The Impact of Video Games on the English Vocabulary Proficiency of Dutch Teenagers

This study explores the impact of video gaming on the English vocabulary proficiency of Dutch teenagers from the ages of 11 to 16. Recent academic research argues that the beneficial impact of video games lies in the unintentional and natural acquirement of a second language, which is enabled by the element of interactivity in games (Plass & Jones, 2005). According to language acquisitional theory, language is most effectively acquired when the message is provided with context, as this enriches the apprehension of the subject (Krashen, 1989). Furthermore, intrinsic motivation to acquire a language is intertwined with the motivation to engage in play, which in turn leads to more linguistic confidence and eventually successful language acquisition (Melzi & Schick, 2012; Prince, 1996). This research contains a survey-based analysis on the linguistic impact of video games on Dutch teenagers. The survey was answered by 59 Dutch teenagers of the age group and consisted of a translation...Show moreThis study explores the impact of video gaming on the English vocabulary proficiency of Dutch teenagers from the ages of 11 to 16. Recent academic research argues that the beneficial impact of video games lies in the unintentional and natural acquirement of a second language, which is enabled by the element of interactivity in games (Plass & Jones, 2005). According to language acquisitional theory, language is most effectively acquired when the message is provided with context, as this enriches the apprehension of the subject (Krashen, 1989). Furthermore, intrinsic motivation to acquire a language is intertwined with the motivation to engage in play, which in turn leads to more linguistic confidence and eventually successful language acquisition (Melzi & Schick, 2012; Prince, 1996). This research contains a survey-based analysis on the linguistic impact of video games on Dutch teenagers. The survey was answered by 59 Dutch teenagers of the age group and consisted of a translation exercise and a sentence exercise. The answers of both exercises were analyzed on the basis of how often the participants engaged in the activity of video gaming. To avoid faulty analysis, the answers were also compared to the factor of age. The results of this study suggest that teenagers who game more frequently are linguistically more confidant as compared to the participants that did not game frequently and lack this confidence. More importantly, the results suggest that the frequent players are more proficient in English vocabulary than the non-players as they translated more words correctly. Besides this, the players with the highest frequency seemed to engage more often in English communication with other players. This all indicates that not only do video games have a beneficial impact on the vocabulary proficiency of Dutch teenagers, but they also contribute to the linguistic confidence and experience in English communication.Show less

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The Impact of Video Games on the English Vocabulary Proficiency of Dutch Teenagers