Learning from video games? contradictory much?

            I remember when I was in elementary school, my parents bought my brother and I an Xbox for Christmas. They also bought us our very first video game, which was Halo. Back then, video games and gaming systems were often considered luxuries/accessories that most parents didn’t feel was necessary to buy for their children. My brother and I were so excited to own a gaming system and once we told our friends, they would want to come over every week to play. Since then, video games have been consistently rising in popularity. Today, 90% of American children and teens play video games and the typical child plays an average of 2 hours of video games per day (Prot, McDonald, Anderson, Gentile). I think video games appeal to people for many reasons. Video games are consistent and fair. There are set rules and there is little you can do to cheat and get around them. This is pleasing to players because we like to feel in control. Also, advancing to the next level or beating a game always gives me a sense of achievement. Especially if I was having a bad day at school, things were troubling me, or I felt like I couldn’t do anything right, video games would offer solace and give me a sense of pride. I know, sad life. Because of the consistent rise in the popularity of video games, there has been much debate about the potentially harmful and beneficial effects of video games. Some scholars argue that video games encourage violent behavior, emotional numbing, and also distracts students from school work. Others believe that video games, especially educational or pro-social video games, enhance empathy, promote helping behavior, teach us how to collaborate and problem solve. In my opinion, video games may have completely different effects on different people based on each circumstance. Yes, it is very possible they can negatively affect us but there are also things we can learn from video games and ways we can benefit from playing them.

            Some scholars use the social learning theory to argue that video games, especially violent ones, encourages violent behavior because they make children prone to suggestion, especially since they are actively participating in the game and not just watching it like in a movie. And some people believe that even though video games may have a miniscule effect on one child, small effects can add up changing the behavior of an entire society. However, Christopher J. Ferguson, a clinical psychologist, tells us to let go of claims about the danger of video games because they are ideological and not data-based and harm the integrity of the scientific community. Another possible effect of playing violent video games, researchers argue, is that it can cause emotional numbing; in other words, children will be so used to seeing and participating in violent acts through video games that if they were to encounter something like that in real life, they wouldn’t react or think it was a big deal. In my opinion, this does not make sense. Unless the child has some sort of mental disorder in which he/she has a hard time differentiating between reality and fantasy, such as schizophrenia, it would be difficult to lose the ability to feel scared or react to a real, threatening situation. There is also apparently a negative relation between the amount of time a child spends playing video games and their school performance. Gamers spend 30% less time reading and 34% less time doing homework. This I do agree with. It becomes difficult to focus and prioritize when you are preoccupied doing something that you feel you would rather spend time doing. There is only 24 hours in a day and the more time you spend playing video games, the less time you have available to study. However, I believe that this is only an issue of self control and discipline; performing badly in school should not be a problem if the child knows self restraint. In a way, playing video games will force the child to learn how to manage his/her own time in order to allow time to study and to play video games.

                 Video games, when indulged in in moderation, can benefit us as well; it increases brain function, boosts creativity, perception, and cognition. From acquiring these skills from video games, we are able to apply them to real life tasks through a process called broad transfer. Video games also teach you a lot about strategy and planning. In almost every video game, you must figure out a specific plan and know how to communicate it effectively with your teammates who might also be playing with you toward the same goal. I remember when I used to play video games with my brother when I was younger, I would get easily frustrated when we couldn’t beat a level. Video games taught me to be patient, set goals, and accept challenges. Video games also force us to develop problem solving skills in order to advance through the levels. When you play multiplayer video games with friends, it helps enhance your collaboration skills and teaches you how to work effectively with another person. Through video games, I have also learned to always be on guard in new situations. Unexpected things can happen in a new, unfamiliar level that can cause you to lose a life and return to the previous checkpoint but that only conditions you to be actively observing and helps you develop the ability to act quickly.

            In conclusion, I think that video games affect everyone differently and it is unfair to generalize over an entire population that video games are harmful. Children with exhibited violent tendencies or mental disorders should be discouraged from playing video games but I think in normal situations and in moderation, video games can actually teach us things and we can benefit from the skills we can acquire from playing video games.