Different games cater to different child needs. Children crave mastery and challenge, according to research. Video games, a great alternative to school, can fulfill these needs.
Let’s take a look at some examples of the games that children play and the needs that they satisfy.
Video Games Engage Your Child
Children often enjoy adventure games like Skyrim, Dark Souls, and Legend of Zelda because they require a lot of exploration. This child is likely curious and likes exploring new places and learning new things. Adventure games that cater to these needs are likely appealing.
If a child enjoys MMORPGs like World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy 14, they likely want them because they allow them to be part of a group and work towards a common goal. These games provide a sense of progress and help the child to see the way forward.
A child who plays first-person shooter games like Fortnite or Call of Duty will most likely love the adrenaline rush. Shooter games are a great way to show your child’s competitive side. They may enjoy learning new skills and winning against adversity.
Video Games can be used as a Coping Mechanism.
Society generally positively views traits such as curiosity, competition, and team play. These aren’t the only things that video games can satisfy. We will discuss why video games can help you cope with stress later in the article.
Young children have trouble understanding their emotions. They don’t know how to cope with anger, sadness, frustration, fear, and other emotions. They don’t have the brain development necessary to cope with these emotions. Children can still feel these emotions, and they affect their lives profoundly.
What can a child do when they can’t manage their emotions? They avoid them. Sometimes, video games can be used as an escape. These games allow children to escape into virtual worlds where they do not rule their feelings.
As a way to cope with stress, children play video games.
- Bullying.
- Feelings that you are not understood.
- A school that does not provide enough intellectual challenge
- Feeling marginalized by your peers
- Unsafe home environment
How Video Games Can Affect Your Child’s Brain
Dopamine Exhaustion
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter released by the brain when we play video games. Dopamine is responsible for the pleasure we experience. Video games can be fun because of the constant dopamine flow and random bursts.
Our brain becomes accustomed to the constant dopamine flow and requires more to have the same amount. Gamers tend to want to play more. Dopamine addiction is a strong one. We need to play more games to get enough dopamine to feel happy. This can lead to dopamine exhaustion over long periods.
Negative Emotion Suppression
Video games can also suppress negative emotions. The amygdala, which is the brain part that controls fear and other negative emotions, is located in the brain. Studies using fMRI have shown that the amygdala calms when we play video games.
Video games can be an excellent way to eliminate negative emotions. As these feelings are suppressed, gamers can develop alexithymia. Alexithymia refers to the inability to determine your inner emotional state. It can be highly detrimental to a child’s mental development and growth. Understanding and processing emotions are essential for a child’s mental health.
Triumph Circuit
Video games also thirdly affect the brain: they involve the Triumph circuit. The brain is not as quickly mappable to the Triumph circuit as the dopamine circuitry. It is more of an evolutionary pattern.
Human psychology is deeply rooted in going into the unknown, discovering something valuable, and returning it to your tribe. People who go out into the secret to find something useful and replace it with a reward that improves their quality of life are valued. This concept is the foundation of our success as a society.
Video games have hacked this circuit. They can engage the Triumph circuit easily. Because the brain evolved to be efficient, it depends on video games to feel successful. Because video games make achieving that feeling of accomplishment easier, other activities become dull.
Combining these factors can result in a behavior change. Let’s look at how and why video games can cause poor behavior in children.
Alexithymia, Negative Emotions
Anger is the only emotion boys are allowed to express due to cultural and societal influences. This is made worse by alexithymia. All other negative emotions are suppressed, and rage is the only emotion allowed to express itself.
Children may also react to threats that their parents take their video games away. Children might become defensive and angry and begin to disrespect their parents. They might act out of fear, but because they have alexithymia don’t know how to express their anxiety.
A child who uses video games to cope might experience many more negative emotions. If they are pushed outside their comfort zone, the valve that holds back these emotions could burst. They don’t know how to handle uncomfortable situations and turn to video games for comfort.
When their coping mechanism is removed, their emotions will take control and cause them to behave in a certain way. They don’t want to act out, but they don’t know how they should handle their emotions. It’s easy to believe that video games harm your mental health. This is false. Video game addiction can lead to destructive behavior.
Dopamine Exhaustion
Gaming can also cause dopamine exhaustion, which makes it difficult to enjoy other activities besides gaming. Gaming becomes so essential to the child that they will not engage in other activities. Gaming is the worst thing they can do. They become defensive and act out when they fear their games will be taken.