Gaming Addiction Explained

Gaming addiction – also known as gaming disorder,

video game addiction (VGA) and computer game
addiction – is one of the most recent forms of
addiction to have emerged, and significant debate
still exists about the extent to which it should be
considered a condition in its own right. However,
regardless of its precise medical status, gaming
addiction has caused incalculable pain to countless
people in recent decades, and a growing number of
people are now being treated for it in the UK and the
wider world.

Diagnoses of gaming addiction identify the

compulsive playing of video games to the extent to
which such behaviour causes physical
and/or mental harm, or other detrimental effects, to
the gamer. Some individuals are unable to stop
playing video games for extremely long periods, with
potentially serious ramifications for their health –
indeed, a number of fatalities have been associated
with such extremely long periods of gaming; others
may find themselves able to stop after a while, and
indeed to punctuate their gaming with periods of
work and/or academic activity, but nevertheless
cannot get rid of their obsession with gaming and
allow it to dominate their lives, possibly at the cost
of previously treasured relationships, activities and
ambitions.

Gaming Addiction Explained

Gaming addiction – also known as gaming disorder,

video game addiction (VGA) and computer game
addiction – is one of the most recent forms of
addiction to have emerged, and significant debate
still exists about the extent to which it should be
considered a condition in its own right. However,
regardless of its precise medical status, gaming
addiction has caused incalculable pain to countless
people in recent decades, and a growing number of
people are now being treated for it in the UK and the
wider world.

Diagnoses of gaming addiction identify the

compulsive playing of video games to the extent to
which such behaviour causes physical
and/or mental harm, or other detrimental effects, to
the gamer. Some individuals are unable to stop
playing video games for extremely long periods, with
potentially serious ramifications for their health –
indeed, a number of fatalities have been associated
with such extremely long periods of gaming; others
may find themselves able to stop after a while, and
indeed to punctuate their gaming with periods of
work and/or academic activity, but nevertheless
cannot get rid of their obsession with gaming and
allow it to dominate their lives, possibly at the cost
of previously treasured relationships, activities and
ambitions.

Although, as noted, there is no medical unanimity

regarding whether or not gaming addiction should
be considered a distinct disorder, the neurochemical
basis of behavioural addiction is increasingly well
understood: changes in brain chemistry, in particular
in the brain’s reward centres drive a compulsion to
continue to play video games regardless of any
negative impact that doing so may have.A broad
range of health conditions, including some other
serious mental health disorders, have been linked to
gaming addiction.Meanwhile, a substantial body of
anecdotal evidence now exists demonstrating the
catastrophic impact gaming addiction can have upon
a sufferer’s relationships, social life, world view, life
prospects and general well-being

Types of Gaming Addiction

As the aforementioned WHO definition Some video

games include elements of gambling (whether with
real-world or in-game currency) and thus playing
them compulsively may, in reality, be an indication
of gambling, rather than gaming, addiction. Similarly,
certain adult-themed games feature pornographic
content, the compulsive viewing of which may form
part of a pornography addiction rather than a
gaming addiction specifically, while in others still, it
may be certain social-media-related elements which
drive compulsive engagement, possibly betraying a
social media addiction (currently an area of
significant study).

The lines between such compulsions and gaming

addiction per se may not be clear, and in any given
case it may well be that multiple addictions are in
play, or that these compulsions are symptomatic of a
broader and more complex disorder. Treatment for
anyone suffering from such a combination of
compulsions would be of necessity more bespoke,
but would likely contain elements of
the treatment now typically provided to gaming
addicts.

Stages of a Gaming Addiction

Once again, because there is no unanimity within the

medical profession about how to categorise gaming
addiction, no generally agreed list exists of the
stages through which the condition develops.
Furthermore, because each case is unique and may
involve an entirely different game or games from
another, any such list should only be considered as a
rough guide to how the condition may manifest.
Nevertheless, some key stages might be as follows:

 Initial exposure: an individual’s early experiences

with video gaming, during which enjoyment of and
perhaps a fascination with such games may
develop very quickly.
 Deeper interest: gaming begins to take up a
position of greater significance in the individual’s
life, perhaps requiring growing investment in
hardware, software and time. Other activities may
begin to take on a diminished significance in
consequence.
 Growing obsession: gaming begins to take up a
central role in the individual’s life, with their
thoughts becoming increasingly solely directed
towards gaming and other activities and, now,
relationships becoming increasingly neglected as
the great majority of the individual’s free time is
now taken up with gaming.
 Full-blown addiction: gaming becomes the
individual’s dominant or even sole interest. All
their free time is taken up with gaming, and all
their energies are focused upon it, possibly at the
cost of work or academic progress. Dietary and
sleeping patterns are likely to be hugely affected by
constant gaming, and the gamer may find
 themselves entirely dislocated from friends, family
and the real world.
It is important to note that, despite many media
scare stories, video gaming will not inevitably
become an addiction in every case; gaming can be a
harmless – indeed, healthy – part of a person’s life,
an enjoyable way to relax and even a way to make
friends and socialise virtually.

Causes and Risk Factors of Gaming Addiction

As with addiction generally, there is no universal

“recipe” for gaming addiction: medical authorities
agree that addiction can result from both genetic
and environmental factors, and even displaying a
combination of many well-known risk factors for
addiction does not automatically mean that a given
individual will become addicted.

