According to a three-year study of 13-to-16 year olds conducted by researchers from Brunel University, gaming online can be beneficial for teenagers, introducing them to a diversity that they might not otherwise encounter.
Virtual environments also give kids the freedom to explore their surroundings and socialize in ways that they might not be able to in real life. Said Brunel's Nic Crowe:
So kids get to hang out and be kids without their parents worrying that they're going to get gunned down in the street, picked up by axe murderers, or "carted away by gypsies," which was always my mom's main concern. (Apparently Newtown Square, PA had an enormous teenage-snatching gypsy population of which I was blissfully unaware.)
The social aspects aren't the only benefit of online gaming, however. According to Dr. Simon Bradford, also of Brunel University, gaming can open kids up to possibilities the average 13-year-old might not have:
The opposing point of view, of course, is that the anonymity of the Internets allows people to be complete jerkwads without fear of reprisal, thereby exposing other kids to some truly awful behavior--perhaps even inspiring them to such behavior themselves. And then there's the whole "everyone online is a pedophile" camp. So do the benefits outweigh the risks?
Computer games 'may be good for children' [The Scotsman, via Next-Gen]
