Smart parents use smartphones to help their kids

Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Reader in Psychology at Goldsmiths said: "These findings are important because they highlight the social benefits of playing videogames. Previous research has tended to look only at the individual effects of video games, but in the era of social networking games appear to play a vital role in enhancing social relationships. The fact that both parents and grandparents are using games to connect with their children and grandchildren, and quite successfully, suggests that video games can improve social skills and make a key contribution to both effective parenting and child development."

Cathy Orr, Senior Director of International PR at PopCap said: "As technology becomes even more consumer-friendly, we at PopCap are delighted to see videogames playing an increasing role within family leisure time. Videogames are becoming as popular a mainstream lifestyle entertainment as movies or music and finding a place in family life alongside traditional parlour or board games - or in many cases, providing a new videogame format for family favourite board games. PopCap has conducted a lot of research to prove that casual games are not only extremely fun but can also aid stress relief - undoubtedly a positive for family members across the board!"

Other Studies Support the Benefits of Videogaming

Gaming Update's own Chris Boots-Faubert recently wrote an article on related research - in his piece The Psychology of Video Games: It's a Spatial Thing , Boots-Faubert discusses the benefits of gaming for kids and adults, including improving their spatial skills, pointing out that research suggests that parents should be concerned with encouraging their daughters to play games more, in order to maintain parity with the learning process experienced by boys.

Part of the article dealt with the myths that games and videogaming have detrimental effects upon scholarly endeavors, referring to eight common myths that are widely accepted by parents that as it turns out are simply untrue. If you are a parent and are concerned about allowing your kids to game - or what types of games you should let them play - the article is a good read with lots of valuable information in it.

Do your kids use your smartphone to game? Do they have their own? Share your views by commenting below!

*Figures based number of parents with dependent children from 2001 ONS census