Pathological Video Game Subdiction : Reasons To An Addiction Of Video Games

Addiction is another highly debated issue. Several studies have proved that video games contribute to unhealthy activities. According to Buckley, obesity among the children had increased tremendously over the years (19). They argue that there exists a connection in extended video play and the development of physical pain. There is a belief that there will be decreased effect in education, termed “displacement effect.” As such, it shows more time is spent on playing games rather than studying or doing course work. Additionally, playing video games may result in attention deficits, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. As highlighted by Brook, a greater percentage of individuals suffering from obesity are highly involved in video games (22). Most children do not engage in healthy and physically demanding activities. It is evident that children involved in sports tend to meet new people and make new friends.

The videogame addiction may seem funny or ridiculous, but in reality it is a dangerous obsession that truly exposes several needs that have yet to be addressed within the afflicted. Addiction is a damaging problem, and the impact of varying sorts of addictions, such as illegal and

Video game addiction is not yet recognized by the American Medical Association as a diagnosable disorder, but addiction has become a very real problem for many video game players. An addiction is when the person needs more and more of a substance or behavior to keep them going, and if the person does not get more, they can become irritable and miserable. Compulsive gaming meets these criteria, and there have been many studied instances where severe withdrawal symptoms in game addicts are seen when parents take away the child’s electronic gaming system. According to chapter three of the book, a study in Singapore of 3,000 middle schoolers found that the

While video games may be a fun distraction, playing them too often, as many people tend to do these days, is unhealthy, uneducational, and possibly even dangerous. The rise of technology over the past few decades has led to countless new ways of communicating and working, as well as countless new ways of distracting oneself from communicating and working. Video games are simply one of these methods of distraction. Although they can be a great way to destress when played every once in a while, the fact that they are now available on a huge variety of different devices, including mobile phones, means that most people now play them every day, multiple times a day. The amount of time, energy, and money people spend on these games is infinite, and can only lead them to another virtual level, rather than taking them anywhere in real life. I believe that there are many benefits to playing video games, but that focusing on them too much cannot be good for anybody.

International studies have shown that between seven and eleven per cent of gamers show some symptoms associated with addiction. Some teens are heavy users of online role-playing games (RPGs) such as World of Warcraft and multiplayer games such as Call of Duty in which they interact with other players in real time. These teens will often neglect schoolwork and other aspects of their daily lives when they become immersed in these games. The American Medical Association has identified “video game overuse” as ‘behaviour’.

From the past till now, video game never loses its popularity, from Gameboy to Wii, and from NDS to LOL, millions and billions of people are obsessed with this imaginary world. Some of the video games are created for educational purpose, however, most are created for the people who wants to escape from reality. “In a national Harris Poll survey of 1,178 American youths (ages 8-18), ISU Assistant Professor of Psychology Douglas Gentile found nearly one in 10 of the gamers (8.5 percent) to be pathological players.” ("Figure 2f from: Irimia R, Gottschling M (2016) ") Not only the statistic shows the high rate of addiction towards video games, terrible consequences of the addictions are more than enough to be served. For example, an extreme case of an Chinese kid called Xioyi suicide because he lose in one of his game on December 27, 2004; where he left a note that said he wanted “to join the heroes of the game he worshiped.” Video game has the potential to ruin a person’s life, as well as their family, or even the

Advances in technology have forever changed the way that children play, communicate, and view the world. Have you ever told your child that it was time to turn the video game off, or to put away the cell phone? Of course you have. Did they become upset, aggressive, or even depressed? These are warning signs indicating a potentially dangerous addiction. Addiction is characterized by the intense need for a substance and the experience of withdrawal symptoms when that substance is taken away (Rauh). Video games fill the player with strong feelings of pleasure and fulfillment. When considering the effects that video games have on your social, academic, and financial life; when do these fun technologies morph into a dangerous addiction?

Playing video games is popular among children and adults alike. People play video games in almost every household all over the world. This paper explores the impact of video games on the brain. There are good and bad effects of video games. In a 2011 article Bavelier, Green, Han, Renshaw, Merzenich, & Gentile reported the content of game play may produce different effects. The players control images on television, telephones and computer screens. There are positive and negative effects of video games corrupting the brain, it can be addictive and cause behavioral changes.

Video game are very addictive. Handful of people play hours on end just to beat the next level or are just simply addictive. The telegraph's Nick Allen described, in about a shooter, and found interesting evidence, "saw him playing violent zombie video games in his room. Sometimes from 12:30 pm until 4:30 am." (P.2) if this specific person wasn’t so addictive to video games he could of spent time outside his room making connections/friends ships and developing a better anchor. Some night say it was his own choice to play video games instead of making connections, but what if his brain didn’t let him because of how adictive he had become to video

The over usage of video games has appeared to affect the mind in the OFC, the striatum, and the sensory regions. Addict gamers appeared to have more of a impulsiveness control than the normal gamer. Players who had played online showed an increase of gray matter density from the other players in the left anterior cingulate cortex. Another thing I found interesting in this article was that higher amounts of dopamine appeared in addict gamers from the “reward process” in videogames than the casual gamer. The Cambridge gambling task ( which affects the brain in making poor decisions) was found higher in addict gamers. Not only that, but addict gamers appeared to have a slower information processing than normal players.

The controversial topic of video game addiction is what I have decided to focus my multi-genre research project on. Although a multitude of people do not even know of the existence of such a problem in today's society, I can assure you that this is becoming an increasingly greater problem effecting people around the world of all ages. Through my multi-genre project, I intend on proving the uselessness and detrimental qualities of playing video games, and I am going to explore some healthy alternatives to such a problematic habit.

The prolonged and excessive use of video games can cause, mainly upon children, a number of psychological changes which may include the following: obsessive, addictive behavior, dehumanization of the player, desensitizing of feelings, personality changes, psychomotor disorders, and the development of

Video games are an addiction like any other drug. Many naysayers to games believe that gaming wastes too much time and money, to the point where it can be dangerous. As Kimberly Young(n.p. 2014) puts it neatly, "Online gaming is an emotionally draining and time-consuming activity. To create more time for the computer, gaming addicts neglect sleep, diet, exercise, hobbies, and socializing." Young is saying that games promote an unhealthy lifestyle that can lead to serious consequences. Young gives a poignantly tragic example when she mentions the case where a South Korean 28 year old man died while playing Starcraft for 50 hours. This example is an extreme one, but nevertheless, it is still a good example that demonstrates what gaming can do to a person. Even if the game doesn’t kill you outright, it can

In perhaps the worst case scenario for someone that plays video games, death by video games is it. “in August 2005, a 28-year-old South Korean man died—not by committing suicide, but after playing the game Starcraft at an Internet cafe for 50 hours straight” (“South Korean man dies after games session”, 2005). This is what video game addiction can do to you. This man played fifty hours straight. No autopsy was done, but examiners had determined that he died from heart failure from exhaustion. It is not uncommon for video gamers to go without some sleep, skip a meal, or skip a shower just to get in some more game time. In any given single gaming session, a gamer may play from anywhere between ten and twenty hours straight. When

Almost everyone has played a video game at least once in their life. The people who play them on a normal basis though, probably only spend an hour or two doing so per day. However, there are people who are affected by video game addiction and do not know it. The DSM-V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) does not even consider video game addiction to be a real problem. But, video game addiction is, in fact, a real phenomenon and it is a direct cause of health and social problems, particularly in adolescent males.