How much video game time is too much? Can kids get addicted to video games? How can parents teach their kids to set reasonable limits for themselves?

Video games are a big part of most kids’ lives these days, and they are often interactive and have a social aspect as well as an entertainment aspect. Kids are as likely to “meet up” at a multi-player gaming platform as they are to meet up at a skate park or a playground, if not more so.

But, some kids get so involved in gaming that they can’t put down the controller without a conflict. That conflict can lead parents to say things like, “I’m going to throw your Switch in the Black River” or “I’m canceling internet service” (this author is guilty of both).

The publication ADDitude offers some tips on their website. Tips include:

• Setting parental controls on all devices that can connect to games, be it desktop computers, laptops, iPads and tablets, and/or phones.
• Moving charging stations closer to you where you can monitor activity.
• Keeping video game controllers and other necessary accessories in one secure place and creating a “check-out” system for them (like a library).
• Using software, applications, and other technologies to limit access to certain activities.
• You may create a setting on your child’s computer, for instance, that blocks access to a certain URL during school hours.

Parents also need to be aware of what kind of game their child is playing. For example, if it is a multi-player game, they might need to communicate with their friends beforehand that they will be “leaving” at a certain time. The social aspect of gaming is something that many parents can not relate to.

Referring to the multi-player games, the author of the ADDitude article, Dave Anderson, Ph. D., says, “In this setup, it can be hard to simply stop the game in the exact moment you tell him to. Doing so may mean that he’s abandoning his friends in the middle of a quest or at another inopportune moment. Stopping a few minutes later, or when he clears or fails the mission, may make more sense. Keep this in mind when setting limits on video games; providing a soft barrier ahead of time might be the most reasonable route.”

The full article can be found here.

For BlueWaterParent.com – Jennie McClelland