La vida no es un juego, no te la juegues: Programa de salud dirigido a adolescentes con Trastorno por Juego en Internet (IGD)

El número de jugadores de videojuegos crece exponencialmente cada año. Esto fue contemplado por la Asociación Americana de Psiquiatría que incluyó el Trastorno por Juego en Internet (IGD) en su quinta edición del DSM. Dicho trastorno se define como una compulsión a jugar a videojuegos, disminuyendo significativamente la calidad de vida de los que la padecen. Se ve favorecida por y precipita la aparición de elevada comorbilidad. Todo ello es preocupante en las instituciones de enseñanza, donde tener IGD equivale a un peor rendimiento académico desde edades tempranas. Por ello se propone la realización de un programa de salud, dirigido tanto a docentes como a alumnos de Educación Secundaria, en el que se les informe de la problemática actual de los videojuegos y consecuencias de la adicción a los mismos (IGD).<br /

Technology-mediated addictive behaviors constitute a spectrum of related yet distinct conditions: A network perspective.

An important ongoing debate in the addiction field is whether certain technology-mediated behaviors constitute tenable and independent constructs. This study investigated whether problematic technology-mediated behaviors could be conceptualized as a spectrum of related, yet distinct disorders (spectrum hypothesis), using the network approach, which considers disorders as networks of symptoms. We used data from the Cohort Study on Substance Use and Risk Factors (C-SURF; Swiss National Science Foundation), with a representative sample of young Swiss men (subsample of participants engaged in technology-mediated behaviors, n = 3,404). Four technology-mediated addictive behaviors were investigated using symptoms derived from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.) and the component model of addiction: Internet, smartphone, gaming, and cybersex. Network analyses included network estimation and visualization, community detection tests, and centrality indices. The network analysis identified four distinct clusters corresponding to each condition, but only Internet addiction had numerous relationships with the other behaviors. This finding, along with the finding that there were few relationships between the other behaviors, suggests that smartphone addiction, gaming addiction, and cybersex addiction are relatively independent constructs. Internet Addiction was often connected with other conditions through the same symptoms, suggesting that it could be conceptualized as an "umbrella construct," that is, a common vector that mediates specific online behaviors. The network analysis thus provides a preliminary support to the spectrum hypothesis and the focus on the specific activities performed online, while showing that the construct of Internet addiction is inadequate. (PsycINFO Database Recor

Friendships in Gamers and Non-Gamers

Online social technologies, such as email, social networking applications, texting and others, are now used by a majority of individuals in the U.S. (Pew, 2018a). As a result, it is not uncommon to develop friendships with others that are conducted primarily in an online environment. However, we know little about the qualities of online friendships and how they may, or may not, differ from traditional face to face friendships. The present study focused on exploring friendship quality in online and offline domains using two groups: a gamer group and a non-gamer group that used non-gaming applications to connect with others online. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire to gather information about their online and face to face friendships, the McGill Friendship Questionnaire (Mendelsohn & Aboud, 2014) for their closest online and offline friends and measures of happiness, anxiety, and depression. In Study 1, within group comparison found that gamers’ online friendships were of significantly higher quality than their offline friendships. For non-gamers, the opposite results were found. A second study was done using a larger, non-college-based sample. Results of Study 2 found that for gamers and non-gamers offline friendships were of higher quality than online friendships, although both types of friendships existed in both groups. There were no differences between groups in general life happiness, anxiety or depression. Suggestions for follow-up research are presented

“Belonging without being”: Relationships between problematic gaming, internet use, and social group attachment in adolescence

ABSTRACT: Gaming and Internet use are positively associated with benefits for interpersonal relationships in adolescence, with these behaviors when excessive having been negatively linked with positive aspects of interpersonal connections, such as secure attachment. Using a representative sample of 7918 Portuguese adolescents, with ages ranging from 13 to 19 (Mage = 15.5, 53.3% females), and three self-report measures of problematic gaming, problematic Internet use, and social group attachment (secure, anxious, avoidant), this cross-sectional study aimed to examine the associations between problematic gaming, as well as problematic Internet use, and secure and insecure (anxious and avoidant) social group attachment styles, in the groups with and without these problems. In the groups without problematic gaming and without problematic Internet use, excessive gaming and involvement with the Internet were negatively associated with secure social group attachment and positively associated with anxious social group attachment; on the other hand, in the groups with severe levels of these problems, problematic gaming and Internet use were positively associated with secure social group attachment and negatively associated with anxious social group attachment. These results go against what had been initially hypothesized and suggest that in the case of adolescents with severe levels of these problems, they may serve as an effective compensatory mechanism for coping with the negative effects of insecure attachment styles, which in turn likely contributes to the maintenance of problematic gaming and Internet use.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Alterações na frequência e qualidade da utilização de videojogos nas patologias do espectro psicótico

