THE INFLUENCE OFVIDEO GAMES ON

FAMILY AND CHILDDEVELOPMENT

Jordan Davis

Look Familiar?

Photos: Freepik

BlackbirdESTABLISHED 1856

BlackbirdESTABLISHED 1856

BlackbirdESTABLISHED 1856

BlackbirdESTABLISHED 1856

Let's face it....

...many of us are gamers

Photo: Jan Vašek

[...] 90% of Canadian Kids andTeens are gamers."

~ Bambach, The Globe and Mail, 2013

"50% of Canadians aregamers [...]

Photo: Viktor Hanacek

Problem?Until recently, literature on theinfluence of video games onchildren mainly reported onnegative effects (Griffiths 2003)

Photo: Denis Temirgalin

reported effects include:

Photo: Asier Romero (Freepik)

Video Game Addiction

Increased Aggression

(Anderson & Warburton 2012)

Attention Deficits

"The past half-century has seen adramatic increase in the amount oftechnology available to and usedby children - a fact that has clearlyshaped the way children learn,develope, and behave [...]" (Bavelier et al. 2011)

Photo: Horacio Silva

The consumption and prevalence of videogames is increasing in society 

Canada's Video GameIndustry 2015

Active Studios GDP Contribution (CAD)

(Entertainment Software Association of Canada 2015)

472 $3.0

 Considering the vast, expansive nature of technology, it isn’t

surprising that it would have a complex, multi­faceted influence on

the development of today’s youth 

Photo: OpenClipart­Vectors 

What does this mean fortoday's children?

What will bethe impact on

future generationsof technology

users?

Photo: Freepik Essentials

Reality: Evidence is insufficient

"The studies involving the more negative consequences [...] all involved children and adoescents whowere excessive users of videogames"

Photo: Kevin Dooley

(Griffith 2003)

Current Researchsuggests video gameshave a prosocialinfluence ondevelopment (Anderson & Warburton2012)

Photo: Daniel Carberry

Several studies have explored thepotential for video games as a

treatment for various forms of mentalillness (Fernandez-Aranda et al.

2012;Griffiths 2003)

Photo: Viktor Hanacek

as well, early exposure to technology is important for

children to develop digital literacy (Marsh et al. 2015)

Photo: Lucélia Ribeiro

How can one ensure positiveeffects for their child?

Photo: Freekpik

Photo: Dooder

"[...] there is mounting evidence that videogames which model and involveparticipants in pro-social, helpingbehaviours can lead to increases in pro-

social behaviour in the short and longterm [...]" (Anderson and Warburton 2012)

Context Matters

In an age where children are increasinglyInfluenced by technology...

...it is crucial for parents to engage with

their kids by providing clear context for

what their children consumePhoto: Kirsty Pargeter

"Technology [...] hasevolved into the hub andhearth of family life"

(Catherine Steiner­Adair quoted in Portrait of an e­family, Bielski 2013), 

Photo: Jayne Booton

Movement-based video games (NintendoWii) and puzzle games can help adults

improve cognitive ability(Kim et al. 2014; Shute

et al.)

Photo: Marion Beraudias

In Fact....

And Let's Face it....

Photo: Lalesh Aldarwish

Photo: StartupStockPhotos

Video games are fun!

REFERENCES

­Griffiths, Mark. (2003). The Therapeutic Use of Videogames in Childhood and Adolescence. Nottingham TrentUniversity, UK.

­Fernandez­Aranda, Fernando et al. (2012) Video games as a complementary therapy tool in mental

disorders: PlayMancer, a European multicentre study. Journal of Mental Health, Spain.

­ESA Canada. (2015). Essential Facts about the Canadian Video Game Industry. Entertainment SoftwareAssociation of Canada.

­Bavelier, Daphne et al. (2011). Children, Wired – for better and for worse. US National Library of Medicine,National Institutes of Health.

­Anderson, Craig and Wayne Warburton (2012). “Chapter 3: The impact of Violent video games: An

overview” Growing Up Fast and Furious: Reviewing the Impacts of Violent and Sexualized media on

children. The Federation Press

­Bielski, Zosia. 2013. Portrait of an e­family: How They’re making their hyper­digital lives work. The Globeand Mail.

­Bambach, Matthew. (2013). Canada’s video­game industry ranks No. 3 worldwide. The Globe and Mail.

­Marsh, Jackie et al. (2015). Young children’s initiation into family literacy practices in the digital age. Universityof Sheffield, UK.

­Kim, Kyungo et al. (2014). Understanding older individuals’ emotional responses to new technology associated

with healthy lifestyle choice. Journal of Physical Education and Sport.

­Shute, Valerie et al. (2015). The Power of play: The effects of Portal 2 and Luminosity on cognitive and on

cognitive skills. Computers & Education.

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDIT

Freepik

Jan Vašek

Denis Temirgalin

Freepik Essentials

Kevin Dooley

Osckar EspinosaHoracio Silva

Viktor Hanacek

OpenClipart­Vectors

Daniel Carberry

Dooder

Kirsty Pargeter

Lucélia Ribeiro

Jayne Booton

Marion Beraudias

Lalesh Aldarwish

StartupStockPhotos

All photos were retrievedunder the CreativeCommons license