Potential Negative Effects of Violent Video Games Exposure on Aggressive Behavior Among Children in Pediatric Ward of Nizwa Hospital, Oman

Abstract

Background: Violent video games are a new generation of games nowadays to attract children to play and become addictedtothem. Daily exposureto it and spending more than 3-4 hours to it without monitoring or limitation time cause serious side effects in behavior over time.Aims and Objectives: The present study aimed to determine the impact of video game exposure on children's aggressive behavior in pediatric wards at Nizwa Hospital, Oman.Methodology: A cross-sectional descriptive study was adopted to collect data from the pediatric wardsamong fifty school children (6-13 years).The selection of the sample was made using the purposive sampling technique.Results:It was reported that 72% wanted to play video games, 64% violent video games and 50% of children spent 5-6hours playing video games weekly. In addition, 80% of children felt they wanted to fight, 56% wanted to shout after playing, 47% developed an aggressive mood, 65% thought it was fun to see somebody fighting,and 68% were not afraid when they saw blood. 54% have moderate aggression behavior, 36% got mild aggression behavior, and 30%got severe aggression behavior.Conclusion:Study of aggressivebehavior among children will bring awareness to enhance knowledge among children and parents about video games' side effects and for parents to monitor the child during play and improve children'sbehavior.