In: Rene Jacquart (Ed.) Building the Information Society. © IFIP, Kluwer Academic Press, 2004, pp. 51-58 51 POSITIVE EFFECTS OF ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ON HUMAN BEHAVIOUR Matthias Rauterberg Technical University Eindhoven (The Netherlands) Abstract: Worldwide the pros and cons of games and social behaviour are discussed. In Western countries the discussion is focussing on violent game and media content; in Japan on intensive game usage and the impact on the intellectual development of children. A lot is already discussed on the harmful and negative effects of entertainment technology on human behaviour, therefore we decided to focus primarily on the positive effects. Based on an online document search we could find and select …show more content…
General development: Games require the use of logic, memory, problem solving and critical thinking skills, visualization and discovery [34]. Their use requires that players manipulate objects using electronic tools and develop an understanding of the game as a complex system. Play is an effective teaching strategy both inside and outside school. According to Goldstein “more than 40 studies concludes that play enhances early development by at least 33%” [36]. Play with games and toys are an important part of child development to acquire a variety of skills for life, such as motor-coordination, social and cognitive skills [15]. As societies become increasingly concerned about the physical and psychological well-being of children, the value of playing and learning is getting crucial [22]. Players can progress from newcomer to expert, in particular in belonging to a social system [11]. Teaching: If computer games are to become part of educational settings, it is crucial to question existing stereotypes and to ensure that the culture of games players in education conforms to neither [13]. It is teachers’ stereotypes that resist change and not people; therefore, by interrogating conceptions of these stereotypes it is possible to avoid falling into the error of believing them to be exclusive descriptors of games players [11]. Academic performance: In a research program the use of electronic communication and games with children was investigated in both classroom and
While there are claims that video games are not beneficial, it is quite reasonable to assume they are. Video game-based learning has become prominent in the world of technology. Crocco states that popular video games are “problem-solving adventures that foster engagement, inquiry, and critical thinking.” The inquiry and critical thinking mentioned by Crocco, paired with the engagement of the player, allow for increased proficiency in those areas. Additionally, Bowen insists that games, including violent games, allow for an expansion of child’s learning along with health and social skills. For example, video games enhance one’s problem solving skills, reasoning, memory, and perception. Although learning is often associated with pure knowledge, children are able to learn socially as well. Since the world is becoming increasingly technology-based, it is convenient for children to learn through technology.
There are many benefits to playing video games. Some parents and/or educators can use video games as a tool to subconsciously teach and reinforce learning methods. Educational games and games that requires skillful thinking are tools that can help academically. Merzenich (2011) explains in his research that games can help with judgement, memory, cognitive thinking, and higher speeds in skill processing. He gives reasoning behind the academic growth of children that are gamers and how they acquire academic success due to the excessive time they spend playing.
(White, 2009, p. 2) Video games also cause children to develop social problems. Their empathy decreases and they are less willing to help others. Children become antisocial spending less and less time interacting with family members, friends, and playing. They are controlled by what is occurring on the screen in front of them, locking themselves up in their rooms, or away from others just to play endless hours of video games. Video games have progressed over recent years becoming far more violent, sophisticated, and addictive. Studies have shown that the effects of video games and aggressive behavior follow almost the same pattern as that of studies with violent media such as cartoons.
Side effects of video games number just about as many types of video games that people play. In Lisa Weber’s article “Positive Effects of Video Games on Children,” she states several benefits that children obtain when they play video games. Some of these advantages include the areas of social development, education, and an emotional outlet. As a result, Lisa clearly displays her stance on the positive side of the opinions of video games. However, electronic gaming contains a voluminous amount of pernicious effects. When young adults and children partake in video games, they come across numerous experiences that could have a negative influence on their lives.
In Jonathan Craton’s article “The Effect of Videogames on Student Achievement” he shows the positive and negative effects video games have on present day students. He goes into detail on the benefits and shortfalls that video games could have on education and social skills of college students. Craton also mentions the psychological effects noted from video games including games with increased amounts of violence. Despite the negative effects Craton mentions in his article, video games should be used to assist in the learning process in classrooms around the world.
