Looks and gaming: Who and why?

Americans spend 2.5 percent of their waking hours video-gaming. Using the American Add Health Study, we show that adults who are better-looking have more close friends. Gaming being costlier for them, they engage in less of it. Physically attractive teens are less likely than others to game at all. Attractive adults are less likely than others to spend any time gaming; if they do, they spend less time on it than other gamers. The reverse is true among teens and adults for some other non-market activities—sports and hobby groups. Using the longitudinal nature of the Study, we find that these relationships may be causal for adults: good looks decrease gaming time, not vice-versa. The results provide new evidence on how looks affect non-market time use and perhaps indicate the role that they play in personal development.