Path3fullpaper

Running Head: CONCEPTS OF VIDEO GAME ADDICTION Leong 1 Addicted to Technology: Breaking down concepts of Video Game Addictions Sharlene Leong New School for Social Research

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 2 Abstract Behavioral addictions are a somewhat harder area of addiction to concretely diagnose.One of the larger concerns, particularly for adolescents, has been that in the realm of onlinegaming. Based in fears of internet addiction and lack of self/parental monitoring, online gameaddiction is a growing concern. In the earlier years, the concern was that gaming was a gatewayto problem gambling, but in the more recent years, online game playing has been studied as itsown addiction. Findings show that there is interplay of biological, psychological, andenvironmental factors that have effects on an individual before and after starting problem videogame playing (PVP). This paper aims to chronicle the movement of video game addictionstudies and take a look at these aspects to support PVP as a diagnosis.

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 3 Introduction There is an argument about the validity of behavioral addictions within the psychologycommunity. With the preparation of the DSM V, there have been many changes and potentialadditions to be added. Due to gambling‟s prevalence as an over-representative behavioraldisorder with the most devastating consequences, its diagnosis criteria has become what manypsychologists have used as a baseline to check for other behavioral addictions. From thisstandard a behavioral disorder must encompass the concepts of preoccupation, tolerance,withdrawal, escape, chasing, lying, loss of control, illegal acts, risked significant relationship,and bailout (Teijeiro& Moran, 2002). The current criteria have been modified again and again byinserting the name of the potential addiction in place of gambling, such as sex, internet, combat,etc. as a way to measure for those potential behavioral addictions. However, the latest concernamong parents; is the concept of electronic, and more specifically, videogame addictions.Because this is a new phenomenon, research is being done to understand what drives anindividual to turn to videogames and stay with them. It has been argued that the evolution oftechnology working in tandem with psychological, biological, and environmental factorsinfluences individuals‟ behavior enough to legitimize a behavioral addiction diagnosis.The evolution of the video game A common conception is that there are “gateway drugs” such as marijuana which willlead to abusing harder and more dangerous drugs. The same argument has been made forvideogames: that they are a gateway to problem gambling (Gupta &Derevensky, 1998). Thisassociation was brought about in the very beginnings of arcade gaming machines. Parents andprofessionals were concerned about the amount of play for the adolescent because it resembled

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 4and operated somewhat like a slot machine (Fischer, 1994). There was also the placement ofthese arcade games adjacent to public slot machines thathad the potential to cause children toassociate the two that worried people (Turner & MacDonald, 2008). To look at the potentialassociation a study in the UK compared the equated the concept of „payout‟ and the use of a„score‟ earned from the video game. The concepts were difficult to relate within the idea ofproblem gambling because it is the monetary problem of loss and potential gain that causes themost trouble for individuals (Fischer, 1994). From the monetary aspect of the same study,arcade gaming did not cause problems because it is cheaper to sustain than gambling andchildren are not have economic burden in the family. However, Fischer was one of the earlierexperimenters looking at the potential of problem gaming, and acknowledged that its savinggrace was that the games stayed in the arcade and predicted more problematic behavior shouldthey move into the home (1994). The first systems to bring video games into the home were the console and computergames, and they were mostly home versions of the arcade games that did not require a constantstream of quarters.With this in mind, the key factor that would contribute to problem gaming inthe home would be the amount of parental supervision (Gentile, 2009). The population mostlikely to play video games was still children and adolescents. As consoles developed in thequality, the adult video gaming industry was created (violent and sexual themes) which cateredto an aging and growing demographic. The leap from console gaming and computer gamingoffline to collaborative gaming through the internet is where concern arises most for video gameaddiction.Since accessibility had been increased, a scale to measure Problem Video Game Play(PVP) that covered the concepts associated with gambling was created by Teijero and Moran(2002). Qualities in the types of games being played also contributed to potential addiction.

