The Problem Of Online Gaming Addiction

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

There is debate over whether compulsive online gaming will eventually be acknowledged as a process addiction (Capuzzi & Stauffer, 2016). Currently, Internet gaming disorder is identified as a condition that needs additional study because it displays diagnostic criteria involving addictive criteria, however it does not endorse a diagnosis at this time (Capuzzi & Stauffer, 2016). Internet gaming does acknowledge the following statement,” Internet gaming has been reportedly defined as an addiction by the Chinese government, and a treatment system has been set up” (Capuzzi & Stauffer,2016). There continues to be research that studies Internet gaming addiction, but additional information would help to better understand.

In today’s culture, people who regularly play video games have been stereotypically viewed as overweight, lazy, slobs, who can’t keep a job and never leave their homes. However, a majority of the population plays video games or owns a console. These stereotypes mostly apply to PC gamers, and MMO players in particular. While most people don’t develop such severe addictions to the game, there is a group of people who suffer. These people are usually imagined as overweight men in their parent’s basements, sporting acne and greasy hair. There are most definitely people that fit this profile, however, video game addiction can claim many different people from many different walks of life. It is most definitely a serious issue, but some people don’t see the degree to which it affects everyday life. Personally, I feel that I can elaborate on the matter with a different perspective, as I have been closeup and personal to video game addiction.

Whether gambling, alcohol or shopping, it is surprising to find video games being a part of this growing list. Video game addiction is a growing epidemic that is running rampant through the world, including parts of Asia. Death from video games is becoming more common and sounds like a horror story (Flanagan). Contributing to the increase are illnesses and social disorders, two well-known conditions being social anxiety and depression. By shutting themselves out from the real world, the only light being the screen of their television or computer and eyes glued to the screen, their basic needs are ignored.

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

investigate the effects of addiction to computer games on physical and mental health including physical health, anxiety, and depression and impaired

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’.

1. The authors include an M.R.I. scientific experiment to figure out the neurochemical changes in gamer’s brain during playing some violent video games.

The impact video games have on the brain can differ by the opinions of others. Some may argue that it is a disadvantage and others may say it is the total opposite, an advantage. I will be exploring the viewpoints on both ends of the spectrum. Looking into documented research on the topic, I will be discussing the benefits of gaming, why people correlate excessive playing time to negative behaviors, and the long term effects that video games cause to the brain.

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?

What is the cause of addiction(s)? An addiction is cause by a person’s psychological habit that got developed into the person’s mental and physical condition, in which a person is unable to take control. The reason why people develop an addiction is because they have psychological, emotional, and interpersonal problem that they don’t want to deal with, so they find alternative ways to avoid the problems. Some people turn to drugs as a way to escape reality, but the majority of the people turn to the virtual online world to escape from their psychological, emotional, and interpersonal problem. A virtual online game that is currently popular for people to escape their psychological, emotional and interpersonal problem would be a game called World of Warcraft. World of Warcraft is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game(MMORPG), in which player have a vast of task they can do, ranging from exploring areas, fight monsters to level up, quests, interacting and battle with other players to unlocking abilities and spells. World of Warcraft, like many other MMORPG, is a highly addicting game. The reason for that is because there are always new things to do, there are a lot of people to socialize with, and it is a place where a person can go to escape from reality. World of Warcraft, get people addicted by creating habit(s) to their consumer causing them to want to play regularly. In the book, The

Although we may not notice it, but people can be addicted to video games and it will have serious downsides on your health. Like gambling addictions, both video game and gambling addictions both fall under the same categories of disorders. An Impulse control disorder is defined as psychiatric disorders that are identified by a sort of an impulse- failure to resist a temptation, an urge, or an itch. Both Video Game & Gambling addictions are both recognized as Impulse Control Disorders, both are caused by the need for thrills and highs and the social status correlated with being a successful gamer. Even both addictions both contribute to an elevated dopamine level, which in turn goes into the brain’s reward center; relating to various activities most find pleasure in such as eating or consuming drugs.

CNN, Samantha Bresnahan and Will Worley in their article, “When Video Games Become an Addiction”, argue about how and why video games become an addiction. They support their claim by first talking about video game addiction in the US, then about who mostly get addicted and in what age it is more popular, and finally why video games are addictive. Bresnahan’s purpose is to explain video game addiction in order to find a solution for it. They establish a hopeful tone for the readers.

Based on Han’s study on university students, he found that there were some differences in brain activity between video game addition players and normal players. Excessive video game players’ brain activity in the anterior cingulate and orbitofrontal cortex was higher than normal players. It was meant that the different form of brain activation will distinguish the addicted player and the non-addicted player. In the study, researchers took fMRI scans of the brains of 78 teenage boys who were addicted to video games and the other 73 were in common condition. The results showed that video game addiction players had stronger connections between several different regions of the brain. It declared that excessive video gaming would lead the player response faster to some events.

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.