VR Vs Real Life: How Online Gaming Affects Your Child's Development

Mummies, you've probably seen this sight: your kid, on the computer or smartphone, playing online games at any given time. Online gaming has become a pretty big trend for the past decade or so. Additionally, with how advanced handheld devices have become, now online gaming has breached past computer screens. Now, you can be in a video game just about anywhere so long as you have a handheld device and Internet connection. But is this a good thing? Mummies, let's sit down and discuss; how good (or bad) can online gaming be on your child? But before that, let me explain one thing. What Is Online Gaming? Online gaming usually means the act of playing a video game on the Internet, simple as that! This style of gaming experience commonly lets you play games alone or with other people. These online games come in a myriad of genres—some with themes, while others that are more open-world. It is inevitable that some parents have this perception that online games are not beneficial, but let us get one thing out of the way: Everything has a good side and a bad side, including this often-debated topic. Online Gaming: The Good Contrary to popular belief, online games are not inherently bad for your children. In fact, a lot of researches for the past decade have found that there are positive correlations between online gaming and different aspects of a child's life. How about we go through some of benefits of online games here? Promotes Creativity and Imagination One thing about online games, especially ones with an open-world build such as Roblox or Minecraft, is that these games let you build things without much restrictions. Which means, unlike the physical world, the limitations of certain things are removed. This, in turn, lets your little one be more creative, and create an environment that is only in their head. Games like Animal Crossing on the Nintendo Switch also lets you design your own clothing as well as furniture, too! You can let your child spread their creativity in their game's space—all without the mess in real-life. A Social Step-Stone for the Introverts Is your child more of an introvert? Online games can also help let your child socialise! Sure, it's not as personal as talking with in real-life with a physical person, but it's a start. Letting your child interact with peers their age can let them warm up and converse without the fear of judgement. When your child becomes more comfortable, you can phase them into meeting physical friends. Family-Bonding Time, Virtually Contrary to popular belief, not all online games promote violence. Sure, the more popular games are more catered towards adults, but there are plenty of child-friendly online games that you can play with your child. Games that let you help and interact with your little one can encourage positive feelings towards family bonding time. Interested in finding some kid-friendly games? Here are some of our picks. Online Gaming: The Bad Undeniably, there are some negative points to online gaming, especially to younger children. The Internet is not a playground for children; there are definitely wolves in sheep's clothing scattered everywhere, online games included. Not to mention, there are also the mental repercussions of letting your child interact with people while behind a screen. So, let's discuss this worrying issue in this section, mummies. Self-Isolation Issues The thing about online games is that it is something you do not necessarily need physical contact to play. Yes, some online games have cross-platform abilities that can let your kid play on more than just the computer, but of course this does not apply to all games. So, excessive online gaming can cause your child to self-isolate, which in turn makes them more secluded and anti-social. This research suggests that children who are exposed to more violent online games do not use their lateral prefrontal cortex as often compared to less frequent gamers. Risk of Cyberbullying Cyberbullying is a hot-button topic that often becomes linked to online gaming. This is most likely because of the culture of online games, where the act of trash-talking and profanity is considered normal. And, when we talk about risk of cyberbullying, I do not just mean it from a victim's perspective. Your child can become at risk of becoming the perpetrator of a cyberbullying case. One of a commonly cited reasons as to why a kid cyberbullies others may actually be due to peer pressure. Children are highly impressionable, and often eager to please peers older than them. There is a high risk of your child giving in to this peer pressure. Read more about cyberbullying and how to protect your children from it here. Beware: Predators This is probably one of the biggest reason to worry about your child being on the Internet. Sure, you have given them the 'stranger danger' lesson, but on the Internet, this line blurs. Everyone is a stranger on the Internet... until they talk to each other. This is one of the common tactics that these predators use to reason with kids on the Internet. With artificial intelligence (AI), this becomes even worse. These predators can manipulate your child into doing inappropriate things while masked as a child their age. I cannot stress this enough, parents—remember to supervise your kids' Internet use. The Overall Takeaway So, what can you take away from this talk? Well, for one, I hope you understand that online games are not 100% bad for your child. But, it should be used in moderation; and you must always supervise their interactions online. You can try and put the family computer in a public spot for your kids to use when they want to use it. This way, you can supervise them from a safe and comfortable distance. Make sure to implement strict rules when it comes to interactions they have in online games. In fact, some games, such as online game titles produced for Nintendo consoles, usually do not have a free-range chat. Instead, these games have a selection of pre-written sentences that users use to communicate with. Finally, you should most definitely teach your children Internet safety. Be transparent, but in a child-safe way so they at least understand to stay safe when online. You've got this, parents! Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered as medical advice from Motherhood. For any health-related concerns, it is advisable to consult with a qualified healthcare professional or medical practitioner. 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