BREAKING THE VIDEO GAME ADDICTION
APA says 8.5% of youth gamers are "clinically addicted"
Victor Pagan
Issue date: 5/28/09 Section: Sci/Tech
It's 3:47 AM on Monday morning. "Straightup1azy72" has slashed through the level 92 Blood Moss Spiders, demolished the Zukk'ash Wasps, and is gearing up for the final boss, the Fitch King. No, that's not you playing your favorite MMO, it's your roommate. He's been at it non-stop for three weeks now, cutting class, only leaving the room for food (if it wasn't microwaved last night), and, worst of all, the flickering blue glow of his computer screen is totally wrecking your sleep cycle. If you find yourself agreeing with this and growling in frustration, don't worry, you aren't the only one.
Gaming addiction is steadily gaining attention as more and more of our daily lives takes place online. In 1993, Wired Magazine ran an editorial on a college student who was playing a precursor to World of Warcraft and its ilk, a MUD (Multi User Dungeon) for up to 12 hours at a time, skipping class. During the years 2000-2005, the Finnish Defense Forces deferred numerous recruits because they "lacked social skills" and were "not mature enough to meet the demands of military life," stereotypical symptoms of gaming addiction. Sometime during July 2007, a 15-year-old boy abandoned all of his activities to play an online multiplayer game called Runescape; the boy's father compared his life style to that of a heroin addict. Though media has been increasingly ready to trot out high-profile cases of online gaming addiction, the public remains woefully ignorant of the increasing degree to which condition has permeated youth culture. You may read about that poor 15-year-old and shake your head sadly, but in daily life the average person with a day-job doesn't really see the 8.5% of youth gamers who are clinically addicted to these games, according to a 2007 study conducted by the American Psychological Association.
Even this number may be conservative. I'm sure most of us tech-savvy kids would agree that this number could very easily be much higher - there are certainly enough gaming addicts on college campuses across the nation to swell that percentage considerably.
Gaming addiction is steadily gaining attention as more and more of our daily lives takes place online. In 1993, Wired Magazine ran an editorial on a college student who was playing a precursor to World of Warcraft and its ilk, a MUD (Multi User Dungeon) for up to 12 hours at a time, skipping class. During the years 2000-2005, the Finnish Defense Forces deferred numerous recruits because they "lacked social skills" and were "not mature enough to meet the demands of military life," stereotypical symptoms of gaming addiction. Sometime during July 2007, a 15-year-old boy abandoned all of his activities to play an online multiplayer game called Runescape; the boy's father compared his life style to that of a heroin addict. Though media has been increasingly ready to trot out high-profile cases of online gaming addiction, the public remains woefully ignorant of the increasing degree to which condition has permeated youth culture. You may read about that poor 15-year-old and shake your head sadly, but in daily life the average person with a day-job doesn't really see the 8.5% of youth gamers who are clinically addicted to these games, according to a 2007 study conducted by the American Psychological Association.
Even this number may be conservative. I'm sure most of us tech-savvy kids would agree that this number could very easily be much higher - there are certainly enough gaming addicts on college campuses across the nation to swell that percentage considerably.
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posted 2/18/10 @ 7:41 PM EST
I completely agree with you. Most gamers have some sort of addiction to the game they are playing. Or else it would not be as fun.
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