Impact of Video Games on Adolescents’ Family Relationships and

Academic Performance

Yutong Ni

Sociology, Department of Social Science, The University of Manchester, U.K.

Keywords: Video Games, Adolescent Education, Family Relationship.

Abstract: Video games have become an integral part of adolescents' lives, and they have a dual impact on adolescents'

family relationships and academic performance. On the negative side, excessive gaming can lead to strained

family relationships and lower academic performance, as adolescents who are addicted to gaming spend less

time interacting with their families and have less concentration and self-control. However, family interaction

and communication can be enhanced if parents are actively involved in their children's games. In terms of

academics, moderate gaming can positively affect learning by improving cognitive skills and problem-solving

abilities. Studies have shown that the impact of video games is closely related to the frequency and pattern of

use as well as the home environment. Parents are advised to help their children develop a reasonable gaming

schedule and choose educational or co-operative games to promote family relationships and academic

development. Game manufacturers should also take responsibility for controlling adolescents' gaming time.

This study highlights the need for a balanced approach to video games and emphasises the importance of

parental involvement and industry responsibility in supporting the healthy development of adolescents in the

digital world.

1 INTRODUCTION

Video games are interactive computer-based games

that allow players to control on-screen characters or

elements usually in a virtual environment (Fernández

& Cortés, 2024). In recent years, as a product of

digital development and the popularization of

electronic products, video games, which are

inherently fun, have become an indispensable part of

young people's lives, but the status quo of online

gaming addiction has ensued, affecting all aspects of

their development. In popular perception, video

games are often associated with negative outcomes,

such as poor academic performance, increased

aggression, and deterioration of family relationships.

But there is still only a limited body of literature that

provides people with information about how video

games specifically affect adolescents' family

relationships and academic performance, although in

recent years a series of emerging studies have shown

that the effects of video games may not be as one-

sided as once thought. A rational view of video games

can help develop the domestic gaming industry as

well as the physical and mental development of

adolescents.

Therefore, this paper aims to provide an

understanding of how video games affect the lives of

adolescents, especially in terms of family

relationships as well as academic performance. This

paper also attempts to provide parents, educators, and

game developers with practical advice on how to

enhance the positive aspects of video games while

mitigating their negative effects. Ultimately, the goal

of this paper is to promote a balanced approach to

supporting the healthy development of adolescents in

an increasingly digitalized world.

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

In recent years, video games have become an

unignorable part of young people's daily lives. They

have a profound effect on adolescent development.

For a long time, the popular perception was that video

games could only have a negative effect on

adolescents in family relations and academic situation,

but many studies in this area suggest that the situation

may be different. This paper will discuss the effects

of video games in terms of both negative and positive

effects in turn.

Ni, Y.

Impact of Video Games on Adolescents’ Family Relationships and Academic Performance.

DOI: 10.5220/0014138400004942

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Applied Psychology and Marketing Management (APMM 2025), pages 523-526

ISBN: 978-989-758-791-7

523

2.1 Relationship Between Video Games

and Families

Many studies have shown that video games have a

negative impact on family relationships. First,

according to Boson, the length of adolescents' gaming

behaviour affects the quality of parent-child

relationships over time. In other words, adolescents

who are chronically addicted to video games usually

spend less time interacting with their parents or

siblings, leading to strained and distant family

relationships (Boson et al., 2024). And some

researchers explored the relationship between video

games and teenage violence against parents. The

study pointed out that if adolescents, especially

younger children, were easily influenced by in-game

values or mimic the behaviour of in-game characters

during gameplay, they may verbally or physically

attack their family members and deteriorate family

relationships (Guerrero et al., 2024). In addition, Liu's

study randomly selected 363 adolescents in Henan

Province, aged between 12 and 18 years old, and used

the adolescent game addiction questionnaire, the

family intimacy and adaptability scale and the UCLA

loneliness scale to conduct questionnaire surveys, and

to study the differences between the adolescents'

levels of online game addiction in terms of gender,

number of years of playing, and age at each level (Liu

& Zhang, 2024). Liu states that adolescent online

game addiction is significantly negatively correlated

with family closeness, with higher perceived

closeness in the family being associated with a

diminished need for online games (Liu & Zhang,

2024). Many adolescents are addicted to games

because of loneliness or weak interpersonal

interactions, but this can only provide them with

short-lived happiness, and the loneliness may be

exacerbated when they return to real life to face their

parents' criticisms and accusations, which makes

them want to be addicted to games even more, which

is a kind of vicious circle that also deteriorates their

family relationships.

However, the impact of video games on family

relationships is not entirely negative. Since video

games can accommodate multiple players, if parents

have a positive attitude toward video games and

choose to play with their children, they can

effectively promote interaction and communication

among family members, just as Zhang's research

suggests that good characters like excellent time

management skills and self-control ability are

conducive to minimizing the negative effects of video

games on intimate relationships. At the same time,

parents and children can increase the quality of time

spent together and the quality of activities by

choosing games with high binary interactivity as

common leisure activities (Zhang, 2022). Common

games not only provide parents and children with

common interests and topics but also can increase the

emotional connection between parents and children.

