Gaming addiction: Playtime is not the problem for teens

The debate over video games among teenagers is often dominated by broad alarmism. A large-scale study from Karl Landsteiner Private University in Krems now brings hard data into the discussion. The Austrian researchers analyzed the gaming behavior of 3,854 teenagers between the ages of 12 and 16. The study's central finding is clear: Time spent playing in front of a screen is not what causes cognitive deficits. What matters more for mental development is whether gaming remains controlled or takes on the traits of a clear internet gaming disorder.

Rather than condemning screen time itself, the scientific analysis focuses on dysregulated gaming. When teenagers lose control over their gaming behavior, develop an extremely strong urge to play video games, or keep playing despite negative consequences at school, experts refer to it as a gaming disorder. According to the study, this compulsive behavior is exactly what leads to measurably worse results in cognitive tests. Affected teenagers showed major weaknesses in logical reasoning, long-term memory, and visuospatial and verbal abilities. Teenagers with gaming addiction also made significantly more mistakes in quick decisions under performance pressure.

However, when teenagers play with a clear purpose and remain in control, gaming time alone can even have slightly positive effects on cognitive performance. A teenager who spends hours deeply focused on a complex strategy game behaves very differently from someone who plays out of pure compulsion. Using validated psychological and motor tests as well as modern structural equation models, the researchers led by Dr. David Willinger were able to clearly separate the effects of gaming time and addictive behavior for the first time.

The video game genre also plays an important role in brain development. According to the analysis, RPGs and strategy games with complex building and planning elements promote players' logical and verbal skills. Fast-paced, action-oriented shooter games, on the other hand, showed the clearest link to the severity of a potential internet gaming disorder. The researchers therefore strongly warn against treating intensive gaming as a cognitive risk across the board, but call for a much more nuanced look at individual usage patterns.