Not that this will likely take too many parents by surprise, but market research specialist NPD Group has published a report revealing that some 82 percent of kids below the age of 18 claim they have established a solid attachment to computer and video games.
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Built on the back of online survey responses from more than 5,000 members of NPD’s contributory consumer panel, the 82 percent demographic spread equates to some 55.7 million child and adolescent gamers across the United States.
Split into various age categories, those between 9-11 represent the largest grouping, thanks to 12.4 million gamers, while only 9.7 million are aged between 2-5. In terms of applied game time, those between 12-14 rack up the most virtual experience at some 10.6 hours per week.
Interestingly, gamers aged between 15-17 emerged with a notable drop off in amassed game time, which NPD Group analyst Anita Frazier ascribed to expanding interests associated with their advancement towards adulthood.
“The decline in teen usage of video games is likely due to diversifying, maturing interests, which translated into stiffer competition for their mind and wallet share,” she outlined in the report.
“In addition to competition from other areas of the entertainment space, more school work, activities, and parent-imposed time limits on gaming are factors which the data suggests may be contributing to this dip in older teen engagement,” she added.
The report also revealed that kids across all age groupings spread their gaming habits over 2.5 systems or devices, while those aged 9-11 and 12-14 use around three different hardware platforms to quench their need for interactive entertainment.
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