In addition, if parents can understand adolescents'

gaming behaviours and actively enlighten them, it can

also improve family relationships. The study by Gao

mentions in detail how parents can moderate their

children's video gaming behaviours and how this

mediation can increase trust and affection between

parents and children (Gao et al., 2023).

Overall, the quality of family relationships is

closely related to family members' attitudes towards

video games. Moderate, shared participation in games

can promote family closeness, while over-indulgence

in games may bring about family conflict and

alienation.

2.2 Relationship Between Video Games

and Adolescent Academics

There is a more complex academic discussion about

the relationship between video games and

adolescents' academic performance. Many studies

have shown that the effects of video games on

academic performance are not single or direct but are

often governed by a variety of factors such as

individual differences, game type, and time of use.

Several studies have suggested that moderate use

of video games can have some positive cognitive

effects on learning, and Zeng found in the study of

online games for college students the length of daily

play and the reasons for playing were investigated.

The college students in the sample mainly played

online games for 3 to 5 hours a day, accounting for

46.5%; followed by 1 to 3 hours, accounting for

28.1%; and there were quite a number of students

who play video games each day lasted for 5 to 8 hours,

accounting for 17.9% (Zeng, 2023).He noted that

sixty percent of middle school students played games

for more than two hours a day, but there was no

significant difference in motivation or academic

performance between these individuals and those

who were light Internet users (less than one hour of

gaming), and some of these gamers even appeared to

be better at gaming than other, even some gamers

appear to be better (Liu & Zhang, 2024). This

suggests that moderate video gaming can help

improve adolescents' attention, reaction time, and

problem-solving skills, which have a positive impact

on academic performance. According to a study by

Clear Research Group based on a Pew Research

APMM 2025 - International Conference on Applied Psychology and Marketing Management

524

Centre survey of video game play among 1,423 U.S.

teens ages 13 to 17, found that more than half of teens

label themselves as professional gamers and feel they

can gain new knowledge and friendships from

gaming (Group, 2024). More than 60 percent of teens

think that their problem-solving skills have been

improved through gaming (Group, 2024).

Challenging tasks in games can enhance decision-

making and strategic thinking, skills that sometimes

transfer to academics to improve learning efficiency

and performance. Additionally, the research of Ren

uses meta-analysis to quantify the effects of 63

Chinese and international educational games on

students' academic performance and shows that some

educational games can not only help adolescents

reduce academic pressure and maintain mental health

but also increase adolescents' interest in and memory

of the corresponding knowledge through the setting

of game levels (Ren et al., 2021). This can promote

positive academic development.

Inevitably, some teens are unable to control their

gaming hours and the importance of distinguishing

between gaming and real life, and gaming addiction

creates problems in their academic lives. Several

studies have emphasized the negative impact of

overindulgence in video games on adolescents'

academic performance. For example, Tang and Zhu

found that some adolescents, especially younger

children like under 13 years old, are easily influenced

when they play violent and bloody games, resulting

in their personalities becoming irritable and having

difficulty concentrating, which affects their life and

academic performance in school (Yang & Zhu, 2024).

In addition, Yang found that 61% of minors played

video games more frequently and 80% of adolescents

begin to master video games at the elementary school

stage, and a small number of people begin to contact

video games at the kindergarten stage, and the contact

with the online game population shows a trend of low

age (Yang, 2021). There is this phenomenon to

analyse the phenomenon of adolescent addiction in

video games. He pointed out that excessive playing

video games is prone to pathological physiological

and psychological dependence. Game addicted

adolescents are aware of the hazards of being deeply

involved in online games but are still unable to

extricate themselves from helpless behaviour. There

will be anxiety, loss, irritability, and other emotional

states of mind, which in turn seriously affect normal

life. The addictive character of the game makes it

often difficult for adolescents to formulate and

implement effective study plans and self-control,

resulting in a significant decline in academic

performance. Prolonged gaming tends to make

adolescents addicted as well as having anxiety and

emptiness in real life.

Thus, the impact of video games on academic

performance depends on the frequency and manner of

use, as well as individual differences. Overall, it

seems that moderate gaming time with good time

management can help adolescents develop cognitive

skills to some extent, while overindulgence can

negatively affect academic performance.

3 DISCUSSION AND

SUGGESTION

Based on the above analysis of the literature the

present study of this paper can see that video games

as a new product, adolescents can easily be influenced

by the content inside, thus bringing negative effects

on family relationships and academics, but if

effectively controlled, video games can also enhance

family relationships and have little effect on

academics. Therefore, it is suggested that parents

should help their children set a reasonable schedule

for video games to ensure that the games do not

interfere with family gatherings and daily interactions.