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 5Role Playing Games (RPGs), in which the individual pretends to be someone else in a makebelieve world, establish the idea of “escape” perfectly in accordance with the criteria tobehavioral addiction (Yee, 2006).Offline games and single player campaigns have an end to theirstory, online games do not. The social quality of the online gaming community and that in singleplayer campaigns were less likely to talk to other people playing the same games and thereforeable to limit their play (Ng & Hastings, 2010). Online video game play integrated aspects of argued internet addiction such as socialinteraction and immersive play which contributed to less interruption of “flow”(Csíkszentmihályi, 1997). Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs)integrated collaborative online play, an immersive experience, and variable reward for a cocktailof potentially addictive behavior. In addition, offline games continue to develop alongsideMMORPGs. In a comparison study of players‟ who preferred online or offline games, onlinegamers were found to play much more frequently than offline gamers (largest admit to 21-40hours a week). The amount of pleasure derived from the online game was positively correlatedwith the amount of time dedicated to the game (Ng & Hastings, 2005). It is because of suchreports that video game addiction is being studied primarily in the MMORPG realm.Environmental and SocialProneness According to the self-medication hypothesis, addictions begin as adaptive behaviors in anindividual‟s life. As with substance abuse, similar genres of games can be seen as self-therapeutic depending on a person‟s mood. The most reported appealing aspects of MMORPGgaming are in the elements of immersion (escapism, customization, discovery, and role-playing;Leibert, 2006). These are the aspects most likely to occupy the attention of the player because

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 6each optionis expansive.The therapeutic aspect is seen in reports of gaming being used as acoping mechanism. Children and adolescents of families with relationship problems orsubstance abuse were the most likely to report online gaming as a source of social support andcoping with stress, not for enjoyment (Wood, 2007). Individuals that report lack of a strong social network proximally also report being able toform bonds with over MMORPGs. They are more likely to enjoy bonding with others over acommon medium and value the friendships that they make within the games. Since they areinteracting with people over a complex shared interested, individuals are more likely to becomeemotionally invested in one another in a perceived safe atmosphere (Cole & Griffiths, 2007). Acommon example of this is dating through online gaming. The common MMORPG calledWorld of Warcraft has 10.3 million players and has a higher rate of successful marriages andrelationships than the top online dating sites: eHarmony and match.com (Benedetti, 2011).MMORPGs provide a community to share mutually understood achievements with, and due togame mechanics, itrewards this behavior with in-game items. It is the variable reward system(usually 3 trinkets shared among a group of 25-40), that causes questioning of the addictivequalities of the game. However findings show that online players did not derive self-confidencefrom game play, and if something got in the way of play, they believed they would be able tofind equal entertainment elsewhere which is not indicative of addictive behavior (Ng & Hastings,2005). Cyberpsychologists argue that spending too much time on games (online or off)inevitably has some consequences in the individual‟s life. Tejeiro and Moran found that thebehavior of their adolescent sample in Mexico already showed signs of dependence such as the

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 7amount of play being out of their control, escapism, and correlations between amount ofinvolvement and social development risks (2002). Like with any addiction, problematicbehavior is noted when it interferes with the expectations and obligations of the individual. Inanother population of adolescents, there is an inverse correlation to amount of gameplay withtheir performance in school (Gentile, 2009).Biological Influences and Effects When looking at the age of individuals who reported online game play, an inversecorrelation was found between age and the amount of time spent online in that adolescents spentmore time online than adults (Griffiths, Davies,& Chappell 2004). This is probably becauseadults have learned and practiced time management skills when it comes to their playing habits.When comparing genders it was found that male adolescents whoreported lower self-esteem andlower daily life satisfaction were associated with PVP; this did not replicate in females (Ko, Yen,Chen, Chen, & Yen, 2005). Neurologically speaking, there is evidence for above baseline release of striatal dopamineduring video game play positively correlated with performance level during the task in the videogame activating the brain‟s reward system (Koepp, Gunn, Lawrence, Cunningham, Dagher,Jones, Brooks, Bench, &Grasby, 1998). Other findings come from an fMRI study compared thebrain activity of individuals who had abstained from Ecstasy and another group who abstainedfrom online gaming for a while. Results found that when exposed to images relating to whatthey had been abstaining from, the same areas involved with craving were activated in the brain(Weinstein, 2010). When looking at biological habits by Smyth, a normalized college sample ofstudents who have not previously played MMORPGs were introduced to an MMORPG

