New study reveals that video games may have a surprising effect on children’s IQ, and parents will be shocked to find out what it is.
Parents around the world often worry about how much time their children spend playing video games, but a new study has just revealed that video games can have a surprising effect on children’s IQ.
According to a report conducted in Sweden by the Karolinska Institute in 2022, playing video games may actually increase a child’s IQ. Torkel Klingberg, professor of cognitive neuroscience at the Karolinska Institute, stated that playing helps increase intelligence.
“Our findings support the claim that screen time generally does not harm children’s cognitive abilities, and that playing video games can actually help boost intelligence,” he said.
Researchers at the Institute observed nearly 10,000 children, aged 9 to 10 years, who on average spent 2.5 hours a day watching TV or online videos, 1 hour playing video games, and 30 minutes socializing online with friends or family.
After a two-year period, data from 5,000 of these children was reanalyzed, and it was found that those who spent more time playing video games had an additional 2.5-point increase in their IQ compared to other children.
The IQ assessment was based on performance in tasks involving self-control, flexible thinking, memory, reading comprehension, and spatial visual processing. The researchers observed that the increase in IQ was directly related to video games.
According to the research data, children who watched more TV or spent more time than usual on social media did not show an increase in IQ.
However, Klingberg made it clear that other aspects of child development were not analyzed, and just because video games may increase intelligence, parents should not let their children play as much as they want.
“We did not examine the effects of screen time on physical activity, sleep, well-being, or academic performance, so we cannot say anything about that,” he said. “We will now study the effects of other environmental factors and how cognitive effects relate to children’s brain development.”
Illustration: techbreak / condutta. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
