Science Shorts: Video games in research (Nov. 2024)
Issue #3 has Darth Vader, jerks, and helicopters
Hello JOMT Reader!
The November issue of Science Shorts has a lot of gems that I might turn into more detailed posts. So many good articles to choose from! But first, this month’s shoutout:
This month, check out Kevin of
, who writes about all sorts of interesting games, including the most recent article on Heretical. You’ll find a collection of detailed and balanced posts on games and gaming, so make sure you subscribe to the newsletter!
TL;DR
Most research about parental influence on children has focused on mothers. But a group of South Korean researchers decided to shine the light instead on fathers and how they influence gaming behaviours in children.
The effects that video games have on individuals is muddy at best. This study aims to clarify some of that muddiness by analyzing the effects based on gaming skill and game type.
Parents influence their children’s behaviour but it isn’t always about helicoptering around them. This study wanted to clarify how much helicoptering contributed to their kids using video games as an escape mechanism.
Luke…no games for you.
“Noooooooooooooo!!!”
Link to article: https://bmcpediatr.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12887-024-05148-5
Title: Father-child attachment on children’s screen time: mediating role of ego resilience
If Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker had spent time together when Luke was younger, maybe this is the conversation they would have had.
It’s no surprise that parents play a pivotal role in the development of their kids. Parents influence pretty much every aspect of their child. But much of the research to date has focused on the influence of mothers — fathers have been largely left out of the equation.
So, researchers in South Korea analyzed over 1000 parents and their children to determine how the father-child relationship affects their child’s screen time (including video games).
The researchers found that a strong father-child attachment was associated with reduced screen time. At the same time, this strong attachment was associated with the child being better able to adapt to changing situations and solve problems (called ego-resilience). In turn, high ego-resilience also worked to reduce screen time in children.
The reason why there was a reduction in screen time is thought to be because fathers are more likely to initiate play, including physical activity. Children with strong bonds to their fathers would join the play, pulling them away from the screen. My interpretation is that it doesn’t necessarily have to be the father’s influence — a strong bond with any parent who initiates physical play is what ultimately influences the child to spend less time on the screen.
Skilled gamers are…jerks?
Link to article: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/14/10/874
Title: Video Game Skills across Diverse Genres and Cognitive Functioning in Early Adulthood: Verbal and Visuospatial Short-Term and Working Memory, Hand–Eye Coordination, and Empathy
There is a lot of research pointing in all sorts of directions about the benefits and drawbacks of video games. It’s a tough nut to crack because why we play, how long we play, and what we play differ so much. Still, it doesn’t stop researchers from trying to figure out how video games affect us.
Because most research has been limited to a type of game (action or FPS games), the authors included more categories of games and measured how they affect brain function and our ability to empathize with others.
The researchers found that gamers who self-identified as having high gaming skill had better visuospatial memory — this is the part of the brain that is responsible for remembering where objects are in time and space (also discussed in the Tetris for PTSD post) — compared to those with low gaming skill. FPS games featured heavily in this result, but RPGs, strategy games, and puzzle games were also associated with better visuospatial memory.
The most interesting finding was that those with high gaming skill tended to have decreased empathy than those with low gaming skill. What’s even more interesting is that only RPGs were associated with decreased empathy.
Unfortunately, at the time of writing, the data file containing information on the games included or other juicy details had been removed by the authors. It’s hard to draw definitive conclusions, but it does raise some interesting questions. Did the game environment of massively multiplayer online RPGs contribute to decreased empathy? Does empathizing with your character somehow make you less empathetic towards others? Only more research will tell!
Helicopters can reduce game time in children
Link to article: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39438433/ (abstract only)
Title: Influence of parental mediation and social skills on adolescents' use of online video games for escapism: A cross-sectional study
Capping off this month’s research is another study looking at the influence of parents on their children’s use of video games. This time, the researchers looked at two aspects of parenting: monitoring, which is how much parents are aware of their child’s activities especially during their free time; and mediation, which is the strategy that parents use to protect their child from potential harm, including in video games.
The researchers wanted to know whether monitoring or mediation had an effect on children using video games to escape negative emotions. As you might have guessed, reduced parental monitoring and mediation supporting autonomy was correlated with video game escapism.
I always worry that the take-away from these kinds of studies will be “make sure to strictly monitor and prevent video game use,” which I think misses the point. Active participation in our children’s lives, including discussions about what good gaming habits look like (which could be different for every household), is how we, as parents, can protect our children from using video games to escape negative emotions and have a healthier relationship with video games.
If you liked what you read, please consider giving this post a like and sharing it with your community! How have you approached video games in your household or with those whose gaming habits and rules differ from your own? Let me know in the comments below!
You know, you could have made three posts out of all this good material!
Very interesting topics, all of them. I'm struck by the idea that dads might initiate physical play more, thus leading to reduced screen time. Obviously, that's not the only consideration in screentime, but it raises an eyebrow.
And yeah, skilled players are often jerks. I'd add that many people with incredible skills are often awful as mentors or teachers. Instead, they get impatient.
Thank you for the mention!
Also, being a part of your child's life does wonders to your child. I remember my wife telling me how just listening to a kid does wonders to their mental, and how that works and such.
Also, I remember for the one year I was in Korea, it was very obvious the gender roles people abided by. It's kind of telling with the study you covered here.