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 8intervention and after one month of play students reported more time spent playing, worse health,worse sleep quality, and greater interference with “real-life” socializing and academic work(2007). If this were a study done with substances, it would not make it past an IRB. To makematters worse, the reports from the students show a clear acknowledgement of the physicalhealth detriment due to the games but repeat findings that there is an increased amount ofenjoyment with continued play (Smyth, 2007). If this pattern continues, problematic behaviorarises. Certain online gamers are willing to forgo nutrition and social requirements in order tofulfill their commitment to the game. Notable deaths include: two in China who played onlinegames persistently for 2 weeks, another man who died after playing for 2 days consecutively,and one in Korea who went into cardiac arrest after playing for 50 hours straight (Williams,2007). In offline gaming, a Louisiana child died after playing the Nintendo 64 game system for8 hours a day, 6 days a week (Thomson, 2007).Psychological Associations It is believed that an “addictive personality” makes a person prone to addictions ingeneral. Currently, the highest correlations of personality traits to substance and alcohol abuserslie in antisocial personality disorder and depression (Nathan, 1988). However, when looking atonline game users, it was found that aggression and narcissistic personality traits were correlatedspecifically with online game addiction(Kim, Namkoong, Ku, & Kim, 2008). Psychologically,aggression influences a competitive nature to progress in a game and the extreme amount ofcustomization of one‟s self representation in the game can cater to narcissistic aspects. Since many of the factors for MMORPGs being addictive lie within them being onlineand interactive, it has some overlapping qualities with the behavioral patterns of the proposed

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 9internet addiction. Those more prone to this sort of addiction seem to be those who suffer fromadult ADHD and depressive disorders, with depressive disorders having more association withonline addiction for males (Ko, Yen, Chen, Chen, & Yen, 2008). This can be seen as supportingthe self-medication hypothesis if the individual is feeling the need to self-soothe these depressiveand attention problems. Within gaming itself there are aspects that enforce the player to continue psychologically.The reward system is variable in both amount and schedule, which is known to be the mosteffective reward system to enforce a behavior as was found by Skinner. With many impulsecontrol disorders, psychologists believe that it is the self-regulation mechanism of the individualthat affects this problem the most. It was found that self-control is negatively correlated withamount of time spent gaming (Kim et al., 2008). There have been many self-reports ofindividuals who engage in PVP that they have problems with self-regulation in the game inaddition to other areas of their lives (Seay& Kraut, 2007). The immersive nature of gamesmeans that they offer a variety of ways to entertain a person when certain aspects of the gamehave failed them. Finding other ways to enjoy one‟s self in the same game is known as Griefplay. It is because of this mechanic an individual will stay with the same game even when theyhave begun to lose interest in parts of it (Seay& Kraut, 2007). The self-medication hypothesishere creates a cycle in that the player soothes themselves from a game by playing another. Conclusion Evolution of technology at a high speed has been a current trend. It has been argued thataccessibility and ease have moved faster than people have been able to comprehend. This hasbeen an argument for obesity problems (Jeffery, Baxter, McGuire, &Linde, 2006), substance

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 10abuse problems (Domino, Hornbein, Polissar, Renner, Johnson, Alberti, &Hankes, 2005), andthe role of the internet being a vehicle for this information (Boyer, Shamon, &Hidderd, 2005).This is also a problem for research in that it is constantly trying to keep up with technology inorder to measure the possible consequences. Online gaming creates an ease of access to socialnetworks, what would normally be used to aid in recovering from addictions. With this in mind,online gaming has most of its influence in the social sphere of individuals‟ lives. Growing withan online community can be supportive, however with collaborative goals and mechanics thatrequire a reliance on others to progress. Future study could include measuring for levels ofdependent personality disorder in players. The biological, psychological, and environmental interplay is what influences PVP, aloneeach has their problems in predicting PVP proneness. Adolescent males are the most prone toonline gaming addiction; they are also more prone to depression than females which was astronger predictor of the addiction in males than females (Cyranowski, Frank, Young, & Shear,2000). This demographic is more prone to depression they would be more likely to seek solacefrom it. Studies tend to look at the psychological wellness of players after they have started PVP,if MMORPG intervention are still considered ethical it would be helpful to measurepsychological wellness intervention.Adolescents are also more likely to have less self-controland time management skills simply because of their lack of experience. Knowing that thisdemographic is a more susceptible group simply by their age; social and cultural influences suchas advertisements enforce problematic behavior. The same trend is seen with previous tobaccoadvertising (Pierce, Gilpin, Burns, Whalen, Rosbrook, Shopland, & Johnson, 1991). Peerpressure, which has the most influence on an individual during this time of their life, has thepossibility of enforcing PVP habitsor creating a stressful environment from which an individual

