Research Report: Electronic Gaming and Psychosocial Adjustment

Author: Andrew K Przybylski, University of Oxford

Published by: Pediatrics, August 2014

SUMMARY

Since more than 97 per cent of teenagers now play electronic games regularly, the University of Oxford's Andrew Przybylski wanted to find out how different amounts of time spent playing electronic games affected 10- to 15-year-olds both positively and negatively. According to Przybylski, current guidelines on how long children should spend playing such games are based on little evidence, particularly as the structure of different games vary considerably.

The study used data gathered from 4,899 10- to 15-year-olds from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, who were participants in the Economic and Social Research Council's UK Understanding Society Household Longitudinal Study. The 2,436 male and 2,463 female young people were asked how much time they spent playing console-based games, such as Sony PlayStation and computer-based games, for example on a PC. They also completed a questionnaire giving information which could be used to diagnose problems with behaviour, peer relationships, and other issues, as well as tendency to positive behaviour and happiness.

The study showed young people who spent a short amount of time (less than an hour a day) playing electronic games showed higher levels of sociability and were more likely to say they were satisfied with their lives than those who didn't play games at all. They had lower levels of conduct problems, hyperactivity, peer problems and emotional difficulties. Young people who played games for between one and three hours a day showed neither a positive nor a negative difference in terms of sociability, life satisfaction and conduct problems compared to those who played no games at all. However, heavy users of electronic games - those who played for more than three hours every day, more than half of their daily free time - were less likely to say they were happy with their lives, less likely to show empathy or carry out thoughtful actions, and more likely to have issues such as hyperactivity, and friendship and emotional problems.

Przybylski suggests the negative effects found in children who spend more than three hours a day playing electronic games could arise both from the fact they have no time left for other enriching activities and the potential risk from content intended for older people. However, he adds that while his research suggests a weak relationship between heavy gaming and conduct disorders, the impact of gaming for good and ill is not significant when compared to other factors known to have an effect on children's wellbeing such as material deprivation and family life.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

The study suggests a small amount of engagement with electronic games is good for children, providing the same benefits as more traditional forms of play such as opportunities for developing identity and tackling cognitive and social challenges. However Przybylski also concludes that while small amounts of gaming can have some positive effects, these are relatively modest so gaming should not be seen as a "solution to the challenges of development and modern life".

He says the guidelines issued by the Royal College of Pediatrics may need revising in light of these findings, as guidelines should be more complex than merely limiting exposure, looking at the impact of different levels of engagement and different forms of electronic games.

FURTHER READING

• Teens, Video Games and Civics, Amanda Lenhart, Joseph Kahne, Ellen Middaugh, Alexandra Rankin Macgill, Chris Evans, Jessica Vitak, Pew Internet and American Life Project, September 2008. A US survey of 1,102 teenagers that found young people's experiences of game playing are diverse and include significant social interaction and civic engagement.
• Video Games Do Affect Social Outcomes: A Meta-Analytic Review of the Effects of Violent and Prosocial Video Game Play, Tobias Greitemeyer, Dirk O Mugge, University of Innsbruck, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, January 2014. An analysis of data from 98 independent studies with 36,965 participants, which found violent video games increased aggression and aggression-related variables and decreased positive social outcomes, while more social video games had the opposite effects.
• Video Game Use in Boys With Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, or Typical Development, Micah O Mazurek, Christopher R Engelhardt, Pediatrics, July 2013. A study revealing boys with autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) demonstrated greater problematic video game use than boys with typical development.