Video game addiction — also known as problem video gaming — is an issue the media loves to hype (along with “Internet addiction“). Such gaming addiction is hard to define, but like pornography, some professionals say they “know it when they see it.”
One of the possible hypotheses put forth about these kinds of technology addictions back in 1999 was that what we were seeing wasn’t a behavioral addiction at all. Instead, it was suggested we were seeing the predictable adaptive behaviors of humans to unfamiliar stimuli in their lives. In this case, that stimuli was entertainment technology.
Emerging evidence suggests that this may be the case. And the really good news?
Video game addiction may resolve itself on its own — simply with time.
The new research was a three-stage, longitudinal study designed to measure participants over an 18-month period. A total of 393 participants took part in an online survey advertised on Australian gaming websites. They were then asked to complete followup surveys at 6-month and 18-month intervals, with 117 participants doing so.
The surveys collected demographic information, video game playing behaviors, administered a problematic video game playing test, and depression, anxiety, and stress scales.
So what did the researchers find?
At baseline, there were 37 self-identified problem gamers, and 80 self-identified normal gamers. A criterion validity check found that problem gamers scored significantly higher on a test of problem video gaming symptoms (i.e., PVGT) at baseline than normal gamers. […]
Both groups experienced a significant decline in problem gaming symptoms over an 18-month period, controlling for age, gaming activity, and psychopathological symptoms.
In other words, the self-identified problem gamers at the beginning of the study significantly reduced their problem gaming behavior 18 months later. So much so, they looked just like the “normal” gamers at the end of the study — their video gaming addiction had simply disappeared.
Previous research has found that problem gaming as a teen is the strongest predictor of future problem gaming as an adult. The current study, however, didn’t look at teens — only adults.
Nonetheless, the researchers have some theories as to why they saw problem video gaming disappear:
An explanation for this general decline in problem gaming symptoms in both groups is not readily apparent based on these data although the concept of maturing out over time is well established in the addiction literature. Inspection of problem gaming trajectories may suggest that a spontaneous recovery effect occurred among all gamers, as has been observed in studies that have monitored problem gamblers not receiving treatment.
It may be that problem gaming symptoms at baseline generally represented the most severe stage of respondents’ problem gaming habit, at which point problem symptoms remitted naturally over the course of the study.
The new study suggests that for most adults, video game addiction may very well resolve itself on its own over time.
If you can’t wait (or your relationship or work or studies can’t wait) for this possibility, it never hurts to see a mental health professional for a problem like this. A therapist can still help with problems of this nature, even if it’s not a formal diagnosis.
Reference
King, D.L., Delfabbro, P.H., & Griffiths, M.D. (2012). Trajectories of Problem Video Gaming Among Adult Regular Gamers: An 18-Month Longitudinal Study. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking. -Not available-, ahead of print. doi:10.1089/cyber.2012.0062.
4 comments
I don’t know. My husband has been a game addict for 9 years. He is getting worse than ever now that he has found “friends” to game with regularly.
AS an on/off hardcore gamer(video game addict) i have to say my own experience had been that the addiction comes and goes, mostly because of the GAMES themselves. There is only so much one can do in any game before its bland, no fun anymore, and there’s no longer any interest in it. Sometimes you find another game to lose yourself in immediately, sometimes it takes a while to fill the void, and sometimes enough time passes for you to rekindle passion for an old game and its addiction. Maybe some research should be done in that area, you may be surprised how common the “burnout” happens in hardcore gamers.
There’s no way kids are going to get as they say”de-addicted”. You have to enforce controls. For example, I use an app called Qustodio to restrict the content my kids watch on the web. It also includes watching what they actually go through as also the time they spend on the internet. Teenagers hardly understand self-regulation. It needs to be enforced. Qustodio is a nice little free app. Just Google for more info. on it.
I agree that it depends on the game, but I find myself playing (instead of doing other things I need to be doing) frequently. Some personal issues have caused additional stress in my life and I find it to be self-calming and very hard to tear myself away. I have never been a smoker but assume that what I feel when I am playing a mindless game is similar to the relaxation a smokers gets when smoking.
It has been going on for a few years with me; worse lately.