Families that play together stay together: Investigating family bonding through video games

Abstract

Video games have been a major form of people’s entertainment, and they have entered people’s family life. However, what we know about the effects of video games on family relationships is still rare. This study investigated the effects of video game co-playing among family members on family satisfaction and family closeness. In total, 361 parents recruited from Amazon Turk completed online questionnaires. The results showed that the more frequently family members play video games together, the better family satisfaction and family closeness they have. Families with poor family communication benefit more from co-playing than those with effective family communication. Family satisfaction mediated the relationship between video game co-playing and family closeness. Game features that facilitate family relationships were discovered through open-ended questions. Participants typically enjoyed playing video games with family members, and social benefits are the most salient in family settings.