Teen Gamers Show Thinner Cortical Gray Matter, Smaller Brain Surface Area

Adolescents who engage excessively in video gaming display, on average, reduced cortical thickness and smaller surface area in specific brain regions, according to new findings published in the journal NeuroImage.

What the ABCD Study Data Revealed

Researchers analyzed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from 5,686 participants in the U.S. Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study. All participants were approximately 14 years old at the time of scanning and reported their video game habits. The cohort played video games for an average of 3.1 hours per day.

The cerebral cortex—the brain’s outer layer responsible for cognition, language, attention, and emotional regulation—undergoes natural structural changes during adolescence. Its thickness and surface area both evolve dynamically across this developmental period.

How Game Type Correlated With Cortical Differences

Differences in cortical structure varied by game genre. Single-player games showed frequent statistical associations with reduced surface area in cortical regions involved in speech, communication, and emotional regulation. In contrast, online multiplayer games did not yield statistically significant cortical differences after controlling for other variables. Age-restricted games were more often associated with thinner cortical gray matter in networks governing attention and the processing of social and emotional signals.

What the Findings Do Not Conclude

Scientists from the University of California, San Francisco, emphasize that observed associations are purely statistical—not causal. They caution that brain characteristics may influence game preferences as much as gameplay influences brain structure. The detected differences are small in magnitude and fall within normal developmental variation. The researchers plan to continue longitudinal follow-up of these adolescents to determine whether cortical patterns precede or follow gaming behavior.

The team stresses that cortical thinning is a typical feature of early-to-mid adolescence, part of a broader neural reorganization process that enhances processing efficiency. No evidence indicates harm or disorder arises from these observed structural patterns.