Is video gaming a force for psychological good or for psychological harm? This is one of the issues discussed in the last thirty years. A lot of people, especially parents, would say gaming is harmful on a child’s psychology. Those people would say that video games make children aggressive; they are frustrating and highly addictive. The concerns are not only about children, they go for teenagers and young adults as well. Something which just a few years ago was only a way of unwinding and passing a bit of time has now become a much criticized lifestyle, with allegedly disturbing long-turn effects on people’s minds and perception of the world. One thing needs to be made
The controversy on video games and whether they are harmful or helpful has been around for a while now. Firstly, a video game is a game played by electronically manipulating images produced by a computer program on a television screen or other display screen. Video games are often judged; some people may think video games are bad and affect children negatively because of the stereotypes of video games causing children to become lazy and violent. Even though, some of these stereotypes could true; video games are not as bad as the stereotypes make them to be. According to Jing Feng of the University of Toronto “How Video Games Benefit the Brain” video games improve children’s brain perception, attention, and spatial cognition. (3) Playing video
Video Games have come a long way since their first introduction into the main stream. With video games becoming more sophisticated and using advanced technology, it seems as if video games are closing in on the gap between games and reality. However, as video games become ever so life-like it brings up the question of if the violence associated with video games is having a negative consequence. There have been many accusations over the years over the harm video games are causing children and teenagers. Experiments have been conducted trying to associate a link between video games and aggressive behavior. Even the media has been known to point fingers at video games for the cause of children
In regards to video game technology, it is true to say that the relative breadth of its application and consequently, its overall relevance in the fields of science and medicine aren’t completely known. This is due to the fact that video game technology is still a relatively new industry that has just enter other areas of society outside of entertainment. Critics seem to agree that this increase in dependence on technology can prove to be a damaging implication that society as a whole has become overly connected society and wired thereby neglecting normal social skills. This could then potentially cause people to succumb to the negative aspects of being too “plugged in” such as a motionless sedentary lifestyle and become nothing more than lackadaisical couch potatoes.
Are video games harmful? Are they poisoning society and corrupting the minds of the youth? The evidence would certainly make it seem that way, but what are the real effects that video games have on people? Video games have been the subject of controversy ever since their creation. Yes that’s right, ever since the creation of Pong, video games have been a concern. In fact C. Everett Koop stated that “There is nothing constructive in the games. Everything is eliminate, kill, destroy and do it fast” (Marcovitz 12). As video games grow more and more like real life concern grows as well. However, as video games grow, they also grow in providing a safe outlet for negative emotions, teaching player’s life lessons, and any research
Around different countries all over the world, thousands of people are playing video games. From five or six-year-olds, all the way up to 40 or 50-year-olds. Ever since video games were first created, people have been fascinated with them, and spend hours upon hours playing them. It may be common to hear people say that videogames are a waste of time, video games rot your brain, or video games cause you to become violent, heartless criminals. This may be true in some cases; however, though it may not be known to most people, there are many good effects of playing video games. Positive effects of playing video games include: better hand eye coordination, faster reaction time, and time and resource management skills.
Since the Early 70’s video games have been giving a bad name. Parents state that video games rot the minds of children and are influencing them do be violent. These accusations are far from the truth. In my research I found that there are many positive effects of gaming. Some of these effects are increased skills, creativity, general knowledge, and also help those in need. Parents can also take proper precautions and look into a game before buying it to see if it meets the criteria discussed in this paper.
As a child in your elementary school classroom, have you ever cheered for joy when your teacher allowed you to play games on a computer or tablet to help you learn? Have you ever been more interested in the vivid colors and pretty designs in the game? Rather than the actual material within the game? Well I have. As a child, computers have distracted me from learning. I’ve been more interested in the bright colors and funny-looking animated characters in the game that it began to disable my ability to learn from the content within the game. Recently, Technologies such as computers and tablets, have been incorporated into the learning environment of children of all ages. There are many positive and negative effects
My mini literature review is on the effects of video games on youth, both positive effects in the form of educational games and negative effects in the form of aggressive behavior and desensitization.Many people focus on the negative effects that video games have on young people, but video games can also have more than just negative effects on people.
Over the last decade video games have become a huge controversy. Every day more people play video games than live their lives. Which has become a big concern because videogames are being known to be more hurtful than beneficial in light of more recent studies. Video games have disadvantages, like becoming addictive, influencing violence, and causing poor social skills. There have been many studies on the effect video games have on people’s social skills.