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Thursday 6th May 2021 | PALATINATE
SciTech
“Low self-esteem, high impulsivity” be doing so to escape from an uncomfortable situation, or to mask underlying symptoms of stress, depression, or anxiety. The feel-good chemicals released in the brain when playing games can lead to them feeling the need to play for longer as the addiction gets worse. However, it’s not all doom and gloom. I have already mentioned the psychological and medication-based treatments available for those struggling with gaming addiction. A balanced parenting style, with emphasis on the benefits of emotional warmth in supporting self-efficacy, self-control, and autonomy through the promotion of time management, and avoiding overprotection and parental rejection, has been suggested as a positive influence for avoiding and recovering from IGD.
Continued from page 15 Neurobiology at play Since it is categorised as an impulse control disorder, gaming addiction is significantly more difficult to relate to causation than substance addictions. Moreover, it appears that not everyone is equally susceptible to developing an addiction to video games. Generally, gaming results in the release of the ‘happy chemical’ dopamine in the brain, triggering a reward response. The desire for online game play appears to be linked to activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal, orbitofrontal cortex, the parahippocampal gyrus, and the thalamus. An MRI study on the differences in brain structure between online gamingaddicted and professional gamer participants suggested that increased grey matter volumes of the left cingulate gyrus in progamers and of the left thalamus in addicts may contribute to the differing clinical characteristics of each group. Studying gaming addiction is complicated by the variety of games that exist. There are different motivators for playing single-player versus multiplayer games. It is thought that multiplayer games are most likely to cause addiction as there is no official ending, like there is with single-player games. The literature mainly focuses on addictions to multiplayer online games, so some papers define a distinct Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD).
Notably absent from effects of gaming disorder is the oftcited ‘aggression’
Risk factors are repeatedly identified as diminished social competence, low self-esteem, and high impulsivity, although the latter has been suggested to correlate only to total playtime rather than directly to IGD. Earlier onset of weekly gaming, e.g. before age five rather than 10, has also been associated with increased risk of developing problematic gaming. Other traits associated with IGD are not as well-defined as causes or consequences of problematic gaming. These include increased loneliness, higher anxiety, lower family functioning, and lower school performance. The latter study also found that those who exhibited problematic gaming behaviours tended to sleep and wake up later. However, care must be taken when evaluating the results of
studies utilising playtime as a metric. Based on a sample of 13,000 gamers, it has been suggested that raw playtime is an uninformative predictor of a gamer’s mental health. Better predictors of risk are reasons for engaging with games, such as achievement, escapism, and social context.
Reading the literature on this topic gave me a spooky feeling of relatability
Studies into single-player gaming addiction are far less plentiful, but one recent study found that addiction was more prevalent in online gamers than offline, and that maladaptive cognitions predicted both types of disorder equally, Another study explored whether there was any correlation between the type of game played and incidence of problematic video game usage. The researchers found no such correlation, and instead found that only self-rated impulsivity and frequency of playtime were uniquely and positively correlated with problem video game usage. Notably absent from any of the aforementioned causes and effects of gaming disorder is the oft-cited ‘aggression’. The literature suggests that there is only weak evidence that playing violent games at all is correlated with increased aggression, or even that it may not be correlated at all. Instead, it appears that aggression may be either a side-effect of frustration arising from the type of reinforcement
Just one more level... (Anna Kuptsova)
and difficulty of a game, or a withdrawal symptom specifically related to gaming disorder, and a poorly understood one at that. Myself, reading the literature on this topic gave me the spooky feeling of relatability that drives the superstitious to read horoscopes. One paper found that those with ADHD tended to prefer role-playing games, which just happen to be my favourite genre. Another found that, while ADHD symptoms were consistently associated with gaming disorder, more frequent associations were displayed with inattention associations with gaming disorder than other ADHD subscales.
Game play may be a means of self-medication amongst children with ADHD It happens that my particular flavour of ADHD is the ‘primarily inattentive’ presentation. Yet another study posited that internet video game play may be a means of self-medication amongst children with ADHD, and that treatment with methylphenidate hydrochloride, a common drug for treating ADHD, may relieve symptoms of IGD. Anecdotally, I can attest to gaming, in particular the welldefined feedback loops present in games, being one of the reasons I was drawn to gaming when I was unmedicated. After starting treatment with that same medication, my personal recovery from gaming addiction began, and to this day I find it
easier to resist the urge to game excessively when I have had my pill.
Is there a cure? With so many factors to consider, concerned loved ones may find it difficult to distinguish between avid gamers and those with addictions. The Priory group of clinics recommends looking out for the following features to ascertain whether an addiction has developed: Those with addiction will be preoccupied by the idea of playing certain games, which may last many months or even years. Even during conversation, they may struggle to talk about anything else other than their gaming exploits, while their hygiene, social integration, college, and work performance may all suffer as a result of intensive and prolonged gaming sessions. There are two primary signs of addiction. Obsessional thoughts: a person is so preoccupied by the idea of gaming that they will be focused so much on previous gaming activity that this can get in the way of developing social relationships and can interfere in major aspects of their life such as work performance as well as physical and mental health.
Gaming activity can get in the way of developing social relationships
Uses gaming to alter mood: another major sign that someone feels a compulsion to play video games is when they appear to
Feel-good games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons have provided a creative outlet
If sufferers can re-establish a healthy relationship with gaming like I have, they stand to benefit from the myriad of positive influences games can have beyond plain and simple fun. Games like Minecraft can be powerful educational tools and drivers of creativity. Motioncontrolled games like Wii Sports and Ring Fit Adventure can encourage physical fitness. Games of skill, such as shooters and driving games, can impart increased hand-eye coordination. Games that require problem solving (a feature of most games) can increase cognitive performance. Challenging games with engaging primary gameplay loops and clear feedback loops can instil motivation and perseverance. Pro-social games can help to break barriers in interpersonal communication. Feel-good games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons have provided gamers with a powerful creative outlet and recreational tool that has correlated positively with mental well-being during the pandemic. My gaming addiction began around the age of 10. I was dependent and impulsive, but with the right diagnoses, treatments, and support from my family, I was able to overcome my addiction. Today, gaming is still my main hobby, one that I consider a ‘healthy obsession’ that does not detract from but rather feeds into my well-being, social life, and career pursuits. Just don’t ask me how many hours I spent reaching 100% completion in Death Stranding.
