Gamers beware: the World Health Organization has recently declared that playing video games too often could be a "mental disorder". A draft of the 2018 International Classification of Diseases has the term "Gaming Disorder" added.
They characterize persistent gaming as a disorder because those "afflicted" engage in persistent patterns of gaming behavior. This applies to the standard console gaming systems as well as the new domain of smartphone games.
The gaming behavior becomes a problem (according to the WHO) when you have "symptoms" of impaired control over gaming activity -- i.e. you can't stop playing. This can also develop into increased prioritization of gaming over other interests and daily activities, such as eating, sleeping and socializing with family or friends. At the extreme, this can culminate in a lack of being present for other things that receive less attention and priority in your life, like the recurring loss of personal relationships or getting fired from your job.
This classification by the WHO opens up doctors and insurance companies to consider the gaming habits of individuals as part of their assessments. If you are a gamer, an insurance company could include gaming addiction as part of the coverage, but also charge you more for insurance because of the factors of influence it has in your overall life and well-being. It can also allow people to get free help from a medical standpoint, as opposed to having to deal with their gaming problem on their own.
For some, the classification as a health disorder is likened to the decision in the 1950s to call alcoholism a medical condition. Prior to such classifications, the general public viewed alcoholism as a personal failing, not as a medical issue. But framing alcoholism as a disease model seems to help people accept the problem they have, and work to overcome it.
The same is so for gaming addiction: it's viewed not as a disease but as a possible personal shortcoming in managing priorities. Changing the mindset around people's addiction to gaming could change their view on it being a harmful behavior that is negatively affecting their life. Whether it's actually a real disease or disorder might not be true, but the move to label it as such can get people to think and talk about gaming addiction as a potential problem in life.
A 2011 study found that gaming addiction was related to depression, anxiety, social phobias and ADHD. They wanted to know if excessive gaming was a result of prior mental states, or the causal primary condition. They found that gaming addiction is not just a coping mechanism or symptom of mental health problems. Gaming addiction didn't start the ball rolling for the mental health conditions, but can be seen as aiding to keep them going, according to some researchers.
This new classification has issues compared to other recognized disease or disorders, that being the lack of research to back it up. Games have been a form of leisure for a long time, and that includes the development of video games in arcades, consoles, computers and smartphones. Video games are played by are estimated to be played by 2/3 of kids and teens, as well as a large number of adults.
Video games are a significant part of our current way of life. Many people have mobiles, and that increases the potential for games to be played more frequently, at almost any time of the day, wherever you are. Sales of games exceeds those of music and videos/movies.
But does digit gaming deserve to be pathologised as a disorder?
Many researchers disagree with the WHO and wrote a paper expressing how the WHO is being premature. Researchers who study video games lack a consensus about this being a disorder, noting that the quality of the evidence to classify it as such is low, with no consensus on a definition for the addiction or symptoms. Another paper also addresses disagreements with the WHO's diagnosis.
Those researchers are worried that normal gaming behavior that millions engage in will be labeled as pathological, since the gaming addiction is being written of as being similar to gambling addiction. There is a strong desire among people who are worried about their children being negatively affected by gaming, which might be a social panic fueling bad research through researchers motivated to get published, get press attention, or advance their careers because of an increase in grant money for this type of research.
Video games can be more of a coping mechanism from underlying issues of depression or anxiety, as opposed to a cause of it. That wouldn't really make it a disorder, but instead the result of underlying causal motivators that drive excessive gaming behavior for some people. A small subset of gamers could be struggling, but not that all gaming addiction is directly related to mental disorders. There can be other factors that are unclear, and some researchers are saying the current WHO classification is based on unsound science.
- What do you think of gaming addiction?
- Are you a gamer?
- Do you spend a lot of time gaming?
- Does gaming get in the way of other aspects of your life you could better be spending time on?
Have your say!
References:
- 'Gaming Disorder' recognized as a worldwide mental health condition
- WHO gaming addiction classification an important step for treatment, says expert
- Gaming addiction as a mental disorder—it's premature to pathologize players
Thank you for your time and attention. Peace.
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