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 11needs escape. Dynamic play creates a proneness for those with ADHD, “the feeling of control,synchronous interactivity of chatting, and immediate reward provided by online gaming maysatisfy college students with this endophenotype (shortened reward-delay gradient) more thanother activities” (Ko et al., 2008). Not much research has been done with the comorbidity ofsubstance abuse habits with individuals who exhibit PVP. It would be interesting to measureSUD in addition to the other reported therapeutic activities that this demographic engages in. As with substance abuse disorders, treatment is most effective with psychoeducation andpreventative measures (Seay& Kraut, 2007). With substance abuse prevention, examples such asthe DARE program are catered to adolescents. Project Massive is a movement in educating thesame demographic and their parents of the problems with online game playing without propertime management skills (Seay& Kraut, 2007). The older demographic stands to lose more intheir lives due to PVP, so On-Line Gamers Anonymous (OLGA & OLG-Anon) emerged in 2002with the same ideas and philosophies as AA and Al-Anon aimed at older individuals who seekhelp with their PVP and those who may facilitate bad habits. With the evolution of technology,new problems will occur and should be documented. It is the ebb and flow of each realm is whatcreates triggers and reinforces behaviors in substance abuse disorders and behavioral ones.Becoming aware of the interplay of these aspects helps psychologists gain a better understandingof behavioral addiction, legitimize their diagnosis, and create better treatment suggestions.References

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 12Benedetti, Winda (2011). Is “World of Warcaft” the future of Online Dating? In-Game on MSNBC.com.12/3/2011. www.msnbc.comBerghammer, B. (2002). Nintendo getting sued over wrongful death. Star Tribune.February.Boyer, E.W., Shannon, M., &Hidderd, P.L. (2005). The internet and psychoactive substance use among innovative drug users. Pediatrics.Vol115(2). 302-305.Chuang, Y.C. (2006). Massively multiplayer online role-playing game-induced seizures: A neglected health problem in internet addiction. CyberPsychology and Behavior.Vol. 9(4).451-456.Cole, H., Griffiths, M.D. (2007). Social interactions in massively multiplayer online role- playing gamers.CyberPsychology& Behavior.Vol. 10 (4).575-583.Cyranowski, J.M., Frank, E., Young, E., & Shear, M.K. (2000). Adolescent onset of the gender difference in lifetime rates of major depression. Archives of General Psychiatry.Vol. 57. 21-27.Fischer, S. (1994). Identifying video game addiction in children and adolescents.Addictive Behaviors.Vol. 19 (5), 545-553.Gentile, D. (2009). Pathological video-game use among youth ages 8-18. Psychologcial Science. Vol. 20(5).594-602.Griffiths, M., & Wood, R.T.A. (200). Risk factors in adolescents: the case of gambling and the internet. Journal of Gambling Studies.Vol. 16(2/3). 199-225.

