Adolescent Substance Abuse Articles
Pathological gaming may lead to serious behavioral problems
By Staff Writer
Parents with sons and daughters who are avid video game players may be interested in the results of a recent study on gaming and its effects on youth. Excessive gaming may lead to poor school performance and social disorders, according these scientific findings.
For the study, an international research team examined a population of 3,034 third through eighth grade students in Singapore over a two-year period. Based on their findings, approximately 9 percent of gamers were found to be pathological players. The researchers' standards of assessment were similar to those established by the American Psychiatric Association for diagnosing gambling addiction.
In addition, the pathological gamers showed signs of depression, anxiety, social phobias and lower school performance as a result of their video game habit.
According to the researchers, these results show that video game addiction is a serious behavioral problem and not a symptom of depression, social phobia or anxiety. It appears that these traits both increase and decrease with an individual's level of gaming.
On average, pathological gamers played video games for 31 hours per week, according to the study. An individual afflicted by a gaming addiction may benefit from substance abuse help.
