Effects of active video games on the physical and psychological well-being of children, adolescents, and young adults: A meta-analysis

ABSTRACT

Background@#Game developers incorporated the enjoyment of playing video games into the promotion of positive health outcomes. It led to the development of video games that are considered to be a form of exercise and are now popularly called exergames.@*Objective@#To determine the effect of active video-gaming on the physical and psychological well-being of children, adolescents, and young adults@*Methods@#Literature was searched using databases such as PubMed, ProQuest, Scopus, ScienceDirect, CINAHL, and PsychInfo. Bibliographical articles from included studies were also examined. The review included studies involving children and adolescents (4-17 years old) and young adults (18-24 years old) who are of normal weight, overweight, or obese. The included articles were assessed for any risk of bias using RoB tool in Review Manager (RevMan) [Computer program] Version 5.3, Copenhagen The Nordic Cochrane Centre, The Cochrane Collaboration (2014).@*Results@#A total of 7 studies were included in the quantitative assessment of physical activity (PA), Body Mass Index (BMI), body fat, and heart rate (HR). A total of 8 studies were included in the systematic review on perceived exertion, enjoyment, motivation, and perceived competence. Study results showed that exergames increase moderate-to-vigorous physical activity by 5.93 minutes 95% CI [4.81, 7.05]. However, there was no benefit found on body mass index, body fat, and heart rate. The review of articles showed mixed results on the benefits of exergames on RPE, enjoyment, motivation, and perceived exertion@*Conclusion@#Active video gaming increases moderate-to-vigorous physical activity in children, adolescents, and young adults. However, exergames neither decrease nor increase BMI, heart rate, and body fat. There were mixed results on the benefits of exergames on rating of perceived exertion, enjoyment, motivation, and perceived competence