Parenting a Gamer Help Your Child Build Healthy Habits, Make Positive Choices, and Find Balance in Virtual Worlds

by Fishman, Andrew

• ISBN13: 9780897334617
• ISBN10: 0897334612
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2026-04-07
• Publisher: Parenting Press
• More Book Details

Summary

"Perfect for any parent who wants to meet their young gamer with empathy, wisdom, and a renewed sense of partnership." —Doug Bolton, PhD, author of Untethered: Creating Connected Families, Schools, and Communities to Raise a Resilient Generation

Parents have good reason to worry when they don't understand the video games their kids are playing. 
Their children stare at a screen for hours every day. Eyes glazed over, they seem oblivious to the world and throw tantrums when asked to help fold laundry. According to a recent survey, three-quarters of American parents think their children spend too much time in front of screens. Two-thirds of parents believe raising children is more difficult than twenty years ago, primarily due to their children's access to technology.
Parents have questions and don't know what information to trust. What games are appropriate? How much screen time is too much? Have children lost the ability and desire to socialize? Are they desensitized to violence? Who are they talking to online? Why has everything become a power struggle? 
Author Andrew Fishman walks parents through a comprehensive guide to all the challenges of parenting a gamer. He provides scientific evidence and cultural context to empower parents to make values-based decisions and raise healthy children. Parenting a Gamer contains practical strategies to help children make healthy decisions related to gaming, balance screen time with other activities, and practice internet safety, all without arguments.
When it comes to helping children make positive choices related to gaming, this book is a game changer.

Author Biography

Andrew Fishman is a licensed mental health professional in Chicago, where he specializes in treating video game addiction in adolescents. He earned a master's degree in social work at Loyola University and is certified in counseling gaming disorder by the International Gambling Counselor Certification Board. Andrew's articles on video games and mental health have been featured repeatedly as essential topics in Psychology Today, where he is listed as a Thought Leader. He has been featured worldwide in interviews by the Wall Street Journal, Al Jazeera Plus, FintechBeat, El País, and for DC Fintech's Week 2021. He has also been quoted in numerous psychology and technology publications, ranging from Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews to European Business Magazine. He lives in Chicago where he can often be found playing The Legend of Zelda and Assassin's Creed in his spare time.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Acknowledgments
Part One: What Are Video Games?
Chapter 1: Video Games 101
Chapter 2: Should You Be Worried about Video Games?
Chapter 3: The Benefits of Video Games
Part Two: Common Problems
Chapter 4: Leading with Values
Chapter 5: Internet Safety
Chapter 6: Physical Health
Chapter 7: How Do Games Make Money?
Chapter 8: Gaming Addiction
Chapter 9: Types of Gaming Addiction
Chapter 10: Responding to Outbursts
Chapter 11: Professional Gaming
Chapter 12: How Can Society Help?
Part Three: How to Parent a Gamer
Chapter 13: Rules for Every Family
Chapter 14: Play Video Games with Your Kids
Chapter 15: Does Your Child Need to Cut Back?
Chapter 16: Set Goals
Chapter 17: Help Them Make a Plan
Chapter 18: Collaborative Agreement
Chapter 19: Parental Controls
Chapter 20: Hold the Line
Summary
Relevant Games
Glossary
Appendix