Video games have been around for more than 40 years and have kept advancing with each decade. According to Stastica.com1, as of 2013, the time spent playing a video game is 23.2 minutes per day. That adds up to over 150 hours a week. The video game industry is projected to grow to more than 101.6 billion in revenue in 2014 according to Gartner, Inc.’s (American information technology research and advisory) projections. Have you ever wondered how this could affect societies psychological and physical aspects of life?
In the following, I will be discussing the pros and cons of the video gaming world. This will include the amount of physical activity, verbal and mental communications, psychological, and social interaction effects it has on a “gamer”.
Pros of Video Gaming There are many positive effects of playing video games either by one’s self, with other children, or interactively with online users. The following discusses the positive effects that video gaming could have on children. …show more content…
Shy or unconfident youths may open up to others. Games require working with others to complete tasks to move to the next level. It is inevitable that a child will have to socialize with fellow peers while discussing the games to problem solve a gaming situation. Also, video games can be played with dozens of people throughout the world on the web for a different type of social interaction. Approaching individuals face-to-face can be frightening, but being able to converse over a game allows children to overcome that fear.
Cons of Video Gaming There has always been a stigma that playing violent games will make a person become violent in real life. Or that sitting around all day playing video games can make children obese, unsocial, and cause emotional distress. The following discusses the negative effects, video gaming can cause amongst children.
Physical