The Impact of Excessive Video Gaming on Teenagers' Health and Academic

The Impact of Excessive Video Gaming on Teenagers’ Health and Academic Performance: A Study of NIS Students Marat Alikhan & Sailaukhanov AlanGrade 11C, NIS Ust-Kamenogorsk This study investigates the increasing prevalence of video gaming among adolescents at Nazarbayev Intellectual School in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan, and explores its effects on both academic achievement and physical health. Utilizing a mixed-methods research design—including surveys, focus group discussions, and expert interviews—the research reveals a nuanced picture: video gaming is linked to both beneficial and detrimental outcomes for students. Research suggests that the role of gaming in the lives of adolescents is complex, not just good or bad. Video games can bring obvious psychological and social benefits such as stress relief and building community. However, excessive gaming is not without its problems, including sleep disorders, physical discomfort, procrastination, and distraction in the classroom. In the age of technological dominance, video games have emerged as a top source of entertainment for teens. As per current estimates, an average teen spends more than eight hours a week gaming. This technological trend is not just a source of leisure; it has become a major social and psychological outlet. A study conducted by Przybylski et al. (2010) concludes that video games satisfy fundamental psychological needs such as autonomy, competence, and relatedness. The difference between recreational use and abuse is, however, becoming increasingly less distinguishable. The problem is when gaming begins to get in the way of a teenager's responsibilities, most significantly academic ones and physical health. In NIS Ust-Kamenogorsk, where academic expectation is high, some students showed signs of distraction and fatigue in class. This brought up the question of why video games themselves are not the problem, but rather an inability to prioritize time, and also a lack of discipline in gaming routine. A mixed-methods design was utilized in the study for an in-depth understanding of the topic. Quantitative data were obtained through questionnaires that were distributed to 40 students between the ages of 14–18 years. Stratified random sampling was used to achieve gender and grade-level representation. The questionnaires included close-ended and Likert-scale questions regarding gaming frequency, physical symptoms, sleeping patterns, and academic effect.To complement this data, qualitative data was gathered from two focus groups: one comprising regular gamers (5+ hours/week) and the other comprising recreational gamers (<3 hours/week). These focus groups were designed to reveal personal motivations, conflicts, and perceived effects of gaming on daily life. Along with this, an interview with a school psychologist and older pupils was conducted to provide expert opinion and real-life experience. Triangulation of these methods strengthened the validity of results to ensure that decisions were drawn based on both numerical patterns and individual beliefs.The survey found that 80% of the students play video games regularly. About 30% of them used to spend 3–6 hours a week playing, and 15% spent more than 10 hours. Nearly half of the subjects experienced physical discomfort such as back pain (40%) and eye strain (30%) after long sessions. Sleeping habits were disturbed for most, as 50% were sleeping less than 7 hours every night while in school. Approximately 60% confessed that gaming sometimes or frequently caused procrastination. Yet, merely 20% claimed a decrease in their grades; 70% saw no difference, and 10% saw improvement in skills such as problem-solving. Focus group interviews showed that the majority of the students game for fun and stress relief. Some considered gaming a reward after task completion, while others recognized that it was detrimental to academic performance. Interviews confirmed this by identifying decreased concentration, disrupted sleep, and lack of physical activity as main issues. There is empirical data that although gaming is a source of psychological well-being and social cohesion, over-gaming causes health problems and study issues. The problem does not reside in gaming but in the lack of control and time management. Those students who balanced gaming with school work had fewer adverse effects than students who were involved in unrestricted gaming. And there was the issue of physical health. Constant screen time coupled with bad posture, back pain, and eye strain—especially for those who game deep into the night. The school psychologist confirmed that excessive screen time with no exercise leads to long-term discomfort and long-term health consequences.Academically, the impact was mixed. For some, gaming was a source of procrastination and fatigue; for others, it was invigorating. These are in line with global studies that have linked addiction to video games with lower grades and lower quality of sleep (Gentile, 2009; Alanko, 2023). The research really emphasizes the importance of establishing disciplined gaming habits. Parental and institutional oversight matter here, not to stifle enjoyment, but to help students strike a reasonable balance between leisure and responsibility. The key message? When managed in moderation, gaming and healthy academic or personal development aren’t mutually exclusive—they can, in fact, coexist. It’s clear that for students at NIS, the main draw of gaming is entertainment, stress relief, and social interaction. But if left unchecked, this can seriously impact health and academic performance. Moderation and caution are critical—there’s no getting around that. To achieve a truly healthy balance of screen time, physical activity, and time management, collaboration among parents, students, and educators is crucial. Future studies should continue exploring the effects of different game genres, possible lasting cognitive advantages, and effective methods to incorporate gaming into healthy growth. There is still much to discover in this area. References Alanko, D. (2023). The Health Effects of Video Games in Children and Adolescents. Pediatr Rev, 44(1), 23–32. https://doi.org/10.1542/pir.2022-005666Gentile, D. (2009). Pathological Video-Game Use Among Youth Ages 8 to 18. Psychological Science, 20(5), 594–602. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02340.xGoodman, W. et al. (2020). Association of Video Game Use With Body Mass Index. 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