Gaming has become a huge part of today’s culture. When the phenomenon began taking off, gaming was considered to be something only children should take part in. However, over the years, there’s been a significant increase in interest in this regard. And we’re not only talking about teenagers or adolescents. Gaming is something that’s become G rated. Since then, we’ve come to learn that gaming, although fun and engaging, could also be potentially harmful and bad. This has become somewhat of a typical and universal connection. We don’t even question its integrity anymore. However, what people really don’t have a tendency to discuss is that gaming can have some good consequences as well. We’re here to talk about ways in which gaming improves your mind.
Let’s talk about ways in which gaming improves your kids’ mind
Although you’ve probably heard about the fact that gaming could, if presented to kids from a very early age, be quite harmful. And that is something that’s inevitably true. However, if you were to introduce this style of fun to kids at the age of, let’s say, five, it wouldn’t necessarily need to be considered as something unhealthy.
Boundaries
On the contrary, kids could even benefit from it quite greatly. You do, though, need to set some boundaries first, so that those ways in which gaming improves your kids’ mind can shine through:
● Set a time limit
This is one of the most important things to think about. Although there are some ways in which gaming improves your mind, it can also harm it if you aren’t careful. Limiting your kids’ playtime is a must. There are many scientific articles on how long should kids be allowed to play video games. Most of them state that the limit should be no more than two hours each week.
● No violence
This restriction should be taken seriously. Seeing violent actions could not only scare your child and leave them with nightmares, but it could also normalize some things that shouldn’t be normalized by any means.
● Have a talk about what’s fantasy and what’s reality
For ways in which gaming improves your mind to be effective, you need to have an understanding of the fact that games and real life are two different things. Although easy for grown people, this isn’t as simple to fathom for young children. This is why you should check in with them from time to time. Make sure that they are aware of this.
The benefits of gaming
Although not visible at a first glance, digging deeper could help you see some ways in which gaming improves your mind. Aside from obvious things such as getting to be a part of great gaming communities, there are many more upsides.
Memory improvement
One of the greatest ways in which gaming improves your mind is that it helps you sustain memory better. Gaming can be a very attention-demanding activity. You need to develop some great memory and thinking strategies to be able to follow. There’s also the fact that you oftentimes need to be able to multitask in order to level up and be better, which is great motivation.
Motor skills
One of the most important skills children need to learn is to be quick on their toes and develop motor skills. And it’s not only effective when we’re talking about children. It can also help grown-ups improve their motor skills and reflexes.
Nurturing your competitive side
Many of us have natural competitiveness that’s a bit hard to cultivate nowadays. Real-world just doesn’t offer as many challenges in this regard as a fantasy gaming world does. By being able to win or lose, you develop a great sense of self and, luckily, an ambitious side that you otherwise wouldn’t have. This is a way in which gaming improves your mind that could also help you get ahead in real life, if applied correctly.
Creative thinking
Many of us are logical beings that don’t necessarily have a knack for creativity. This proves that gaming could not only be a way in which you could improve your mind but also gain some skills. You could use those skills later in many ways, even actually make a career out of what you’ve learned.
Decisiveness
Most games require a lot of decision making. Not only that, but those decisions need to be made fast and under pressure. Although this is just a fantasy world we’re discussing, these skills are something that you could easily transfer to real experiences from which you can gain a lot. This one might be the most useful out of all the ways in which your mind can benefit from gaming.
Beware
Although there are these and a lot more ways in which gaming is beneficial, there are also some in which it can harm you. As we’ve stated before, how you approach the whole gaming ordeal is what will determine whether you’ll experience the good or bad sides of it. There are, of course, many sources where you could inform yourself on how to prevent the manifestation of the bad sides.
Some of the potentially bad sides can be:
● Stress and anxiety
A lot of the time, kids and even adults can lose themselves in the games they play. What this can lead to is heightened stress and anxiety that won’t just cease to exist the moment that they stop playing the game.
● Lack of physical fitness
Although some games are interactive in a physical sense, most aren’t. This can cause serious issues if you aren’t able to honor your time restriction.
● Losing the sense of what’s real
Many people become so infatuated with gaming that they lose the ability to combine school or work with the gaming community.
Moderation
So, to sum up, there are awesome ways in which gaming improves your mind if done in moderation. Respect your own restrictions and limitations and there shouldn’t be a problem.