Trabalho Final do Curso de Mestrado Integrado em Medicina, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, 2021Introdução: As perturbações psicóticas representam formas graves de psicopatologia, que se caracterizam sobretudo pela presença de sintomas como delírio, alucinações, desorganização do pensamento e do discurso, alterações motoras e sintomas negativos, como a anedonia e o embotamento afetivo. Estas perturbações estão frequentemente associadas a declínio académico, ocupacional e funcional, e têm início sintomático frequente durante a adolescência, um período crítico na definição da personalidade e no desenvolvimento das capacidades funcionais e criativas do indivíduo. A utilização de videojogos é uma prática muito comum entre adolescentes e adultos jovens, com interesse crescente na investigação em Psiquiatria. A alteração dos padrões de utilização de videojogos poderá refletir alterações psicopatológicas dos jogadores, nomeadamente sintomas psicóticos. A avaliação dos padrões de jogo destes indivíduos poderá permitir desenvolver novas estratégias de diagnóstico, monitorização e intervenção clínica. Métodos: Foi feita uma revisão teórica, recorrendo a bases de dados de investigação clínica, de modo a descrever a evidência existente acerca dos padrões de utilização de videojogos de indivíduos com experiências psicóticas, perturbação esquizotípica, psicose estabelecida e esquizofrenia. Conclusão: Os estudos sobre os padrões de utilização de videojogos em indivíduos com perturbação psicótica são escassos e de nível reduzido de evidência. Parece haver aumento da frequência da utilização de videojogos em indivíduos com experiências psicóticas e com perturbação esquizotípica, mas são necessários estudos maiores e em maior quantidade para concluir esta relação.Introduction: Psychotic disorders represent severe forms of psychopathology, which are mainly characterized by the presence of symptoms such as delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thought and speech, motor changes and negative symptoms, like anhedonia and blunted affect. These disorders are often associated with academic, occupational and functional decline, and frequently start manifesting during adolescence, a critical period in the establishment of personality and in the development of the individual’s functional and creative skills. Videogame use is a quite common practice amongst adolescents and young adults. Changes in habits of videogame use could reflect psychopathologic changes of the user, namely psychotic symptoms. Methods: A theoretical revision was conducted resorting to clinical databases with the goal to describe the existing evidence concerning videogame use patterns amongst individuals with psychotic disorders, namely psychotic-like experiences, schizotypal personality disorder, established psychosis and schizophrenia. Conclusion: The studies regarding videogame use patterns in samples of individuals with psychotic disorders are scarce and small. There seems to be an association between psychotic-like experiences and schizotypal disorder and increase in videogame use, but more studies are needed to establish this

Associação entre o tempo gasto em videogame e a tendência à agressividade em estudantes universitários de Bogotá D.C.

Currently, research on the benefits and harm of video games on the psychological well-being of individuals has produced contradictory evidence on variables such as the time spent on this practice and the expression of aggressiveness. This study aims to describe the association between the time that people spend daily on video games and the tendency to aggressiveness. A factorial cut correlational design (4 x 2 x 2 x 4) was carried out considering variables of age, sex, type of university and daily time of dedication. An online instrument of 20 items on a 5-level Likert scale was applied to a sample of 121 university students from Bogotá D.C. The analysis plan included exploratory factor analysis in jasp 0.12.2.0 and analysis of variance, multivariate analysis of variance and description of the profile of the study population in spss 24. Three factors of interest were obtained: anxiety in the use of video games, instrumental aggressiveness and verbal aggressiveness. Additionally, significant differences were found between casual players (less than 2 hours a day) and players with a time playing videogames greater than 2 hours per day in items of instrumental insult, isolation, emotional manipulation and trolling. The theoretical implications of the findings are discussed and strategies are offered to reduce the impact of screen leisure time, highlighting the educational potential of video games within adequate time limits in order to prevent future video game addiction disorders.En la actualidad, la investigación sobre los beneficios y perjuicios de los videojuegos en el bienestar psicológico de los individuos ha arrojado evidencia contradictoria en variables como el tiempo que se dedica a esta práctica y la expresión de la agresividad. Este estudio tiene como objetivo describir la asociación entre el tiempo que las personas dedican diariamente a los videojuegos y la tendencia a la agresividad. Se realizó un diseño correlacional de corte factorial (4 x 2 x 2 x 4) considerando variables de edad, sexo, tipo de universidad y tiempo diario de dedicación. Se aplicó un instrumento online de 20 ítems en escala Likert de 5 niveles de acuerdo a una muestra de 121 estudiantes universitarios de Bogotá D.C. El plan de análisis incluyó análisis factorial exploratorio en JASP 0.12.2.0 y análisis de varianza, análisis de varianza multivariado y descripción del perfil de la población de estudio en SPSS 24. Se obtuvieron tres factores de interés: ansiedad en el uso de los videojuegos, agresividad instrumental y agresividad verbal. Adicionalmente se encontraron diferencias significativas entre jugadores casuales (menos de 2 horas diarias) y jugadores con tiempo diario de juego superior a 2 horas en ítems de insulto instrumental, aislamiento, manipulación emocional y troleo. Se discuten las implicaciones teóricas de los hallazgos y se ofrecen estrategias para disminuir el impacto del tiempo de ocio de pantalla, resaltando el potencial educativo de los videojuegos dentro de límites temporales adecuados con el propósito de prevenir futuros desórdenes de adicción a los videojuegos.Atualmente, pesquisas sobre os benefícios e danos dos videogames no bem-estar psicológico dos indivíduos têm produzido evidências contraditórias sobre variáveis omo o tempo gasto nessa prática e a expressão de agressividade. Este estudo tem como objetivo descrever a associação entre o tempo que as pessoas passam diariamente em videogames e a tendência à agressividade. Foi realizado um delineamento correlacional de corte fatorial (4 x 2 x 2 x 4) considerando variáveis de idade, sexo, tipo de universidade e tempo diário de dedicação. Um instrumento on-line de 20 itens em uma escala Likert de 5 níveis foi aplicado de acordo com uma amostra de 121 estudantes universitários de Bogotá, D.C. O plano de análise incluiu análise fatorial exploratória no jasp 0.12.2.0 e análise de variância, análise multivariada de variância e descrição do perfil da população estudada no spss 24. Foram obtidos três fatores de interesse: ansiedade no uso de videogame, agressividade instrumental e agressividade verbal. Além disso, foram encontradas diferenças significativas entre jogadores casuais (menos de 2 horas por dia) e jogadores com tempo diário de jogo superior a 2 horas em itens de insulto instrumental, isolamento, manipulação emocional e trolling. As implicações teóricas dos resultados são discutidas e são oferecidas estratégias para diminuir o impacto do tempo de lazer na tela, destacando o potencial educacional dos videogames dentro de prazos adequados, a fim de evitar futuros transtornos de dependência de videogames

