Video Gaming Linked to Improved Cognitive Functions in Children in New Study: Report

For years, parents of young children have forced kids to stay away from video gaming due to its ‘harmful addictive nature.’ However, a new study claims that playing video games might have a positive effect among adolescents.

As part of the national Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study, researchers recently examined the effects of gaming in a study featuring 2217 adolescent children.

The findings of the study were published in the JAMA Network Open, and it claims that children who played video games for around 21 hours a week showed improved cognitive abilities.

Over the last few years, parents have showcased concern over the number of hours their kids have spent playing video games, with many of them even showcasing violent behavior due to the nature of the titles they play, as noted by Bader Chaarani, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Vermont and the lead author on the ABCD study.

However, the new study that included 679 video gamers, who play for around three hours a day, showcased better performance in activities involving cognitive function. Furthermore, functional MRI brain imaging analyses of these children also showed that they had higher brain activity in the regions associated with memory and attention, and these findings have been stated to be encouraging according to Dr. Chaarani.