Are video games the cause of changes in the behavior of boys and girls?: A case study with students of 5th year of primary school in Puebla

Abstract

The Problematic Use of Internet (PUI) has been associated with behavioral problems in children. In this article, a study with children in fifth grade in a primary school in Puebla is presented. It studies the relation between playing more than two hours of video games and three behavioral problems: having problems with others because of video games, eating while playing videogames, and sadness. Results show a positive correlation between playing more than two hours of videogames and eating while playing videogames. Likewise, the study identifies a weak causal effect between sadness and the probability of playing more than two hours of videogames. These results highlight the need for further studies about the relationship between games dedicated to play videogames and behavioral problems in 10-year-old children