Moreover, they can enhance communication between

families by playing some games together. At the same

time, parents can guide their children to choose

educational games or games that require cooperation

among family members, to promote cooperation and

understanding among family members. In addition,

the balance between play and school can be flexibly

adjusted according to the age and personality of the

child. For example, for younger children, parents can

intervene more and guide; for older teenagers, they

can establish a relationship of trust, so that they can

plan their own time to develop a reasonable game

relaxation time, so that both labour and leisure to

enhance learning efficiency. The game manufacturers

should also assume the corresponding responsibility

for the youth's game time to make the corresponding

restrictions so that the youth's game time is controlled

in a reasonable range.

In addition, the three factors of video games,

family relationships, and adolescent academic

performance will also affect each other. A good

family environment will reduce the probability of

adolescents being addicted to video games, which

will make them invest more time in sports or study,

which will help to improve adolescent academic

performance. Meanwhile, good academic

performance is more likely to make parents believe in

their teenagers' self-control and relax their control

Impact of Video Games on Adolescents’ Family Relationships and Academic Performance

525

over their children's gaming time, which can improve

the relationship between family members and reach a

virtuous circle. Therefore, parents need to actively

participate in, guide, and manage their children's use

of video games to help them find a balance between

gaming, schooling, and family, and to promote the

holistic physical and mental development of young

people.

4 CONCLUSION

This paper examines the dual effects of video games

on adolescents' family relationships and academic

performance by analysing existing literature. Studies

have shown that moderate use of video games can

help enhance adolescents' cognitive abilities,

problem-solving skills, and in some cases can

promote interaction and communication among

family members. However, over-indulgence in video

games may lead to estrangement of family

relationships and a decline in academic performance.

Taken together, the effects of video games on

adolescents are not singularly negative but are closely

related to the frequency and mode of use as well as

the family environment. In addition, parents are

advised to help their children set reasonable play

schedules to ensure that games do not interfere with

family gatherings and daily interactions. Meanwhile,

parents can promote communication and bonding

among family members by playing games with their

children. In addition, the balance between gaming and

schooling should be flexibly adjusted according to the

age and personality characteristics of the children.

Game manufacturers should also take the

responsibility to formulate relevant measures to

control teenagers' gaming time to ensure that it is

within a reasonable range.

However, there are some shortcomings and

limitations in the study of this paper. Firstly, the study

mostly relies on questionnaires and self-reports,

which may have participant bias and fail to fully

understand the real gaming behaviour of adolescents.

In addition, the impact of different types of games on

adolescents is highly variable, and future studies

should further refine and analyse the impact of

different types of games such as violent, educational,

and social games.

Future research can be expanded in several

directions. First, long-term research on game

addiction and its effects on psychological and social

behaviours should be strengthened, and long-term

research on the effects of video games on adolescents

of different ages should be explored. Second, more

experimental studies can be combined to further

verify the specific effects of different types of games

on cognitive ability, academic performance and social

skills. Finally, with the continuous development of

the gaming industry, future research should focus on

the potential impact of emerging gaming technologies,

such as virtual reality, on adolescent growth.

REFERENCES

B., Gao, F., Liao, & H., Xie. Parents, children, and video

games: An analysis of the paths of conflict formation

and countermeasures. Environ. Soc. Psychol., 8, 1638

(2023)

C., Tang, & W., Zhu. An empirical study of the effects of

violent video game exposure on adolescent gaming

bullying: The moderating role of empathy. Youth Dev.

Forum, 2, 71-80 (2024)

Fernández, A. Ruiz, & Cortés, D. Cantón. Video games,

violence justification, and child-to-parent violence. J.

Child Fam. Stud., 33 (2024)

G., Zhang. The effects of video games on intimate

relationships: From motivation to behavior. Future

Commun. (2022)

Group, Clear Research. Teen video game survey report.

163.com. Available online at

https://www.163.com/dy/article/JBQQNL210518TPI

G.html (2024, September 11)

Guerrero, M. Junco, A. Ruiz-Fernández, & D. Cantón-

Cortés. Video games, violence justification, and child-

to-parent violence. J. Child Fam. Stud., 33 (2024)

K., Boson, S. Gurdal, & S., Kapetanovic. Adolescent play

and parent-child emotional intimacy: A bivariate

relationship in a longitudinal perspective. Curr. Psychol.

(2024)

S., Yang. Analyzing the causes of minors' video game

addiction from the video game industry environment.

China New Commun., 16, 148-149 (2021)

X., Liu, & D., Zhang. The effects of loneliness and family

functioning on adolescents' online game addiction: A

questionnaire and empirical study. Adv. Psychol., 14(7),

482 (2024)

Y., Ren, A., Tao, & R., Li. Research on the effects of

educational games on students' academic performance:

A meta-analysis based on 63 experimental and quasi-

experimental studies. Shanghai Educ. Res., 3, 33-40

(2021)

Y., Zeng. Investigation and research on the influence of

online game behavior on students' academic

achievements. J. Educ. Educ. Res. (2023)

APMM 2025 - International Conference on Applied Psychology and Marketing Management

526