SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Rehabil. Sci.
Sec. Rehabilitation in Children and Youth
Effects of Video Game-Based Interventions on Executive Functions and Motor Skills in Children and Adolescents with Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Provisionally accepted
- 1Xinjiang Normal University, Urumqi, China
- 2Soochow University, Suzhou, China
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Purpose: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of video game-based interventions in improving executive functions and motor skills in children and adolescents with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). Methods: We searched 4 databases: Web of Science, PubMed, Cochrane Library, and IEEE Xplore up to December 2, 2024. Results: Compared to the control groups, the video game-based intervention groups exhibited a small to medium effect size for inhibitory control (SMD = -0.41, 95% CI: -0.58 to -0.25, P < 0.001), cognitive flexibility (SMD = -0.33, 95% CI: -0.50 to -0.15, P < 0.001), and working memory (SMD = 0.42, 95% CI: 0.27 to 0.58, P < 0.001) within the domain of executive functions. Additionally, a small to medium effect size was noted in gross motor skills (SMD = 0.45, 95% CI: 0.07 to 0.82, P < 0.05). Conclusion: Video games can serve as an adjunctive therapy to improve executive functions and gross motor skills in children and adolescents with NDDs. Active video games (AVGs) demonstrate improvements in cognitive flexibility, while sedentary video games (SVGs) show improvements in working memory. Intervention frequency and session duration also influence outcomes. However, due to study heterogeneity and limited sample sizes, these findings remain preliminary and exploratory.
Keywords: executive functions, fine motor skills, grossmotor skills, Neurodevelopmental disorders, Video Games
Received: 13 Nov 2025; Accepted: 09 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Gao, Ren, Kaulie, Wang and Gao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Gang Gao
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