When Video Game Playing Becomes a Problem
With the most recent edition of the hottest sports video game in the nation hitting store shelves in August, UCSF researcher Sonya Brady, PhD, knows that for some gamers, the release of Madden NFL 07 for the Sony PlayStation 2 means more than just armchair blocking and rushing.
For a small minority of players, the recreational pastime can become an all-consuming passion, and interfere with relationships with friends and other loved ones and with school and career.
What Is Video Game Addiction?
Brady, a clinical psychologist and postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychiatry, has conducted research on the effects of violent video games on real-world risky behavior, and has been asked to consult on video game addiction. She said that "video game addiction is not an official medical diagnosis, but excessive game play can seem like a type of substance dependence." But it's not the number of hours of play as much as the effect on the individual's life that can raise concerns of addiction-like behavior. "We have to look at what's happening in other domains within the person's life," Brady said. "Is the person experiencing problems at work or school as a result of video game use? Are the person's relationships with other people being negatively influenced by game play? How well is the person able to cope with not being able to play video games for an extended period of time - does the person become anxious or angry? "There is no official medical diagnosis for video game addiction. But a compulsion to play throughout most of the day - and the resulting interference with other life activities - is what makes excessive video game play seem similar to other kinds of dependence," she said.
Of course, there are no adverse physical consequences to high levels of video game play, as with drug or alcohol dependence, though Brady said she has read about very rare reports of gamers who suffered adverse consequences from sitting in a cramped position for extended periods without a break.
Brady explained that characteristics of substance dependence include needing larger amounts of the substance in order to achieve the same desired effect, using the substance for a longer period of time than intended, giving up or putting at risk important social, occupational or recreational activities, and continuing to use the substance despite knowing it is harmful.
"Many of us can probably think of a person who has exhibited some or all of these features with respect to some type of behavior, including video game use," she said.
Patterns of Male Game Playing
The industry group Entertainment Software Association (ESA), which represents companies like Sony and Sega, estimates that combined revenues from video, computer and Internet games totaled more than $7 billion in 2005, with nearly 230 million games sold. Those games are being played primarily by males, Brady conjectured, because most games' themes appeal more to males. Brady's conjecture is correct. Nearly 70 percent of video and computer game players are male, according to the ESA. The group ranks the most popular game genres as action games (Star Wars Battlefront II) with 30 percent of the market, followed by sports games (Madden) with 17 percent of the market. Racing games (Gran Turismo) have 11 percent of the market. In 2005, Madden NFL 06 for the Sony PlayStation 2 was the top-ranked sports game in the country. More violent fighting and "shooter" games, like Grand Theft Auto, the game that Brady included in her study on game violence and risky behavior, make up a total of only about 14 percent of games. The study involved 100 college men aged 18 to 20 who were asked to estimate their past and current weekly game play. "The college men reported playing video games a median of three hours per week during a typical week," Brady's study found, with one individual playing 43 hours a week. In high school, the median number of hours reported was five, with a range of zero hours to 50 hours a week. In middle school, the range of hours reported was zero hours to 70 hours, with a median of six. Most Video Game Play Does Not Fit a Pattern of Addiction
Brady said that while playing a game for 10 hours a week or more may seem excessive to some, gamers might perceive it differently. "For them, it's not like watching the same movie or television program over and over again. You could potentially play the game in different ways. It's not the same because new things may happen each time you play." Brady said that making an assessment of whether someone's game play is addiction-like requires a clinical judgment. A health professional would want to consider information about how the person functions in school or at work, and how the person interacts with family and friends, rather than looking only at the number of hours of play. "Addiction implies a serious problem and does not fit the pattern of most people's video game play," Brady said. "So it's important to have a health professional involved who can say more objectively how that person's video game use might fit in with normative patterns of use, what functions that use might serve in their lives, and whether important life activities are being impaired," she said. Related Links: Video Game Violence Changes Attitudes in the Real World
UCSF Today, September 1, 2006
Brady, a clinical psychologist and postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychiatry, has conducted research on the effects of violent video games on real-world risky behavior, and has been asked to consult on video game addiction. She said that "video game addiction is not an official medical diagnosis, but excessive game play can seem like a type of substance dependence." But it's not the number of hours of play as much as the effect on the individual's life that can raise concerns of addiction-like behavior. "We have to look at what's happening in other domains within the person's life," Brady said. "Is the person experiencing problems at work or school as a result of video game use? Are the person's relationships with other people being negatively influenced by game play? How well is the person able to cope with not being able to play video games for an extended period of time - does the person become anxious or angry? "There is no official medical diagnosis for video game addiction. But a compulsion to play throughout most of the day - and the resulting interference with other life activities - is what makes excessive video game play seem similar to other kinds of dependence," she said.
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Each vertical line in this graph represents the number of college men who played video games for a specific number of hours. Of the 179 men who reported on their video game use, 50% played for 3 hours or less during a typical week. 95% of men played for 15 hours or less during a typical week. |
The industry group Entertainment Software Association (ESA), which represents companies like Sony and Sega, estimates that combined revenues from video, computer and Internet games totaled more than $7 billion in 2005, with nearly 230 million games sold. Those games are being played primarily by males, Brady conjectured, because most games' themes appeal more to males. Brady's conjecture is correct. Nearly 70 percent of video and computer game players are male, according to the ESA. The group ranks the most popular game genres as action games (Star Wars Battlefront II) with 30 percent of the market, followed by sports games (Madden) with 17 percent of the market. Racing games (Gran Turismo) have 11 percent of the market. In 2005, Madden NFL 06 for the Sony PlayStation 2 was the top-ranked sports game in the country. More violent fighting and "shooter" games, like Grand Theft Auto, the game that Brady included in her study on game violence and risky behavior, make up a total of only about 14 percent of games. The study involved 100 college men aged 18 to 20 who were asked to estimate their past and current weekly game play. "The college men reported playing video games a median of three hours per week during a typical week," Brady's study found, with one individual playing 43 hours a week. In high school, the median number of hours reported was five, with a range of zero hours to 50 hours a week. In middle school, the range of hours reported was zero hours to 70 hours, with a median of six. Most Video Game Play Does Not Fit a Pattern of Addiction
Brady said that while playing a game for 10 hours a week or more may seem excessive to some, gamers might perceive it differently. "For them, it's not like watching the same movie or television program over and over again. You could potentially play the game in different ways. It's not the same because new things may happen each time you play." Brady said that making an assessment of whether someone's game play is addiction-like requires a clinical judgment. A health professional would want to consider information about how the person functions in school or at work, and how the person interacts with family and friends, rather than looking only at the number of hours of play. "Addiction implies a serious problem and does not fit the pattern of most people's video game play," Brady said. "So it's important to have a health professional involved who can say more objectively how that person's video game use might fit in with normative patterns of use, what functions that use might serve in their lives, and whether important life activities are being impaired," she said. Related Links: Video Game Violence Changes Attitudes in the Real World
UCSF Today, September 1, 2006