TRENT INFORMATION FIRST TECHNICAL CAREER

INSTITUTE INC.,
Information and Communications Technology

CHAPTER 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

Technology is continuously growing and expanding and from

time to time, there are different kinds of works and inventions

showing everywhere. One of the works that has been created to

elevate boredom and provide entertainment is video games./

Video games are a form of entertainment that has been

made for people to enjoy something and remove their stress from

every day events. Video games has become an increasingly

important part of entertainment industry and along the technology,

they’re both rapidly growing and expanding their influence from

around the world.

Over the time, people are gaining access pretty easily on

video games and even students can now access games from

different places. There are lot of cases where video games are

involved when it comes to student’s behaviour and attitude.

 Since video games plays a vital role in entertainment, there

are students who seek those kinds of interests and sometime

they’ve been influenced by video games.

Video games provide different kinds of genre and can be

found and play on large amount of platforms. Students whose been

seeking those kinds of entertainment are being influenced by video

games and their behaviour and mind is being developed based on

what their playing.

This thesis is entitled, “The Effects of Video games on

Critical Thinking and Decision Making of the Grade 11 ICT on Trent

Information First Technical Career Institute S.Y. 2018 – 2019 aims

to identify the development of critical thinking of grade 11 students

and how they make their decision on different circumstances and

let the respondents have awareness on what can be the effects of

video games on the mentality of a student, both the benefits and

the demerits of it.

Background of the Study

As we grow up, we’ve been developing our natural ability to

think critically on different kinds of situations and when we

encounter obstacles, we immediately search for solutions to

overcome it. Additionally, because of our ability to think critically,

we can produce different kinds of decisions to choose from and

analyze what is the best course on specific circumstances.

Being able to analyze the situation right before us and have

a conclusion on what to do next, is the essence of being

independent and growing up. Everything around us can affect the

growth of someone and the one who’s easily affected by his or her

environment is a student.

Most of the students are on their development stages where

they can adapt on their surroundings and pick up ability and learn

from them. In this time, technology is always around us and

students have easy access on them, where they can play games

on their leisure time.

Playing video games is beneficial since it can stimulate the

mind of a student to boost productivity of their mental and exercise

it to think more and focused. It readies the students in different

kinds of situations by simulating events and guides them to

complete different kinds of task that requires different kinds of

skills. Moreover, the skills of students are being enhanced and

developed just by playing and completing the tasks given by the

game. It is one of the objective of video game, to help the player to

develop their skills and talent related to the game.

It also boosts the reaction time and flexibility skills of a

student to cope up with problems and finds solutions on their own

and helps them to grow into a independent individual. The main

study, conducted at the Max Planck Institute for Human

Development and Charité University Medicine St. Hedwig-

Krankenhaus in Berlin, Germany, found that playing video

increases grey matter (basically, the size of your brain) and helps

refine learned and hardwired skills.

In layman’s terms, playing video games directly affects and

impacts regions of the brain responsible for memory, spatial

orientation, information organizations, and fine motor skills.

The study also reinforces the claim that, like exercise,

playing games for as little as 30 minutes a day, can improve your

life.

Video game also helps the students to identify the root of the

problem and immediately search for a solution to solve it, improving

the ability to analyze the situation helps them in their future to

handle the situations by themselves.

It also improves the student’s ability to read complicated

words and understands unfamiliar characters, these helps them to

be able to understand languages, improve them and apply them in

their future life.

Though, behind every benefit, there are drawbacks. Video

games are indeed very beneficial on the mental health of a student

but, if not handled well, this can lead to Computer Game Addiction,
where students abandon their responsibility and only put their

whole attention on video games which can lead into health

problems. Computer game addiction is dangerous on student’s life

because it developing stages, they can get used to it and carry all

of it in their future.

There could be circumstances where the student can’t

differentiate the difference of reality and virtually anymore and

develop a mindset where they only live in the virtual world to

escape the reality. Student with computer game addiction is often

stays in doors, avoid physical contact, have intense fear on

strangers, physical issues like unable to eat because of playing or

not be able to take a bath to maintain their hygiene.

Their ability to identify the problem and analyze the situation

stay with them but their ability to make a decision will be clouded

because of lack of senses. Video games provide different kind of

ability for students to learn and apply them in real life.

Statement of the Problem

This study aims to identify the effects of video games on

mental health and how it affects their decision making and critical
thinking of students in Grade 11 ICT from Trent Information First
Technical Career Institute, Inc.

1. What is the profile of the respondents?

a. Section
b. Gender
c. Player
d. Non - Player
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2. The factors that could affect their perspective on
different situations and its effect on their mental
health:
a. Simulation

b. Sandbox

3. Is there a significant difference when profiles of the

respondents were considered?

