Do Video Games Promote Cognitive Development - Essay Example

Do Video Games Promote Cognitive Development? Outline Introduction: ment of the controversy/debate over the ills of video games and arguments that promote the idea that video games can have cognitive value. Body: The body is divided into three parts as follows: A. Both sides of the argument are delineated in brief and the position taken by this essay is presented. Essentially it will be argued that the despite popular opinion, video games do promote cognitive development. B. This part of the essay presents detailed aspects of the arguments that video games have essentially negative consequences and the extent of those negative consequences. C. This part of the essay presents detailed aspects of the argument that video games do promote cognitive development and therefore can have positive consequences. D. Conclusion: This is the final part of the essay and it will sum up both arguments and conclude by exposing the flaws in the arguments that video games are entirely bad for users. Name Course Institution Date Introduction Video games have emerged as a phenomenon which affects millions of participants globally (Anderson, Gentile and Buckley 2007, 6). Much of the concerns over the affects of video games arising out of its elimination of socialization and the violent and sexual content of the games, particularly in relation to children. Essentially, researchers have concluded that exposure to the aggressive content in video games “produces similar results” (Weiten 2008, 263). Stephen Johnson (2006) argues however, that video games by their very nature have the capacity to engage motor skills, memory skills and whole array of skills that function to promote cognitive development (19). It therefore follows that in the debate over the utility of video games it is entirely unfair to subscribe to the argument that video games are entirely bad for our youth. The fact is, video games can be good for everyone, particularly the young child. A. Both sides of the Debate It is essentially argued that the very thing that attracts individuals to video games produces ill effects. As the argument goes, video games are particularly appealing because it creates an isolated culture of simulations where images create microworld permitting the individual to create and engage in an artificial existence (Provenzo 1991, 83). Not only can this create an altered state of mind which might to similar conduct, it also functions to promote social occlusion (Sheff 1994, 25). On the other side of the debate it is argued that video games promote cognitive development because it engages and develops a wide range of skills including, the ability to solve problems, recognition of patterns, hypothesis testing, skills relative to estimation and many others (Sheff 1994, 33). B. The Negative Effects of Video Games One of the biggest concerns about video games is the amount of time that children spend playing these games. It is estimated that 64 percent of children in the US spend at least two hours a day playing video games (Sheff 1994, 3). Time spent playing video games means time spent away from social interaction with others, an important part of child development. The repetitive nature of the video game also has the capacity to influence the way that children develop both physically and emotionally. The greatest source of concern however, is the violent content in video games. Sheff (1994) explains that: Children who watch a steady diet of violent programming increase their chances of becoming more aggressive towards other children, less cooperative and altruistic, more tolerant of real-life violence and more afraid of the world outside their homes (45). Essentially, the worse that can be said is that video games may not substantially contribute to the incidents of deviant conduct but can increase the risk of aggressive conduct by those who play these games excessively. Provenzo (1991) conducted research on the consequences for child development as a result of video game participation. According to Provenzo, the only real concern is the social isolation it produces. However, Provenzo suggest that games that provide for multiple players can eliminate the social isolation typically associated with video games. C. The Positive Effects of Video Games In addition to the positive aspects listed above, researchers have concluded that video games can contribute to the development and promotion of resource management skills, logistical skills, mapping, memory, quick thinking and the ability to create reasoned judgments (Sheff 1994, 33). Essentially, the video game involves the practice of skills that are not typically a part of a school’s curriculum Moreover, the development of these various skills are also associated with confidence building in children. For anyone who has ever played a video game it is immediately obvious that the act of playing a video games engages a great degree of hand and eye coordination so that the consequences for cognitive development is manifested in simply playing a video game. This is not to say that other games such as baseball, football and other types of social activities do not promote hand and eye coordination. The point is, video games can also promote hand and eye coordination. It can also be argued that the nature of video imaging and interfacing in video games arguably require a greater level of hand and eye coordination. It is also argued that video games mirror social constructs. It therefore permits a method for establishing skill and ability hierarchies involving leadership. Moreover, video games provides a unique opportunity for children to take on the role of teacher in instances where adults choose to participate. As Tapscott (1998) puts it: Engaging the child in an interactive experience, developing hand-eye motor skills, giving the child a sense of accomplishment, keeping the child off the streets, and just encouraging having fun are all judged by many parents to be valuable or, at worst, benign (162). By that as it may, it has been proven that video games can development of cognitive skills. The fact is playing any computer game, calls upon the acquisition of specific cognitive skills such as “proactive and recursive thinking, systematic organization and information, interpretation of visual information” as well as “general search heuristics, means-end analysis among many others (Vordere and Bryant 2006, 391). It therefore follows that playing video games contribute to the development of cognitive skills in children. Vorderer and Byrant (2006) also maintain that there is a wide range of empirical research studies substantiating the hypothesis that the cognitive skills acquired via playing video games are capable of being transferred to other activities (391). Experiments conducted by Greenfield, Brannon and Lohr in 1994 found that being exposed to video games via playing the games, “was positively correlated with better cognitive skills” in the comprehension and interpretation of technical and scientific data which is presented in graphic form via the computer screen (Vorderer and Bryant 2006, 391). The experiment also found that playing video games fostered “flexibility in dealing with knowledge structures” that are useful for overcoming “functional fixedness” (Vorderer and Bryant 2006, 391). Conclusion Not all video games contain violent content. Just as not all films contain violent content and are rated to warn participants of the mature content. In this regard, with a degree of caution and foresight, video games can be selected so as to ensure that children are not exposed to violence and other mature content. The fact is, video games is a part of popular culture and entirely difficult avoid. Parental intervention ensuring control of content and time management can ensure that children secure the cognitive benefits that have been proven to correspond with the use of video games. Concerns about social isolation can also be addressed by encouraging children to participate in multiple player games. By taking this approach, the video game experience can be social rather than an anti-social experience in addition to being a tool for promoting cognitive development. The key is parental or adult intervention and supervision. Bibliography Anderson, C.; Gentile, D. and Buckley, K. (2007) Violent Video Game Effects on Children and Adolescents: Theory, Research and Public Policy. Oxford University Press. Johnson, S. (2006) Everything Bad is Good For You: How Today’s Popuular Culture is Actually Making us Smarter. Riverhead Books. Provenzo, E. (1991) Video Kids. Harvard University Press. Sheff, D. (1994) Video Games: A Guide For Savvy Parents. Random House. Tapscott, D. (1998) Growing Up Digital. McGraw-Hill. Vordere, P. and Bryant, J. (2006) Playing Video Games: Motives, Responses, and Consequences. Routledge. Weiten, W. (2008) Psychology: Themes and Variations. Cengage Learning. Read More