Quarter of Flemish 3-year-olds play computer games every day

The research was conducted by iMinds, a research group of the Media and ICT division of the university. Nearly 10,000 children and their parents took part.

Researchers found that some children are still immune to the phenomenon though: 14% of Flemish 3-year-olds never touch a game.

As could be expected: the older the kids get, the more they play games online. 63% of ten-year-olds play games on a daily basis for 74 minutes on average. Boys play games more than girls, as do the children of the low-skilled and kids in large families.

Researchers also looked at parents' role. Prof Jan Van Looy: "We discovered parents focus on knowing which games their children are playing and whether these are suitable. They rarely enter into a discussion on playing computer games."