How video games are shaping a generation of boys, for better and worse

The fear is of addiction but video games have also become a central way for boys to socialise and gain a sense of belonging.

- Claire Cain Miller and Amy Fan

In the last decade and a half, boys and young men aged 15 to 24 more than doubled their average time spent gaming to about 10 hours a week, according to a major survey.

Some teachers say gaming has disrupted focus in classrooms. Some economists have linked it to the decline in young men's work hours. Many readers told us it was a chief reason for the recent struggles of boys and young men.

Yet video games also serve an important role in young people's lives. They've become a central way that young people socialise and provide them - especially boys - with a sense of belonging.

The increase in time boys and young men spent playing games was the biggest of any activity measured by the American Time Use Survey, the large federal survey that each year asks a nationally representative sample of thousands of people what they did every minute of a day. (The category includes other types of games, like cards, but evidence suggests it's mostly video games.)

The rise has coincided with technological changes that made games much more engrossing. Gaming went from an activity done at home on a console or computer to one also done on phones, anywhere and any time.

While parents have always worried about video games (especially whether playing certain games causes violence, a connection that has not been proven), a pressing concern now is about time spent playing.

As it has increased, the fear is that video games have displaced other activities in boys' and young men's lives - including physical activity, in-person socialising, homework, jobs and sleep.

A VIRTUAL COMMUNITY