Online gaming has greatly increased in popularity in recent years, and with this has come a multiplicity of problems due to excessive involvement in gaming. Gaming disorder, both online and offline, ...has been defined for the first time in the draft of 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). National surveys have shown prevalence rates of gaming disorder/addiction of 10%–15% among young people in several Asian countries and of 1%–10% in their counterparts in some Western countries. Several diseases related to excessive gaming are now recognized, and clinics are being established to respond to individual, family, and community concerns, but many cases remain hidden. Gaming disorder shares many features with addictions due to psychoactive substances and with gambling disorder, and functional neuroimaging shows that similar areas of the brain are activated. Governments and health agencies worldwide are seeking for the effects of online gaming to be addressed, and for preventive approaches to be developed. Central to this effort is a need to delineate the nature of the problem, which is the purpose of the definitions in the draft of ICD-11.
The use of social network sites (SNSs) has grown dramatically. Numerous studies have shown that SNS users may suffer from excessive use, associated with addictive-like symptoms. With a focus on the ...popular SNS Facebook (FB), our aims in the current study were twofold: First, to explore the heterogeneity of FB usage and determine which kind of FB activity predicts problematic usage; second, to test whether specific impulsivity facets predict problematic use of FB. To this end, a sample of FB users (N = 676) completed an online survey assessing usage preferences (e.g., types of activities performed), symptoms of problematic FB use and impulsivity traits. Results indicated that specific usage preferences (updating one's status, gaming via FB, and using notifications) and impulsive traits (positive and negative urgency, lack of perseverance) are associated to problematic FB use. This study underscores that labels such as FB "addiction" are misleading and that focusing on the actual activities performed on SNSs is crucial when considering dysfunctional usage. Furthermore, this study clarified the role of impulsivity in problematic FB use by building on a theoretically driven model of impulsivity that assumes its multidimensional nature. The current findings have identifiable theoretical and public health implications.
Recognizing the crucial importance of understanding the impact of video games on health in today's gaming-dominated world, our study aimed to investigate the relationship between gaming time and ...Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD). Despite the widespread assumption that a connection exists between both, previous studies have revealed highly variable associations, highlighting significant weaknesses in establishing a robust link.
To unravel this complex relationship, we recruited two independent samples of League of Legends players. We combined the collection of self-reported and actual gameplay data, together with assessments of mental health, personality traits, and cognitive abilities.
Surprisingly, none of the gaming variables demonstrated a robust and stable association with IGD, regardless of whether players spent less than or more than 30 hours per week gaming—a threshold suggested by the American Psychiatric Association as a potential indicator of disordered gaming. Notably, mental health factors, such as anxiety, depression and ADHD, emerged as the most influential predictors of IGD.
These findings, replicated across two independent samples, challenge the prevailing belief that limiting screen time alone effectively combats IGD. Instead, mental health factors play a crucial role in mitigating risks associated with gaming. Policies focusing solely on restricting screen time are insufficient in reducing the prevalence or symptoms of IGD. Rather, a comprehensive approach that considers mental health and key personality traits must be adopted to safeguard the well-being of individuals engaged in gaming.
•Challenge the belief that more time playing video games implies increased Internet Gaming Disorder symptoms.•Highlight the importance of considering factors beyond screen time, such as mental health issues, as stronger predictors of IGD.•Identify the need to explore protective factors and alternative considerations in addressing individuals suffering from IGD.•Collection of actual gameplay data and development of novel measures of motivated behavior.•Inclusion of two samples collected before and after COVID to enhance the robustness and stability of the conclusions.
Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) are a very popular and enjoyable leisure activity, and there is a lack of international validated instruments to assess excessive gaming. ...With the growing number of gamers worldwide, adverse effects (isolation, hospitalizations, excessive use, etc.) are observed in a minority of gamers, which is a concern for society and for the scientific community. In the present study, we focused on screening gamers at potential risk of MMORPG addiction.
In this exploratory study, we focused on characteristics, online habits and problematic overuse in adult MMORPG gamers. In addition to socio-demographical data and gamer behavioral patterns, 3 different instruments for screening addiction were used in French MMORPG gamers recruited online over 10 consecutive months: the substance dependence criteria for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, fourth revised edition (DSM-IV-TR) that has been adapted for MMORPG (DAS), the qualitative Goldberg Internet Addiction Disorder scale (GIAD) and the quantitative Orman Internet Stress Scale (ISS). For all scales, a score above a specific threshold defined positivity.
The 448 participating adult gamers were mainly young adult university graduates living alone in urban areas. Participants showed high rates of both Internet addiction (44.2% for GIAD, 32.6% for ISS) and DAS positivity (27.5%). Compared to the DAS negative group, DAS positive gamers reported significantly higher rates of tolerance phenomenon (increased amount of time in online gaming to obtain the desired effect) and declared significantly more social, financial (OR: 4.85), marital (OR: 4.61), family (OR: 4.69) and/or professional difficulties (OR: 4.42) since they started online gaming. Furthermore, these gamers self-reported significantly higher rates (3 times more) of irritability, daytime sleepiness, sleep deprivation due to play, low mood and emotional changes since online gaming onset.
The DAS appeared to be a good first-line instrument to screen MMORPG addiction in online gamers. This study found high MMORPG addiction rates, and self-reported adverse symptoms in important aspects of life, including mood and sleep. This confirms the need to set up relevant prevention programs against online game overuse.
