VIDEO GAMES: EVIL IN DISGUISE!

Gone are the days of Super Mario and PacMan! With technology smoothly permeating into the lives of children, Xbox has made a way to children's bedroom…eventually taking charge of their important activities. There is no doubt that one should be technologically literate, but to let that technology be in a commanding position is something, which does not sound pleasing to the ears!

It is indeed true that coping with boredom is an extremely crucial task especially in the case of children who need to keep themselves busy constantly. And in such a crisis, what good can do to a restless soul than games – a perfect icing on the cake! Playing a video game is not only engaging and appealing, but an important mental activity for children to vent out their excitement and satisfy their need of adventure and pleasure. The game effects are so fascinating that they inadvertently wish to spend more time on them.

But the irony is that video games are addictive in nature. Well, yes…they do have an adverse impact on a child’s psychology.
Video games can hamper a child's academic, physical and social growth. All are aware of the fact that a coin has two sides and ignoring either of the sides is not a good idea. Similarly, keeping aside the negative impact of video games will not do any good either if in a quest to save a child’s overall healthy growth from deteriorating.

A real workout medium for a child’s brain, video games definitely equips him with an abstract and logical thinking, thereby, enabling him to follow instructions and consecutively solve problems effectively. To be more precise, here are some bonus features of video games interaction:

1. Video games teach management skills. The players get to learn valuable ways to manage their resources in the best possible way. Building strategic skills to tackle the problem further helps in finding the solutions easily.
2. To make learning fun, video games make use of striking colors, animations apart from posing some interactive challenges for the children to overcome them. This gives them the ability to understand the fair use of color combination. Blending fun with learning actually motivates a child to imbibe latest knowledge techniques.
3. Multiplayer games help children learn the essence of teamwork. This aids them in listening to new ideas and formulating plans accordingly.

However, coming back to the main issue as already discussed, we cannot negate the facts that there are certain negatives shades to this otherwise fun gaming concept. The videogame culture has adversely affected a child’s overall development leading to a stunted mental growth. The effects are very much visible in his other facets of life…be it his physical or social interaction. Getting fixated with video games is so overpowering that they rather prefer aloofness where the only pal is in the form of an electronic game! No wonder, constant gaming leaves an unpleasant impact on a child’s psychology, which tends to deteriorate at an early age itself. To be more specific, some of the frequent harmful consequences affecting kids are Spondylitis (severe backache), poor eyesight, and higher obesity level to name a few. The not-so-good aftereffects of excessive gaming automatically leaves its’ brunt even on their plummeting academic standards – indeed, an alarming signal!

The violent and disturbing animation easily leaves negative imprints on children’s personality…i.e. visible gradually to the world. Psychologists doing research work on the same for decades now state that children simply get enthralled with the gruesome picturization and start deriving sadistic pleasure by playing those games, which only glorifies blood, violence, fights and abuses. According to the innumerable studies conducted, the mere reason behind children’s fascination towards such activities is their inability to vent out dissatisfaction or vengeance socially. Thus, video games function as a guinea pig for these souls to unburden themselves in whatever manner they prefer…without any fear, without any hesitation, without any restriction…they are the MASTERS there! But little do they know that this eventually makes them an easy catch and susceptible to online dangers.

To keep a tab on the mounting negative impact of video games on children, both parents and peers need to adhere to certain dos.

1. Parents should be extra vigilant towards their child's choice of games. They should always check the age limit mentioned on the cover of a game. Too much portrayal of violence and bloodshed in any game should be avoided at one go.
2. Time limit restriction is vital when playing video games. This will help parents keep a check on children from not getting addicted to games.
3. Too much of video gaming can be brilliantly substituted with a lot more outdoor fun activities. This will do well for their overall healthy development.
4. More preference must be given to mentally stimulating activities like book reading, physically challenging sports or even following enlightening shows on television.
5. Encouraging group interaction will ultimately help children imbibe better etiquettes, which is crucial to learn as in team coordination. 

Understand the psychology of your children and see them grow naturally!