Conceptual Framework of the Study

Figure 1:
 The variables identified in the study, which serves as input of

the investigation, include the profile of the Grade 11 students on

Trent Information First Technical Career Institute as to their

Gender, Section, Player and Non - Player. This is represented in

the first rectangular box. The input of the study includes the profile

of the Grade 11 students in Trent Information First Technical

Career Institute in terms of: (a) gender, (b) Section, (c) being a

player, and (d) being non – player.

The process through which the study was conducted is

depicted on the second rectangular box as to the process of the

study the researchers are adhering to the following; (1) secure

permit to conduct research, (2) Distribute and gather data and

information, (3) Organize the data gathered, and (4) Interpret data

using statistical treatment.

The third box contains the output of the study which is

the awareness on the respondents on what can be the effects of

video games on mentality of the students.

Hypothesis

This study will test the null hypothesis:

There are significant differences on the mental

stability, and the effects of playing video games to the critical
thinking and decision making of Grade 11 who plays video
games and to those who doesn’t.

Significance of the Study

 We conduct this study because it can help students to
identify what’s their case is. This study will also help the
respondents to know the ability of a student that are playing
video games and what could be the effects of it in their
mentality.

As for the teachers – they can use this study to gain

more information on students and how video games can
affect their decision planning, critical thinking and how they
apply it in their studies. This will help them to measure the
intelligence of a certain students.

Scope and Delimitations of the Study

The scope of this study covers the senior high level of

education but this study is limited only for Grade 11 ICT
students of senior high school in Taytay, Rizal which is the
Trent Information First Technical Career Institute, Inc.

Definition of Terms

Video Games Addiction as been suggested by some in the

medical community as a distinct behavioral addiction
characterized by excessive or compulsive use of computer
games or video games that interferes with a person's
everyday life.

Critical Thinking is the objective analysis of facts to form a

judgment. The subject is complex, and several different
definitions exist, which generally include the rational,
skeptical, unbiased analysis, or evaluation of factual
evidence.
 Chapter 2

Review Related Literatures

In recent year, there are increasing amount of literature

about videogames and mainly they’re all about how it all affects the
children mindset and violence of videogames.

You can't equate it with watching TV or a movie or

reading a book. This is a much more intimate experience.
You're mentally playing out the effects of violence. A lot of
people make the excuse that this is sport - that it's just
entertainment. But Joseph Goebbels - the propaganda
minister of Nazi Germany - said his entertainment did more
for the German people, in terms of creating the psyche for
war and hostility towards others, than the speeches of Adolf
Hitler. The idea this is entertainment is not justification
whatsoever. (Tito, 2009)

This paper agrees that video games can have a bigger effect on
the mind of a player than reading a book; this is due to the fact that
gaming is not passive, and in order to complete a violent game the
player has to be the aggressor where the player is rewarded for
being violent rather than punished.

Rather than watching violence as someone would if they were

watching a film, the player is committing violent acts inside a virtual
world where the player often makes choices and receives reward or
punishment based on behavior. In the minds of some this could
transfer into reality in the belief that violent behavior is good.
Having said that, for someone to commit a crime solely due to a
video game, I don’t believe. There must be other factors involved
such as mental illness or persuasion often coupled with a lack of
parental responsibly, particularly when allowing underage children
to play extremely violent games. Binns, from Future Publishing says,
 You need to see it in the same way you'd see a movie,
TV show or book. There are movies, books and TV shows for
kids, and there are those for adults. This is an adult piece of
entertainment. We can make all entertainment for children,
or we can take proper steps to try and protect children from
adult entertainment. (Tito, 2009)

It is an interesting point that we and the media at large often

focus on a brutally violent action, particularly where there is loss of
life and the perpetrators are young. Finding links and connections to
a video game in these cases almost becomes as port in itself. Let us
however consider the much less obvious connection between mildly
aggressive behaviors by very young children who become very
aggressive adults – is there actually a stronger connection here
between video game violence and human behavior that ultimately
manifests in unsocial acts of major consequence later on in life.

The player cannot get through with what they already have or
know and must find new combinations and incorporate old skills
with new skills to overcome obstacles such as the level or quest
(Gee, 2003). In relation to this, the player can also learn strategy
and anticipation, management of resources (simulation games),
mapping, pattern recognition, how to judge the situation and
practice reading (with directions, dialogue, etc.) and quantitative
calculations (through educational games, managing finances,
buying and selling for profit, etc. (Tumbokon, 2014)