Are video games bad for kids’ mental health? There is no single answer, because “gaming” can mean very different things: a creative solo game, a cooperative evening with friends, or a tense online match that keeps a child awake. Dismissing all of it as harmful misses what children say they get from games—and what can go wrong. The better response is to ask what they play, who is there, how it feels, and what gaming is displacing.
What do children say they get from gaming?
An Australian eSafety Commissioner study of 1,799 online gamers aged 8–17, based on fieldwork in August and September 2023, found that most respondents said gaming supported at least one of three things: learning or skills, social connection, or emotional wellbeing. The same study found that four in ten reported negative gaming experiences, while three in ten teen gamers had encountered potentially harmful ideas. Those findings belong together: benefits and risks can coexist, even in the same young person’s life.
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The results describe what participating young people reported; they do not show that games caused better or worse mental health. They also describe online gamers in Australia, not every child or every kind of play. Still, they challenge the idea that gaming is merely wasted time. For some children it is a place to practise skills, relax, or spend time with friends. For others, it can involve upsetting content or interactions.
The eSafety Commissioner reports that young people wanted adults to understand what gaming is like for them, and that many would welcome the chance to game with parents and carers. That is the regulator’s summary of young people’s views, not a quotation from a named child. The underlying point is practical: listening is more likely to reveal what is actually happening than beginning with a verdict about games in general.
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What does the research say about games and mental health?
The available studies do not point to one universal effect. They examine different children, kinds of gaming, and outcomes, so their results should not be added together as if they measured the same thing.
A one-year study found some associations, not a simple cause-and-effect story
Adam Lobel and colleagues followed 194 children around ages 7–11 at two timepoints a year apart. Gaming frequency was associated with increases in emotion problems, but violent-game play was not associated with psychosocial changes. Competitive play was linked with lower prosocial behavior among frequent players—around eight or more hours per week. The authors said this finding needed replication. These associations do not establish that gaming caused the changes, and the competitive-play result is not a general threshold for harm.
A large European study did not find increased mental-health risk from gaming time
A 2016 study of 3,195 children aged 6–11 in six EU countries reported that video-game use was not associated with increased risk of mental-health problems. That observational finding is not proof that games improve mental health or that no child can be affected. It does, however, caution against assuming that time spent gaming alone predicts a mental-health problem.
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Broader digital-media guidance offers context, not game-specific proof
The World Health Organization says digital environments can support connection, learning, and access to services, while also exposing people to harmful content, excessive use and addictive behaviors, cyberbullying, and isolation. Its guidance concerns digital environments broadly, not video games alone.
The American Academy of Pediatrics’ January 2026 policy statement likewise describes digital media as potentially supporting learning, identity, expression, and wellbeing, particularly with supportive caregiver involvement, quality content, and positive peers. It also warns that engagement-centered commercial design can encourage prolonged use and displace healthy behaviors such as sleep and movement. This is broader digital-media policy, not evidence that a particular game causes a particular outcome.
In an October 1, 2026 release, Australia’s National Mental Health Commission described the relationship between digital technology and mental health as complex, with age, platform, content, social context, and vulnerabilities all mattering. Its reported direction-of-effect finding concerns digital technology overall, particularly social media; it should not be recast as proof about video games specifically.
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How can parents tell when gaming is a problem?
Hours matter, but they do not tell the whole story. None of these sources establishes one screen-time cutoff that predicts harm for every child. A more useful assessment looks at the child’s wellbeing and circumstances alongside the game, its social setting, and what play is crowding out.
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- Notice the effect on the child. Ask whether gaming leaves them relaxed, connected, frustrated, anxious, or distressed. Look for changes that persist beyond an ordinary disagreement about stopping.
- Find out what the game involves. Content, pace, competition, cooperation, and the presence of other players can make experiences very different. Ask what happens in the game and which parts matter to your child.
- Pay attention to interactions. Ask who they play with, how other players treat them, and whether anything online has felt threatening, humiliating, or hard to manage alone.
- Check what gaming displaces. Consider sleep, movement, schoolwork, family time, friendships, and other responsibilities. A routine that repeatedly pushes aside these needs deserves attention, whatever the game’s content.
- Consider the child’s wider situation. Age, social circumstances, existing vulnerabilities, and the support available around the child shape how an experience affects them.
A pattern of distress or meaningful interference with daily life is a reason to take the situation seriously, not to diagnose the child from their play habits. If concerns persist, discuss them with a qualified health professional.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Should parents play games with their children?
When a child is willing, playing together can make it easier to understand what the game actually asks of them. It gives adults a chance to see whether play is collaborative or competitive, how friends communicate, and what a child finds enjoyable or difficult. It can also turn a lecture about screen time into a conversation about a real shared activity. The eSafety Commissioner’s findings suggest many young people would welcome adults joining them.
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Being present does not require becoming an expert player. Start with open questions: “What do you like about this game?”, “Who do you usually play with?”, “Has anything happened in it that bothered you?”, and “Is it getting in the way of sleep or other things you want to do?” Listen to the answers before deciding what boundary or support is needed.
What should adults do when something goes wrong?
Respond to the specific experience rather than treating every game as the same. If a child describes harmful content, upsetting contact, or pressure to keep playing, take the account seriously, ask what would help them feel safe, and agree on practical next steps. Depending on the situation, that might mean changing how or with whom they play, setting a clearer stopping routine, or seeking support from a qualified professional. The evidence does not justify promising that a game will improve mental health, or assuming that gaming itself explains a child’s distress.
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Adults do not need to approve of every game to stay curious about the role it plays. Treating gaming as a subject a child can talk about—rather than a habit they must defend—makes it easier to notice both connection and harm. That is a more useful starting point than declaring games the enemy.
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