How Video Games Help Kids with Special Needs

ASD, PDD, Hyperactivity, Attention Deficit Disorders

Digital objects are not our enemies. Games are the foundations of our civilisations and are an activity that structure, liberate and balance the psyche in many ways. They are tools that help children and young adolescents to shape, calm, concentrate, identify and organise themselves in a psycho- affective world that is sometimes in total chaos. In recent years, neuroscientific progress has helped visualise the assets of games in remediation and the treatment of many issues. Clinical psychologists 2.0 trained in therapeutic treatment use video games as a tool for diagnosis and care, they study the nature of this tie, including in cases of excessive dependency. Far from preconceived ideas concerning screen addictions, the video- game activity is a great way to understand and decipher the often overlooked inner world of children, especially for «different» children suffering from hyperactivity, or on the autistic spectrum, or with attention, withdrawal and school issues. From Facebook to Mario Bros, Battle Royale to Animal Crossing, this work provides tools, advice and bearings for parents and educators to understand, help and to care using digital tools.