While
these cases are extremely rare, it does beg the question of why gaming
can lead to such excessive behavior. I have spent nearly three decades
studying videogame addiction and there are many studies published in
both the medical and psychological literature showing that very
excessive gaming can lead to a variety of health problems that range
from repetitive strain injuries and obesity, through to auditory and
visual hallucinations and addiction.
I
have to stress that there is lots of scientific research showing the
many educational and therapeutic benefits of playing but there is
definitely a small minority of gamers that develop problems as a result
of gaming overuse.
But what is it that makes gaming so compulsive and addictive for the small minority?
For
me, addiction boils down to constant reinforcement, or put more simply,
being constantly rewarded while playing the game. Gaming rewards can be
physiological (such as feeling "high" or getting a "buzz" while playing
or beating your personal high score), psychological (such as feeling
you have complete control in a specific situation or knowing that your
strategic play helped you win), social (such as being congratulated by
fellow gamers when doing something well in the game) and, in some cases,
financial (such as winning a gaming tournament).
Most
of these rewards are -- at least to some extent -- unpredictable. Not
knowing when the next reward will come keeps some players in the game.
In short, they carry on gaming even though they may not have received an
immediate reward. They simply hope that another reward is "just around
the corner" and keep on playing.
Added
to this is the shift over the last decade from standalone console
gaming to massively multiplayer online games where games never end and
gamers have to compete and/or collaborate with other gamers in real time
(instead of being able to pause the game and come back and play from
the point at which the player left it). Many excessive gamers report
that they hate logging off and leaving such games. They don't like it as
they don't know what is going on in the game when they are not online.
The
last five years has seen large increase in the number of scientific
studies on problematic gaming. In May 2013, the American Psychiatric
Association published the fifth edition of the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders"(DSM-5). For the first time, the DSM-5 included "internet gaming disorder" (IGD) as a psychological condition that warrants future research.
Throughout
my research career I have argued that although all addictions have
particular and idiosyncratic characteristics, they share more
commonalities than differences such as total preoccupation, mood
modification, cravings, tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, conflict with
work, education and other people, and loss of control. These
similarities likely reflect a common etiology of addictive behavior.
So
when does a healthy enthusiasm turn into an addiction? At the simplest
level, healthy enthusiasms add to life and addictions take away from it.
But how much is too much? This is difficult to answer as I know many
gamers who play many hours every day without any detrimental effects.
The
DSM-5 lists nine criteria for IGD. If any gamer endorses five or more
of the following criteria they would likely be diagnosed as having IGD:
(1) preoccupation with internet games; (2) withdrawal symptoms when
internet gaming is taken away; (3) the need to spend increasing amounts
of time engaged in internet gaming, (4) unsuccessful attempts to control
participation in internet gaming; (5) loss of interest in hobbies and
entertainment as a result of, and with the exception of, internet
gaming; (6) continued excessive use of internet games despite knowledge
of psychosocial problems; (7) deception of family members, therapists,
or others regarding the amount of internet gaming; (8) use of the
internet gaming to escape or relieve a negative mood; and (9) loss of a
significant relationship, job, or educational or career opportunity
because of participation in internet games.
The
good news is that only a small minority of gamers suffer form IGD. Most
online games are fun and exciting to play. But like any activity that
is taken to excess, in a minority of cases the activity can become
addictive.
Any activity if done for
days on end could lead to severe health problems and even death -- and
gaming is no exception. Instead of demonizing games, we need to educate
gamers about the potential dangers of very excessive use.
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