People Aren't Addicted To Gaming, They Just Want To Forget Their Crappy Job Or Relationship

Have you ever had people tell you that you¡¯re addicted to a game, and don¡¯t know when to quit? Well, now there¡¯s scientific evidence that indicates you¡¯re really not.

Reuters

Internet gaming disorder has been termed a ¡°condition of further study¡± by medical journals, indicating it¡¯s not yet been proved or disproved with concrete evidence. So researchers at Cardiff University in the UK, led by Netta Weinstein, set out to gain some clarity in the matter with a study of their own.

Is gaming addictive? Here's what science has to say

The team studied 2,316 people over the age of 18, all who admitted to playing games online regularly, for six months. They filled in a questionnaire at the start of the study, and another six months later to gauge their emotional and psychological status with regards to their gaming habit.

The American Psychiatric Association suggests that, for gaming to be classified as an addiction, it needs to hit five key points from a list of nine, including lying about time spent gaming, jeopardising jobs, careers or education because of it, using the habit to relieve anxiety, and feeling distressed by their habit over a period of time.

Reuters

In the Cardiff study, nine of the over 2,000 participants matched five or more criteria at the start. However, none of them met the same number of criteria six months later, so they weren¡¯t diagnosed as having an addiction. In addition, three people matched four or more criteria at the beginning, but none of them felt distress at their habit, so they were out too.

¡°We didn¡¯t see a large number of people with clinical problems,¡± Weinstein told New Scientist. "The study¡¯s results suggest that it¡¯s not clear how many resources should go to gaming addiction, compared to other addictions like drugs."

Gaming actually helps people cope with other problems

reuters

Indeed, further analysis of the people who matched some of the addiction markers showed that they had other areas in their life where they weren¡¯t happy, like their relationship or career. Because of that, it¡¯s also possible the gaming was for them instead a displacement activity, a way to keep their minds off that, as opposed to an actual addiction.

The team even realised that those who were fulfilled in other aspects of their life six months later had reduced symptoms of addiction. ¡°This is initial evidence that having more needs fulfilment in life can make people feel better about their gaming,¡± Weinstein said.

Some experts believe the gaming habit itself isn¡¯t usually a problem that needs to be tackled, but rather the emotional triggers that nudge a person towards excessively indulging in the habit. Basically, if people think you¡¯re gaming too much, it¡¯s possible there¡¯s a part of your life you¡¯re not happy with, and you need to fix that first.