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 13Griffiths, M.D., Davies, N.O., & Chappelle, D. (2004). Online computer gaming: a comparison of adolescent and adult gamers. Journal of Adolescence.vol. 27, 87-96.Gupta, R., Deveransky, J.L. (1998). Adolescent gambling behavior and correlates associated with problem gambling. Journal of Gambling Studies.Vol. 14(4), 319-344.Jeffery, R.W., Baxter, J., McGuire, M., &Linde, J. (2006). Are fast food restaurants an environmental risk factor to obesity.International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.Vol. 3(2).1-6.Kim, E.J., Namkoon, K., Ku. T., & Kim, S.J. (2007). The relationship between online game addiction and aggression, self-control and narcissistic personality traits. European Psychiatry.Vol. 23(3).212-218.Ko, C.H., Yen, J.Y., Chen, C.C., Chen, S.H., Yen, C.F. (2005)a. Gender differences and related factors affecting online gaming addiction among Taiwanese adolescents.The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease.Vol. 193 (4).273-277.Ko, C.H., Yen, J.Y., Chen, C.C., Chen, S.H., Yen, C.F. (2005)b. Proposed diagnostic criteria of internet addiction for adolescents.The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease.Vol. 193(11).728-733.Ko, C.H., Yen, J.Y., Chen, C.C., Chen, S.H., Yen, C.F. (2008). Psychiatric Comorbidity of Internet Addiction in College Students: An Interview Study. CNS Spectrums.Vol. 13(2). 147-153.Koepp, M.J., Gunn, R.N., Lawrence, A.D., Cunningham, V.J., Dagher, A., Jones, T. Brooks, C.J., &Grasby, P.M. (2008).Letters to Nature.Vol. 393(21).266-268.

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 14Leibert, Mary Ann (2006). Motivations for Play in Online Games.CyberPsychology& Behavior. Vol. 9 (6), 772-775.Nathan, P.E. (1988). The addictive personality is the behavior of the addict. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.Vol. 56(2).183-188.Ng, B.D. & Hastings, P.W. (2005).Addiction to the internet and online gaming. CyberPsychology and Behavior.Vol. 8(2).110-113.Pierce, J.P., Gilpin, E., Burns, D.M., Whalen, E., Rosbrook, B., Shopland, D., & Johnson, M. (1991). Does tobacco advertising target young people to start smoking? The Journal of the American Medical Association.Vol. 266(22). 3154-3158.Seay, A.F. & Kraut, R.E. (2007). Project massive: self-regulation and problematic use of online gaming. Proceedings of the CHI 2007 Conferences on Human Factors in the Computing Systems. San Jose, CA.Smyth, J.M. (2007). Beyond self-selection in video game play: an experimental examination of the consequences of massively multiplayer online role-playing games. CyberPsychology and Behavior.Vol. 10(5).717-721.Tejeiro& Moran (2002).Measuring problem video game playing in adolescents.Addiction. Vol. 97 1601-1606.Turner, N., Macdonald, J., Bartshuk, M., &Zangeneh, M. (2008).Adolescent gambling behavior, attitudes, and gambling problems.Int J Mental Health Addictions. Vol. 6(2) 223-237.

CONCEPTS IN VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS Leong 15Thomson, I. (2007). Chinese gamer dies after 3 day session. V3 Technology UK. http://www.v3.co.uk/v3-uk/news/1990058/chinese-gamer-dies-day-session.Weinstein, A.M. (2010). Computer and video game addiction a comparison between game users and non-game users.The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse.Vol. 36. 268- 276.Williams, I.(2007). Chinese gamer dies after 15 day session.V3 Technology UK. http://www.v3.co.uk/v3-uk/news/1998377/chinese-gamer-dies-day-session.Wood.R.T.A. (2007). Problems with the concept of video game addiction: some case study samples. International Journal of Mental Health Addiction.Vol. 6.169-178.Young, K.S. (1996). Internet addiction: the emergence of a new clinical disorder. CyberPsychology and Behavior.Vol. 1(3).237-244.Young, K. (2009) Understanding online game addiction and treatment issues for adolescents. The American Journal of Family Therapy.Vol 37.355-372.Yee, N. (2006). The psychology of massively multi-user online role-playing games: motivations, emotional investment, relationships and problematic usage. Avatars at Work and Play: Collaboration and Interaction in Shared Virtual Environments. Pp.187-207.

Path3fullpaper

by Shcl1438 on Jan 13, 2012

Accessibility

Categories

Tags

Upload Details

Usage Rights

Statistics

Path3fullpaper — Document Transcript