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Gaming among Children and Adolescents during the COVID-19 Lockdown: The Role of Parents in Time Spent on Video Games and Gaming Disorder Symptoms

Author

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  • Maria Anna Donati

    (NEUROFARBA Department, Psychology Section, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy)

  • Cristiana Alessia Guido

    (Department of Maternal Sciences, Child Neurology Division, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
    Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy)

  • Giuliano De Meo

    (Department of Maternal Sciences, Child Neurology Division, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy)

  • Alberto Spalice

    (Department of Maternal Sciences, Child Neurology Division, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy)

  • Francesco Sanson

    (NEUROFARBA Department, Psychology Section, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy)

  • Carola Beccari

    (NEUROFARBA Department, Psychology Section, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy)

  • Caterina Primi

    (NEUROFARBA Department, Psychology Section, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy)

Abstract

It is mainly children and adolescents who are involved in video gaming. The lockdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may have further increased their use of video games and, consequently, the risk of gaming disorder (GD) symptoms. However, currently, we do not have exhaustive knowledge of this issue. To fill this gap, the current study aims to analyze video gaming habits in children and adolescents during the lockdown, starting in March 2020 in Italy, the first European country affected by the pandemic. Specifically, we aim to understand how variables related to parents—for instance, knowledge of their offspring’s life, the monitoring of their video gaming habits, and parental use of video games—are related to their offspring’s time spent on video games and GD symptoms. A web-based survey involving parents ( n = 554, 79% mothers, mean age = 45.39) of 554 children and adolescents (73% males, mean age = 11.11) was utilized. The results showed that they were involved in video games, particularly boys and adolescents, with high rates of GD symptoms. The parents also spent a considerable amount of time playing video games. A path model that explained the mechanisms through which parental variables were related to their offspring’s time spent on video games and GD symptoms, controlling for gender and age, was verified. Overall, the findings indicate the importance of educating parents to behave effectively with respect to video games and monitor their offspring’s video gaming habits.

Suggested Citation

  • Maria Anna Donati & Cristiana Alessia Guido & Giuliano De Meo & Alberto Spalice & Francesco Sanson & Carola Beccari & Caterina Primi, 2021. "Gaming among Children and Adolescents during the COVID-19 Lockdown: The Role of Parents in Time Spent on Video Games and Gaming Disorder Symptoms," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(12), pages 1-19, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:12:p:6642-:d:578627
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Ledyard Tucker & Charles Lewis, 1973. "A reliability coefficient for maximum likelihood factor analysis," Psychometrika, Springer;The Psychometric Society, vol. 38(1), pages 1-10, March.
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    1. Rosa Bosch & Mireia Pagerols & Raquel Prat & Gemma Español-Martín & Cristina Rivas & Montserrat Dolz & Josep Maria Haro & Josep Antoni Ramos-Quiroga & Marta Ribasés & Miquel Casas, 2022. "Changes in the Mental Health of Children and Adolescents during the COVID-19 Lockdown: Associated Factors and Life Conditions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(7), pages 1-17, March.
    2. Joel Hülquist & Nicole Fangerau & Rainer Thomasius & Kerstin Paschke, 2022. "Resource-Strengthening Training for Parents of Adolescents with Problematic Gaming (Res@t-P): A Clinical Pilot Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-16, August.
    3. Jorge Oceja & Víctor J. Villanueva-Blasco & Andrea Vázquez-Martínez & Verónica Villanueva-Silvestre & Susana Al-Halabí, 2023. "Keep Playing or Restart? Questions about the Evaluation of Video Game Addiction from a Systematic Review in the Context of COVID-19," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-13, January.
    4. Dongil Kim & Junwon Lee, 2021. "Addictive Internet Gaming Usage among Korean Adolescents before and after the Outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comparison of the Latent Profiles in 2018 and 2020," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(14), pages 1-17, July.

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