Autistic Children more Likely to Develop Video Game Addiction

TV and video games are gaining more popularity among autistic children. Providing ample evidence to prove this, a new study has found that children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were sticking on to TV and video games longer than children without the disorder.  

This trend can prove to be harmful and can further increase the risk of developing problematic video game habits like video game addiction, University of Missouri (MU) researchers who conducted the study, warn parents.

"Many parents and clinicians have noticed that children with ASD are fascinated with technology, and the results of our recent studies certainly support this idea," Micah Mazurek, an assistant professor of health psychology and a clinical child psychologist at MU, said in a news release. "We found that children with ASD spent much more time playing video games than typically developing children, and they are much more likely to develop problematic or addictive patterns of video game play."

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which starts normally by age 3, is a developmental disorder that leads to significant social, communication and behavioral changes. A latest report from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that one in every 50 school children in the U.S. was affected with autism.

For the study, researchers included 202 autistic children and their 179 siblings without the disorder. Researchers found that the autistic children were spending more time on video games and TV than physical activities compared to their siblings.

"Children with ASD may be attracted to video games because they can be rewarding, visually engaging and do not require face-to-face communication or social interaction. Parents need to be aware that, although video games are especially reinforcing for children with ASD, children with ASD may have problems disengaging from these games," Mazurek explained.

The study has been scheduled to be published in the upcoming issue of the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

The current findings support another study conducted by the same researchers earlier on 169 autistic boys. The previous study, reported in Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders in the February 2013 edition, found that children who were addicted to TV and video games developed oppositional behaviors like tendencies to disobey or argue.