Mobile Games:

Its Effects to Students Academic Performance

A Research Paper presented to the

Faculty of the Institute of Senior High School
Gov. Alfonso D. Tan College
Maloro, Tangub City

In Partial Fulfillment
of the requirements for the track
ACCOUNTANCY, BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT

Althea Nicole C. Cortes

Rhona Mae Perez
Jeza Mae Baguio
Rodilyn Kaye Guibao

March 2019
 Chapter 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS SCOPE

Background of the study

As time passes by, technology continues to evolve. Because of technology, new things
were created that sustains and lightens human work. This study was conducted to assess and
find out the impact of online gaming on the performance and social behavior of the students in
Gov. Alfonso D. Tan College. The study revealed that boys are more of a player compared to
girls who often play games that require three or more players like Mobile Legends, Clash of
Clans, Crossfire and many more to mention. Internet as a source of information plays an
important role in developing one’s mind and life experiences by creating productive works in
schools, offices, and even at home. Nowadays, this can be a person’s most efficient strategic
tool for enabling himself to take charge and cope with the fast growing technology. The facts
that people live in on informative lifestyle where everything is updated; internet became one of
the necessities of human beings regardless of age or sex in today’s society. However, the
influence of this useful machine on youth is undeniably questionable. All these technologies are
very good at distracting people. In line with this development, mobile games were created to
give entertainment to people.

Mobile gaming is one of the widely used leisure activities by many people. For some
people it is said that playing video games has a number of reasons to be played, for it can be a
stress reliever, challenge and competition, relaxation, enjoyment, social interaction, and even
mentally escaping from the real world. For most people, mobile gaming or online gaming is one
of the best past time that they acquire especially for teenagers, youngsters and students.
According to Ivan and Keith, teens who play mobile games are just having fun. They do not just
actually play because of some sort of seriousness, but also because they just want to feel relief.
During school hours, students tend to feel stressed due to loads of school works and through
playing it will relive their stress. Several types of mobile/online gaming are massively multiplayer
online role-playing which involves million players playing the game at the same time. Online
games are now also come in many genres such as action, adventure, simulator and many
more. Some of the mobile/online games that are popular are Dota 2, Clash of clans and Hay
Day. The total players in Dota 2 are 800,000 concurrent users and almost 8.5 million users have
registered in Clash of clans and also Hay Day combined. There are actually several cases
involve a teen die while playing mobile/online games in China and as a result their government
has built a facility where parents can send their children to overcome online gaming addiction.

A lot of research is conducted to study its effect on lifestyle and behavior of the wow
power leveling gamer especially kids. Online games are the most sought leisure activity
followed by kids nowadays. Days are gone when children loved to indulge in outdoor activities,
rather than running or playing outside, children spend most of their time playing online games.
Online games surely have an impact on minds of kids. Taking into consideration, it is positively
a great mind exercise and help kids explore many things. It includes improvement in recursive
and proactive thinking, increased sociability and improved interpretive skills.

Everyone who plays video games has a different reason for playing, and the usage of
the game leads to different effects for each individual. Childhood upbringings, peer influences,
pressures at school and family issues are all factors that have a strong connection with the
effects of gaming on individuals. Online Games maybe therapeutic for some people, but the
small amount of people who are negatively affected by gaming impact are many.
Conceptual Framework

Mobile game addiction generally refers to an excessive, unhealthy amount of playing

mobile games. Rather than engaging in the real world, an addicted user devotes the majority of
his or her time to gaming. (Conrad, 2011). The issue of game addiction is getting spread widely
and uncontrollable. Gaming addiction became a mysterious problem which is still difficult to
treated, more terrifying than alcohol or drug addiction. Whereas, in fact, Dr. Shumaila Yousafzai
(2009) from Cardiff Business School said popular online video games warned players not to
overuse their products.