However, as our understanding of the condition

grows, certain risk factors, in particular, have been
highlighted as contributing to higher rates of video
game addiction. These include:
 low self-esteem
 a feeling of having been neglected
 using computer games to manage moods
 anxiety/neuroticism
 having an aggressive personality
 depression
 a pessimistic outlook on life
 loneliness
 having been subjected to authoritarian parenting
 social anxiety
 a lack of empathy
 isolation
 gender (many more men than women appear to
be affected, though this certainly does not mean
that women cannot suffer from the condition)
It is important to note that as the computer gaming
industry has grown, and both hardware and software
have become vastly more sophisticated, so too has
gaming companies’ understanding of the elements of
a game that drive repetitive behaviour of the kind
likely to lead to addiction. Many game developers –
especially those producing games which demand or,
at the very least, are made significantly easier by
financial expenditure (including micro-transactions)
– have invested a great deal of effort into maximising
their software’s ability to keep players coming back
for more, and the psychology behind such
mechanisms can be fiendishly impressive (and often
indiscernible by the player).

While no mainstream developer would be willing to

admit publicly that they aim to make addicts out of
their players – just as the gambling industry
proclaims that its aim is to offer “fun” to gamblers –
the proof of the pudding is most definitely in
the eating, and there is little doubt that one of the
primary causes of gaming addiction is this increased
sophistication of developers’ ability to drive
repeated – if not constant – engagement.

How Gaming Affects the Brain

As with any behavioural addiction, gaming addiction

is a disorder of the brain’s reward system. High
levels of an addictive stimulus – in this case, video
gaming – experienced over time initiate the
production of increasingly large quantities
of dopamine in the brain, which stimulates receptors
(especially in the parts of the brain known as the
amygdala and the ventral tegmental area) which in
turn drive the impulse to repeat the behaviour in
question.

Up to a point, the more frequently this is repeated,

the more easily dopamine production is stimulated;
after a while, however, the brain develops
a tolerance to high levels of dopamine, and thus the
individual in question feels compulsion to engage in
the addictive behaviour – in other words, to play
video games – more and more often in order to feel
the same level of satisfaction and pleasure which
was initially experienced.

Moreover, once this tolerance has developed,

stopping the addictive behaviour will result in
unpleasant sensations (and
even withdrawal symptoms) – driving cravings – until
enough time has passed that the brain chemistry has
normalised and the addiction has been quashed –
though cravings to resume the addictive behaviour
may recur for months or even years after the last
instance of engaging in it.

Signs & Symptoms of Gaming Addictiono external

observers.

Emotional symptoms

 Restlessness: the addict may find it impossible to

remain still and calm for any length of time whilst
not gaming; fidgeting, pacing, constantly getting up
and down, and being unable to participate in any
task for more than a few minutes may all indicate
frustration at not being able to game.
 Irritability: an addict may be quick to lose their
temper and/or to snap at others if they are kept
away from gaming for a protracted period – or if
they are in a bad mood from a recent unsuccessful
gaming bout.
 Preoccupation with thoughts of previous or next
gaming activity: gaming may entirely capture the
 addict’s thought processes, leaving them unable to
think about anything else and possibly visibly
distracted from important activities.
 Lying about the amount of time spent playing:
many gaming addicts feel shame at the amount of
time they spend feeding their addictions, and/or
recognise that in many people’s eyes they are
engaging in an unhealthy activity, and so deceive
others about how long they actually spend gaming.
 Isolation from others to spend more time
gaming: as noted above, withdrawing from social
circles and previously enjoyed activities is a very
common sign that something is wrong.
Physical symptoms of video game addiction

Fatigue: many people play computer games for

very long periods of time – indeed, as noted
above gaming-related fatigue has been a factor
in numerous deaths in recent years – and often
sacrifice sleep for the sake of continuing to play.
This is especially common amongst those who
 work or attend college or university and who are
therefore unable to play during working hours.
Migraines: prolonged gaming has been known to
spark off migraines even in those who have
previously not suffered from them.
Carpal tunnel syndrome: repeated, very
protracted bouts of gaming using manual
controls such as drawing pads, keyboards or
mice can lead to the wrist condition known as
carpal tunnel syndrome, causing pain and
tingling in the fingers and hands.
Poor personal hygiene: some gamers allow their
levels of hygiene to slip significantly as a result
of their protracted gaming – and/or because
their isolation leaves them feeling that they do
not need to make any effort in this regard. Some
e-sports competitions have been obliged to post
notices warning that gamers exhibiting poor
levels of hygiene will be disqualified and
removed from the venue.
Gaming Addiction and Depression Depression and
similar disorders have been identified as both a
potential cause of and the potential consequence
of, gaming addiction. Depression can leave an
individual feeling apathetic and hopeless about the
future, thus reducing the apparent importance of
any long-term work or academic aspirations and
increasing the appeal of effectively inconsequential
but immediately gratifying activities such as
computer gaming.

Moreover, depression can make interpersonal

communication and relationships difficult or
impossible, whereas interacting with a computer
game – or even with real but effectively anonymous
individuals online – can feel immeasurably easier
and less daunting. These feelings can increase the
apparent value to an individual of computer gaming,
even over very long periods, and thus drive the kind
of compulsive behaviour which leads to addiction.On
the other hand, the impact of addiction on an
individual’s life prospects and self-esteem is well
understood and has been recognised as a significant
factor in the development of depression in many
people.

The often solitary and effectively meaningless nature

of computer gaming makes it even more dangerous
in this regard, and various vicious cycles can develop
as an affected individual’s self-worth can become
ever more diminished by loneliness, fatigue, obesity,
poor hygiene, an inability to communicate
successfully with others, lessened employment or
career prospects, guilt and shame, and even a poor
performance within a game or games.