What Your Kids Are Playing: A
Parent’s Guide to Video
Games and Online Safety
Presented by: Donald Clinger, Ed.S., NCSP
About the Presenter
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APS employee for 7 years
Father of one small boy
Video game enthusiast (XBOX 360)
Non-video game interests: Sports (basketball,
football), Music (guitar), Technology
Presentation Topics
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Video Game Rating System
Online gaming
Talking to your kids about video games
Video games and its relation to behavior
Screen Time
Resources for Parents
ESRB
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Entertainment Software Rating Board
Provides guidance about the content and
age-appropriateness of computer and video
games
The MPAA of video games
The Ratings – The Front of the
Box
The Descriptors – The Back of the Box
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The following are examples of possible game
descriptors:
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Intense Violence
Fantasy Violence
Sexual Content
Crude Humor
Strong Language
Blood & Gore
Comic Mischief
Use of Drugs
Lyrics
The Ratings Continued
ESRB Ratings apply to all console versions
of the same title.
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Call of Duty has the same content on the PS3,
XBOX 360, and Nintendo Wii
For Example
And…
And…
And…
Online Gaming
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Most games have an online component. This
includes sports titles and other E rated
games
This means your child can:
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Play with a friend that has the same game
Play with complete strangers that have the same
game
Online Gaming Cont.
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ESRB ratings do not apply to online
interactions or content
Consult parental controls to limit who your
child can play with online
ESRB website has detailed information on
setting parental controls for major consoles
(XBOX 360, Wii, PS3)
Talking about games
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“It's important to pay attention to the nature of
the games and the sense that kids make of
the experience." Kahne
Ask your kids what they did in the game
Ask them what is their favorite part of the
game
Watch them play or join in
Explain the difference between M and E rated
games and why they can or cannot play them
Value to Video Games
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Many games have a problem solving
component (Lego game series)
In such games, players are encouraged to
constantly form and test hypotheses. Players
have the opportunity to learn to see mistakes
as opportunities for improvement, rather than
errors
Social skills: Almost 60% of frequent gamers
play with friends. 33% play with siblings and
25% play with parents.
Pew Internet & American Life Study
“Teens, Video Games, and Civics”
09/16/2008
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97% of teens ages 12-17 play computer, web,
portable, or console games (99% of boys and 94%
of girls)
The five most popular games among American
teens are Guitar Hero, Halo 3, Madden NFL,
Solitaire, and Dance Dance Revolution.
32% of gaming teens report that at least one of their
three favorite games is rated Mature.
The two most widely played game genres were
racing and puzzle games, played by nearly threequarters of teens in the sample.
Violent behavior and VIOLENT
video games
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Over two hundred studies have been published which examine the effects of
violence in entertainment media and which at least partially focus on violence in
video games in particular. Some psychological studies have shown a correlation
between children playing violent video games and suffering psychological
effects, though the vast majority stop short of claiming behavioral causation.
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The American Psychological Association summarizes the issue as,
"Psychological research confirms that violent video games can increase
children's aggression, but that parents moderate the negative effects.“ Craig A.
Anderson has testified before the U.S. Senate on the issue, and his metaanalysis of these studies has shown five consistent effects: "increased
aggressive behavior, thoughts, and affect; increased physiological arousal; and
decreased pro-social (helping) behavior". Nevertheless, some studies explicitly
deny that such a connection exists, most notably Anderson and Ford (1986),
Winkel et al. (1987), Scott (1995), Ballard and Lineberger (1999), and Jonathan
Freedman (2002). More recently, Block and Crain (2007) claim that in a critical
paper by Anderson (and his co-author, Bushman), data was improperly
calculated and produced fallacious results.
Violent behavior and VIOLENT
video games continued
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After conducting a two-year study of more than 1,200
middle school children about their attitudes towards
video games, Harvard Medical School researchers
Lawrence Kutner and Cheryl Olson found that playing
video games did not have a particularly negative effect
on the researched group.
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It is also worth noting that violent crime rates in the USA
have declined dramatically since the early 1990s, among
both juveniles and adults, even as sales of violent video
games exploded and such games became increasingly
graphic over time.
Popular E Rated games
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Pokemon Video Game Series
Lego Series (Star Wars, Indiana Jones)
Most sports Titles (Madden, NBA, NHL, FIFA)
Most Mario Titles
Popular T rated games
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Guitar Hero Series
Rock Band Series (Lego Rock Band is rated E)
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Need for Speed Underground (Racing)
Popular M Rated Games
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Call of Duty Series (World at War, Modern
Warfare)
Halo Series
God of War Series
Grand Theft Auto Series
Screen Time
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Any time your child spends in front of a screen (TV,
internet, gaming)
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
recommends that kids under age 2 have no screen
time, and that kids older than 2 watch no more than
1 to 2 hours a day of quality programming.
It's also a good idea to make sure kids have a wide
variety of free-time activities like reading, playing
with friends, and sports, which all play a vital part in
helping them develop a healthy body and mind.
Screen Time Continued
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Stock the room in which you have your TV with plenty of other nonscreen entertainment (books, kids' magazines, toys, puzzles, board
games, etc.) to encourage kids to do something other than watch the
tube.
Keep TVs out of kids' bedrooms.
Turn off the TV during meals.
Don't allow your child to watch TV while doing homework.
Treat TV as a privilege that kids need to earn — not a right that they're
entitled to. Tell them that TV viewing is allowed only after chores and
homework are completed.
Set a good example. Limit your own TV viewing.
Keep the computer in a common area. Keep it where you can watch
and monitor your kids. Avoid putting a computer in a child's bedroom.
Bookmark your child's favorite sites. Your child will have easy access
and be less likely to make a typo that could lead to inappropriate
content.
Parent Resources
Game Reviews:
www.gamespot.com (General video game reviews, some content
not appropriate for young audiences)
www.ign.com (General video game reviews, some content not
appropriate for young audiences)
www.gamerdad.com (Video game reviews & other info from parental
perspective)
www.whattheyplay.com (Family guide to gaming)
Online Safety:
www.netsmartz.org
www.pta.org/mediasafety
www.webwisekids.org
www.wiredsafety.org
ESRB Website
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www.esrb.org
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Search for games by titles or key words
ParenTools email newsletter
Information available in Spanish
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Where Online Gaming Meets
Learning
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www.starfall.com (literacy games from ABC’s to nonfiction and more)
www.scholastic.com (various educational games
and activities for kids and parents)
www.seussville.com/university (Dr. Seuss themed
academic games)
www.funbrain.com/kidscenter (games in all
academic areas
www.brainpopjr.com (games in many academic
areas. *login required)
Closing
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You have the power to filter what your
children are exposed to through the media.
Movies and video games should be treated
similarly
Games can be beneficial to a child: social,
problem solving, frustration tolerance,
predicting, story-telling
Set screen time guidelines in your household
Every child is different.