Gaming Addiction Classified as a Disorder?
There is no denying that gaming has become a huge industry with nearly two billion people playing on various devices across the world. This entertaining pastime has long since become a global phenomenon. Professional gamers take part in international competitions that morph their loved hobbies into fulltime sport careers. With gaming rising so high as an industry that billions ascribe to, it is hard to believe that such a lifestyle has been deemed to be a medical disorder.
Since 2011, The World Health Organisation (WHO) has been hard at work to develop their eleventh edition of The International Classification of Disease (ICD-11). This book helps doctors across the world look out for almost every disease or disorder which are categorised and defined by experts. Now in the process of being revised by participants around the world, the ICD-11 is due to be released in June 2018. In the pages of this important medical resource, “gaming disorder” will officially be included.
Recently having conducted a study, the University of Oxford suggested that, on average, children generally managed to intertwine their time spent on digital platforms with daily life. However, going beyond gaming as a pastime or even a professional career, “gaming disorder” is defined by WHO as “a pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behaviour” that causes extremely negative social consequences as it takes over a person’s life. Categorised under behavioural or drug addictions, gaming disorder can have harmful physical and mental consequences that result in not only ruined relationships, job prospects, and school performances, but also serious health defects caused by overexertion and lack of physical hygiene.
Just as a professional athlete can take things too far when competing, there is no shortage of stories where people have lost their lives due to excessive gaming. In 2015, two Taiwanese men died after a three-week gaming marathon. Authorities believed cold temperatures and overexcretion were to blame as the two young men gamed nonstop for 3-5 days before collapsing. In the following year, A father also died as a result of continuous gaming in Virginia Beach. The man suffered a heart attack when he finally stepped away from his online War of Tanks game that had lasted 24 hours straight.
Not only has WHO recognised “gaming disorder” but it has also been identified as an addiction by the American Psychiatric Association in 2013. The association included internet gaming disorder in the 5th edition of their codebook, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).
Even so, the decision to classify gaming as a separate disorder has been questioned. Chris Ferguson, a psychology professor at Stetson University in Florida, is a critic of WHO’s decision to add gaming disorder in the ICD-11. Arguing that the negative symptoms of gaming disorder is the result of people overdoing gaming as they might overdo other things like work or food, Ferguson states that there is no rational reason that gaming disorder must be an independent diagnosis. Andrew Przybylski, an experimental psychologist at the University of Oxford, is another citric who also suggested that video game addiction should rather be seen as a subset of gambling addiction.
“The evidence we now have suggests that ‘gaming disorder’ is merely symptomatic of other, underlying mental health problems and that gaming is often used as a coping mechanism for these problems,” said Ferguson.
Regardless, though, there is no denying the impact gaming has on a person’s lifestyle. The diagnosis of gaming disorder should be taken seriously for four main reasons. Firstly, it may encourage those who feel they suffer from similar symptoms to seek much-needed help from professionals which will in turn decrease hospitalizations, mortality rates, and potential medical and legal problems. Also, the diagnosis of gaming disorder may influence the public perspective on the issue. With less stigma and more awareness, people may become more cautious about problematic Internet and gaming use. A third reason is that these diagnoses will aid research efforts; and finally, the classification of gaming addiction as a disorder has already provided incentive for medical institutions and insurance providers to commit to the development of an effective treatment.
The WHO’s ICD-11, coming in June, will include signs and symptoms of gaming disorder that will aid medical practitioners in recognising and treating the addiction. In the meantime, the similarly laid-out DSM-5 states the requirements for the clinical diagnosis of gaming addiction. To be diagnosed a person must have recurrently used the internet to engage in games for over 12 months, leading to persistent impairment or distress that is indicated by at least five of these criteria:
Preoccupation with gaming
Withdrawal symptoms
Built tolerance
Lack of control
Loss of other interests
Persistent gaming despite feeling negative consequences
Deception
Mood modification as a result of gaming
Loss of close relationships, jobs, and other important life aspects
If anyone recognises these symptoms in themselves, they can seek help at medical centres. Video game addiction treatment centres have been set up in many areas where compulsive gaming has become quite an epidemic such as in Taiwan. These centres are helping many to manage their digital engagement with daily life. Gaming for long periods of time can also result in physical injury. When gaming addiction is at its extreme, players would deliberately ignore discomforts and the toll of prolonged stress. Understandably, loved ones of game addicts become deeply concerned for them and may be at a loss for what to do.
Cam Adair, a previous game addict for more than 10 years, acknowledged the difficulties his parents went through when attempting to help him. Without being gamers themselves, loved ones may find it difficult to understand this addiction and worry that their attempts to help will make things worse. After founding an online support community for gamers called GameQuitters, Adair gained insights into how to approach a compulsive gamer in a way that will increase the chances of loved ones to successfully breaking through to them.
One of these insights urges others to understand that games are very different than they were 20 years ago. Adair points out that the games of today are designed to hook people, providing expansion packs that prolong further engagement. Games become a way of escaping reality and addicts view the virtual world as a place they feel safe.
A gamer once told Adair: “It’s [Games] what we know, it’s what we’re good at, and the amount of positive reinforcement in games — every single currency gain, checkpoint, achievement — [is encouraging.]”
As the critics of gaming disorder also pointed out, Adair states that gaming is not necessarily the main problem. It is an activity that has filled specific needs in a gamer’s life. Loved ones should make an effort to understand these needs and offer alternative ways to satisfy them without condemning gamers for feeling this way. Gaming is not the only escape from reality that can become addictive. People may become addicted to food, tv, and more. When attempting to persuade a loved one to stop gaming, it is important to live by example and make active effort to have authentic non-judgemental interactions with them. Recovery from gaming addiction disorder takes time and patience, but it is possible.
Video games have become common entertainment in homes around the world. However, for some, gaming may become more than a past-time. Game addiction is now a diagnosable disorder. Professionals are available to help, but the equal importance of loved ones’ support and encouragement should not be underestimated.
