Gaming Addictions—a Tough Issue in a World that Puts a High Value on Entertainment

I recently read/listened to a story from A self-confessed video gaming addict.

This is a tough topic to write about. I think an addiction to video games would be a tough issue to tackle just like any other addiction. I watched the video clip attached to this story and was interested in one line the young gamer shared. “I couldn’t find a substitute,” he said. This young man loved playing video games so much that he couldn’t pull himself from the computer to even conduct a worthy interview.

We’ve seen many stories in the press about video game addicts that are, not unlike this young man, unable to separate themselves from the gaming world. Some so much that they ultimately die from overstimulation of the brain. In a world where many households boast one or two gaming systems, it’s no surprise that young children and many adults with time on their hands become attached and some even addicted to these products.

Have any of you read this article from an author at Berkley that said that online gambling and multi-player online role playing games (MMORPGs) and multi-user domain games (MUDs) are among the most addicting. The cause, “online gaming addictions are triggered by Individuals' needs to substitute real-life human connections, which they are unable to achieve normally. Through a virtual fantasy world and real people connected by the internet, MMORPGs allow these people to create these human connections. This may be one reason why people are easily addicted to these games; they need to substitute real interpersonal relationships with virtual ones through a game.”

So, as an educational institution that works with individuals that create the characters and the games, we don’t take this issue lightly. Truly though the issue lies with parents and the parameters they set for their children in regards to how much time and the kind of games that are played. We can’t stop adults from being addicted, but it’s a parents’ responsibility to know what their kids are doing and to manage the use of games so that they don’t become addicted. We know that there are psychological triggers involved but that’s not our expertise. We’ll stick to creating for the world of gaming. But, we’d love to hear your thoughts about this issue. Blog away and share your thoughts.