The 7-item Game Addiction Scale (GAS) has been validated under standard confirmatory factor analysis and exhibits good psychometric properties. Whether this scale satisfies the necessary conditions ...for consideration by item response theory (IRT) modeling remains unknown. However, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) recently proposed criteria, in its section 3, to define internet gaming disorder (IGD) to promote research on this possible condition.
The objective of our study was to (1) analyze GAS in the context of IRT (graded-response) modeling; (2) investigate differential item functioning (DIF), a feature of IRT modeling, in 2 subsamples; and (3) contribute to the ongoing (IGD) debate related to the validity of the DSM-5 criteria using GAS items as a proxy.
We assessed 2 large representative samples of Swiss men (3320 French-speaking and 2670 German-speaking) with GAS.
All items comprised high discrimination parameters. GAS items such as relapse, conflict, withdrawal, and problems (loss of interests) were endorsed more frequently in more severe IGD stages, whereas items related to tolerance, salience (preoccupation), and mood modification (escape) were endorsed more widely among participants (including in less severe IGD stages). Several DIF effects were found but were classified as negligible.
The results of the analyses partly support the relevance of using IRT to further establish the psychometric properties of the GAS items. This study contributes to testing the validity of the IGD criteria, although cautious generalization of our findings is required with GAS being only a proxy of the IGD criteria.
Given the rates of pathological gambling and its impact on affected individuals and their relatives, effective treatments are needed. There are, however, no approved pharmacological treatments for ...pathological gambling. This paper describes the development of pharmacological treatments for pathological gambling and is based on a review of the literature published in the past 10 years. Important studies were carried-out on antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and antipsychotic agents. In the absence of comorbid psychiatric disorder, these studies did not conclude to the efficacy of these psychotropic drugs. A possible efficacy of opiate antagonist treatment for pathological gambling has been replicated in a number of placebo-controlled studies. Preliminary results on N-acetyl cysteine, Memantine and Topiramate produced significant improvement for pathological gamblers and may open new avenues for treatment.
The structural addictive characteristics of gambling products are important targets for prevention, but can be unintuitive to laypeople. In the PictoGRRed (Pictograms for Gambling Risk Reduction) ...study, we aimed to develop pictograms that illustrate the main addictive characteristics of gambling products and to assess their impact on identifying the addictiveness of gambling products by laypeople. We conducted a three-step study: (1) use of a Delphi consensus method among 56 experts from 13 countries to reach a consensus on the 10 structural addictive characteristics of gambling products to be illustrated by pictograms and their associated definitions, (2) development of 10 pictograms and their definitions, and (3) study in the general population to assess the impact of exposure to the pictograms and their definitions (n = 900). French-speaking experts from the panel assessed the addictiveness of gambling products (n = 25), in which the mean of expert's ratings was considered as the true value. Participants were randomly provided with the pictograms and their definitions, or with a standard slogan, or with neither (control group). We considered the control group as representing the baseline ability of laypeople to assess the addictiveness of gambling products. Each group and the French-speaking experts rated the addictiveness of 14 gambling products. The judgment criterion was the intraclass coefficients (ICCs) between the mean ratings of each group and the experts, reflecting the level of agreement between each group and the experts. Exposure to the pictograms and their definition doubled the ability of laypeople to assess the addictiveness of gambling products compared with that of the group that read a slogan or the control group (ICC = 0.28 vs. 0.14 (Slogan) and 0.14 (Control)). Laypeople have limited awareness of the addictive characteristics of gambling products. The pictograms developed herein represent an innovative tool for universally empowering prevention and for selective prevention.
Background:
Seniors have been only little considered in studies examining problematic internet use and associated health issues, although they may present risk factors that make them particularly ...vulnerable for the development of problematic internet use.
Objectives:
(1) To compare Internet use and problematic use among seniors in Switzerland and Poland; (2) To examine the relationships between problematic internet use, impulsivity traits and well-being as previous studies showed that internet can be used to cope with negative emotions or life dissatisfaction.
Methods:
A cross-sectional survey conducted between June 2016 and April 2017 with 264 older internet users aged above 60 years old recruited in Switzerland (88) and Poland (176) assessing sociodemographic variables, online activities, problematic internet use, impulsivity traits and well-being.
Results:
The two groups differed in their reported online activities in that Polish participants reported more searching for information and buying, whereas Swiss participants reported significantly greater problematic internet use than Polish participants. Finally, a multiple linear regression analysis performed on the whole sample indicated that lower well-being and being a Swiss participant were both significantly associated with greater problematic internet use, after age, gender, level of education, impulsivity traits have been controlled for.
Discussion:
Swiss seniors showed a more problematic internet use than Polish participants who focused more in their online activities on utility use of internet. The relationships between problematic internet use and well-being suggest that older adults use internet mainly to cope with negative emotion or life dissatisfaction. Socio-cultural differences that could account for these group differences as well as difference with young adults are discussed.
Given the importance and the burden of pathological gambling (PG) and its effect on gamblers and their relatives, better comprehension of the phenomena involved in its development and persistence is ...needed. The present paper describes the previous 5 years of studies on decision making and magnetic resonance imaging in people with PG. Twenty-six studies (456 participants with PG) were included. Perseveration in monetary tasks was associated with PG despite intact executive planning abilities. PG was linked with impairment in decision making under uncertainty. Hyperactivation of the reward pathway was repeatedly found. PG was also linked with neural hyperactivation of the reward pathway during high-risk conditions and hypoactivation in low-risk conditions. Furthermore, in PG, near misses activated the brain regions related to wins. Numerous similarities were found between PG and substance use disorders, highlighting the scientific basis of the recent reclassification of PG in the spectrum of addictive disorders.
PDF
