Canadian Parents Go Traditional, No PlayStation and Video Games for Their Children

Is your kid too busy playing video games or the PlayStation or downloading applications on his cellphone?

Is your kid too busy playing video games or the PlayStation or downloading applications on his cellphone? Tell him to thank God that he is not living in Canada.

Canadian parents have decided to go traditional when it comes to buying gifts for their children. They are looking for stuff that is educational and instill good behaviour and are simply not interested in high-tech gizmos, according to a new study.

Hand Function in Teens With Cerebral Palsy Improved by PlayStation-Based System
Rutgers University engineers have modified a home video game, which has shown promise in improving hand function in teenagers with cerebral palsy.

Arts and crafts and sporting goods are among popular choices, said the study, published in Toronto Star.

Puzzles, action figures, stuffed toys, construction sets and vehicles are among the items most preferred by parents for their kids, it added.

"Parents ensure that they're balancing that expenditure on gifts, making sure that their children have quality playtime," Pam Wood, director of retail business at the NPD Group, a global information firm, was quoted as saying.

Teen Diagnosed With PlayStation Addiction Unresponsive to Surroundings
A 13-year-old Italian boy was diagnosed with PlayStation addiction, when his father rushed him to hospital finding him unresponsive to his surroundings.

"Sixty percent of parents think that there's value in having kids play with those traditional toys. This is what is driving the role of traditional toys in today's age when electronics are so prevalent," she added.

Clearly, when parents are purchasing items, what the child has requested is important. It can be a great product, but they need to feel comfortable about the safety of that product and that the brand is reputable and trustworthy, the study said.

PlayStation Skin Disorder, the New Threat
A PlayStation skin disorder is emerging a new threat of the Information Age. Excessive use of consoles is seen as the culprit.

When asked what impacts their child's desire for toys, parents said what their friends were playing with was the top influencer (72 percent) followed by what kids see in stores (65 percent) and items advertised on TV (50 percent), the study concluded.

Source-IANS