Choice-based Games and Resilience Building of Gender Non-conforming Individuals: An Exploratory Study

Research on gaming and user experience of the general population has been abundant, but gender non-conforming (GNC) individuals’ experiences had been largely overlooked until recent years. Using a phenomenological approach, the goal of this study is to find deeper understanding of this phenomenon by exploring what gaming experiences shape the identity of the participants. The exploration of gaming and gender non-conforming experiences through interviews can fill a gap in the current literature on gaming culture regarding this specific population. By taking a closer look at this topic, patterns and themes within games may provide insight to potential resilience building activities for GNC people

Biopsychosocial factors of gaming disorder: a systematic review employing screening tools with well-defined psychometric properties

Background and aimsConsidering the growing number of gamers worldwide and increasing public concerns regarding the negative consequences of problematic gaming, the aim of the present systematic review was to provide a comprehensive overview of gaming disorder (GD) by identifying empirical studies that investigate biological, psychological, and social factors of GD using screening tools with well-defined psychometric properties.Materials and methodsA systematic literature search was conducted through PsycINFO, PubMed, RISS, and KISS, and papers published up to January 2022 were included. Studies were screened based on the GD diagnostic tool usage, and only five scales with well-established psychometric properties were included. A total of 93 studies were included in the synthesis, and the results were classified into three groups based on biological, psychological, and social factors.ResultsBiological factors (n = 8) included reward, self-concept, brain structure, and functional connectivity. Psychological factors (n = 67) included psychiatric symptoms, psychological health, emotion regulation, personality traits, and other dimensions. Social factors (n = 29) included family, social interaction, culture, school, and social support.DiscussionWhen the excess amount of assessment tools with varying psychometric properties were controlled for, mixed results were observed with regards to impulsivity, social relations, and family-related factors, and some domains suffered from a lack of study results to confirm any relevant patterns.ConclusionMore longitudinal and neurobiological studies, consensus on a diagnostic tool with well-defined psychometric properties, and an in-depth understanding of gaming-related factors should be established to settle the debate regarding psychometric weaknesses of the current diagnostic system and for GD to gain greater legitimacy in the field of behavioral addiction

Gamers’ insights into the phenomenology of normal gaming and game “addiction”: A mixed methods study

In response to calls for further research into the phenomenology of Internet gaming disorder (IGD), we used a community-engaged consensus development approach to evaluate how members of the "gamer culture" describe problematic gaming and the relationship of these descriptions to the proposed IGD criteria. Two focus groups of gamers were recruited at a video game convention. Participants were asked to submit suggestions for signs of game "addiction". Participants discussed and ranked the criteria in order of conceptual importance. The rankings were analyzed quantitatively, and then a multidisciplinary team compared the ranked criteria to the DSM-5 IGD proposed criteria. The strongest agreement between participants' rankings and IGD symptomatology was found for harms/functional impairment due to gaming, continued use despite problems, unsuccessful attempts to control gaming, and loss of interest in previous hobbies and entertainment. There was less support for other IGD criteria. Participants also offered new content domains. These findings suggest that collaborative knowledge-building approaches may help researchers and policymakers understand the characteristics and processes specific to problematic video game play and improve content validity of IGD criteria. Future efforts may benefit from multi-stakeholder approaches to refine IGD criteria and inform theory, measurement and intervention.Michelle Colder Carras, Anne Marie Porter, Antonius J. Van Rooij, Daniel King, Amanda Lange, Matthew Carras, Alain Labriqu