By Katsenos Spyros, Georgiopoulos Stathis & Douvri Konstandina
The advantages of video games
The positive effects of video games have to do both with the elements of the games themselves and with elements relating to the enviroment that is formed around an online game.
In an electronic game the child is asked to make specific movements in order to achieve a good result in a short time, in short he enters a thought process.
Consequently, he can improve his skills to a very basic level, in terms of hand-eye coordination, the so-called fine movements.
As the games become more complex, then the player will need to draw a sequence of movements within the game, a specific path,
to assess its strengths, to manage resources at its disposal to improve its position.
Many video games also contain problems and puzzles. In that way, the player will develop the ability to read and basic mathematical skills accordingly
problems and puzzles that you will be called upon to solve. He will start making assumptions and verifying them, he will use a mnemonic map of the area in which
the game is played. Finally, he will be able to develop a good understanding of the situation at any time and make quick decisions after analyzing the situation.
The most important thing is that he will need to concentrate for a significant period of time and insist on his self-improvement in order to be able to overcome his opponents starting with zero skills.
In the microcosm created around a game, children engage in dialogues first at the level of a group’s basic understanding and then creating stable groups of teammates and if
the game allows, large teams of tens or even hundreds of clans. In this context, the children-players know each other better and beyond what a nickname may suggest,
and on the sidelines of a batch, they talk and comment. Some will go through the process of organizing others to develop organizational skills and decision-making skills,
while at the same time everyone will benefit from the team spirit of cooperation. This initially limited social contact can help shy children, or children without social skills, feel accepted
and practice how to talk and make friends.
The disadvantages of video games
Video game addiction is mainly due to the secretion of dopamine that is released in the brain after each victory. This hormone is responsible for the feeling of satisfaction and people
we tend to repeat behaviors that please us. Apparently, according to the researchers” findings, video games are designed to fire repeatedly
the secretion of «good» substances, such as dopamine. The electronic world of toys exerts a multi-sensory effect (sound, image, graphics, movement) in which one can hardly, let alone a child,
to avoid because it magnetizes the mind. And it is an indisputable fact that they train the brain in an environment where the immediate reward for any small «success» prevails, as a result of which it rises
dopamine, the hormone of pleasure. According to a post by Psychologytoday, dopamine rewards specific behaviors so that we can repeat them but also does more than just
to enhance our sense of happiness. It is also responsible for regulating muscle movement, improving cognitive function, maintaining concentration, making decisions, evaluating problems.
and their resolution and regulation of prolactin secretion. According to scientists studying the phenomenon, a success or failure in an electronic game «raises» or «lowers» dopamine
from the sloping nucleus of the brain and so the immediate reward model works. The most serious cases of addiction are found in boys compared to girls, while there are studies
since 2011 but also neuroimaging studies that show changes in the gray matter of the brain, but also changes in rates of glucose metabolism in brain structures in normal individuals compared to addicts.
