While many people find escape, immersion and relaxation in gaming – as well as a social outlet if they play with their friends – a recent study has shone a light on the poorly-understood phenomenon of internet gaming disorder (IGD).
The Hong-Kong based study which was conducted in 2022, recently released its results which studied the long-term effects of mobile and PC gaming on both male and female school students, with over 2,500 being studied.
The results of the study suggest that males are more at risk of developing addiction-like behaviour when it comes to games, especially if they’re playing for more than five hours at a time.
The study
The aims of the study were to assess the mental and social consequences of increased exposure to gaming. The hypothesis was that those who binged games would have IGD and therefore higher levels of anxiety, depression, stress, loneliness and difficulty sleeping.
The surveys were conducted across different districts and binge gaming was defined as playing more than five hours in one session. Binge gaming was found to be more common in males, with that binge behaviour correlating with IGD and all of the associated symptoms.
The condition
What actually is internet gaming disorder? What are the symptoms? In the ICD-11, IGD is classified as a consistent pattern of offline or online gaming behaviours that impair the individual’s physical or psychological wellbeing. It’s ultimately a type of addiction where gaming begins to take on an unhealthy role in the individual’s life and becomes prioritised above other parts of life with greater frequency and intensity. The World Health Organisation states that for the condition to truly classify as the disorder, it needs to be present in the individual for more than 12 months.
The types of game
Due to the name, it might sound as if the condition is only problematic if the kind of gaming being engaged with is of the online variety. However, that prior ICD-11 definition pours cold water on that and suggests that developing a healthy relationship with any type of game might be key to enjoying the medium in a more balanced capacity. That being said, competitive online games are often thought to be the most addictive due to high player counts and the game design revolving around a repeated loop that’s meant to be played endlessly, with a drip feed of content and loot boxes which simulate gambling behaviour.