These warning messages also suggest that the online video game industry might know
how high the percentage of over-users is, how much time gamers spend playing and what
specific features make a particular game more engrossing and addictive than others. In other
hand, Cyber psychologist, Dr. Zaheer Hussain, from the University of Derby, said warning
messages were not enough. As a first step online game developers and publishers need to look
into the structural features of the game design, for example the character development, rapid
absorption rate, and multi-player features which could make them addictive and or problematic
for some gamers.

Parents across the globe are increasingly concerned about their sons’ online gaming
habits. They are sure that there is a problem but counselors unfamiliar with online gaming
addiction don’t understand how seductive they can be. Fraser (2012) mentions that kids are
among the most vulnerable to mobile game addiction, experts said, and may become violent
when their “drug” is taken away. Mobile Game and Internet addiction usually point to other
mental problems including anxiety, depression and trouble forming healthy relationships.

Kimberly Young (2009) says, not only are children, teenagers and college
students affected by mobile gaming, but a growing number of adults are becoming hooked to
mobile gaming. While such cases are rare, mental-health professionals say the fantasy worlds
offered by computer and mobile games can become the stuff of very real addictions that destroy
marriages and careers. People of all ages are quickly becoming immersed in this virtual fantasy
world whereby they can easily escape problems in their lives.

As in any treatment program, the primary step to take in the path, according to
Kimberly (2009), to recovery is to accept and not refute “denial”, a defense mechanism that
addicts frequently employ and that effectively stops them from accepting treatment. Once this
obstacle is conquered, treatment can be performed more effectively than it would otherwise.
Tracy Miller (2013) add because mobile game addiction is a new development in the world of
mental health, treatments are not as well established as those for depression, anxiety, anger,
etc. Most interventions take a cognitive-behavioral approach which involves changing how the
addict thinks about the addiction.
 Schematic Diagram

Gov. Alfonso D. Tan Senior High

Students S.Y. 2018-2019 Profile

Age

Sex

Strand

- Methods - Behavior
- Techniques - Addiction
- Approaches of - Monetary needs
Mobile/Online Gamers

Possible Effects of Mobile Game

Addiction
Statement of the Problem

This study will undertake the effects of mobile/online gaming of the performance

of Senior High Students in Gov. Alfonso D. Tan College S.Y. 2018 – 2019

Specifically, the respondents will answer the ff. questions:

1. How many online video games you normally play?

2. How many hours per day do you spend in playing mobile games?

3. Do you prefer playing games alone or with friends?

4. Do you ever stay up just to play mobile/online games?

5. Do you ever skip meals just to finish your mobile/online game?

6. What do you feel when you lose in the mobile/online games?

Significance of the Study

This study will help the students have an insight on the impact of online games

towards their academic performance.

To the Parents, it will serve as basis to help share with other parents the

information about certain games or ideas to help each other in parenting. Also it will

help them understand the behavior and study habit of their children when they’re

engaged into such activity.

 To the Teachers, it will provide additional knowledge on what strategy to use

educate students about the well-known effects of online gaming to students’ academic

performance, problem-solving strategy, decision-making and spatial visualization.

To the Readers: Readers can get information about how online gaming affects

the academic performance of senior high students of Gov. Alfonso D. Tan College in the

year 2018 - 2019

Research Methodology

As this research purpose is to understand the behavior and attitude of the

students in Gov. Alfonso D. Tan College towards mobile games, the researcher have

decided to use quantitative research method to collect and analyze the data received.

This study will be conducted at Gov. Alfonso D. Tan College in Maloro, Tangub

City.
Definition of Terms

Academic Performances – is measured by taking written and oral tests, performing

presentations, turning in homework and participating in class activities and discussions.

Teachers evaluate in the form of letter or number grades and side notes, to describe

how well a student has done.

Game Addiction – is an excessive or compulsive use of computer games or mobile

games, which interferes with a person’s everyday life.

Gamer - is a person who plays a game or games, typically a participant in a computer

or role-playing game.

Online Game – is any game that is played online, based online, or has a majority of its

content/gameplay online.
References

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