children that are facing stress during their day (think of it as happy hour for kids! 🙂 )
- Life skills. You ask “how”? Well, certain games require you to be a leader; some require resourcefulness as the main character of the game needs to find things. Some require real moral and ethical decision-making that leads to in-game consequences. Playing games like this helps children build life skills they can transfer to reality and a real sense of self-sufficiency. (We will have a list of life skill-nurturing games on our website coming soon.)
- Reward system. Gaming during the week can also be used to reward a child/teen for having good grade, doing their chores, etc. Maybe different chores are “paid” with different amounts of gaming time. This type of positive reinforcement has shown that it motivates kids to continue the successful behavior.
- Bonding time. Whether you’re gaming with your child or just in the same room while the gamer is gaming, you’re strengthening the bond with that gamer. It enables the gamer to associate you with the overall experience, even without a controller in your hand. This can be a real win-win; when you need some time to simply “chill” and unwind, letting your kid(s) game in the living room while you’re doing so help strengthen a relationship.
- Special needs. Some games are conducive to the way a child’s unique mind works, especially those with special needs. They can help with communication skills or even be a means of communicating through co-op play. Other games can tap into the special strengths of a child with special needs and help nurture their development.
“Video game playing is often a collaborative leisure time activity for school-aged children. These results indicate that children who frequently play video games may be socially cohesive with peers and integrated into the school community.” -Katherine M. Keyes, PhD, assistant professor of Epidemiology at the Mailman School of Public Health
Gaming during the week can be a positive thing for a child if done right and under the right circumstances. With the added stress that our children face this can be the right, healthy outlet that can be used to help them with day to day activities. Gaming can also be a great way to get to know your child; many games today involve intricate stories with choices and decisions that determine how the story plays out. Watching the choices your child makes in such a game can tell you more about the person he or she is becoming than a month’s worth of “How was your day?”
I mentioned gaming done right. Gaming should also be accompanied with at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day, weather it is playing outside or doing something that is physically related (see our safety article on Pokémon) Not only does this help promote a healthy balance of digital and social life, even the Centers for Disease Control recommends 60 minutes of physical play per day.[5] One last thing – don’t make gaming the last thing. Many studies have found connections between screen time (of any kind) and difficulty sleeping, so gaming, TV time and anything else that requires a power supply shouldn’t be the last activity of the day.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_console_gaming
[2] http://www.webmd.com/parenting/raising-fit-kids/recharge/brain-without-sleep
[3] https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-03/cums-tsp030816.php
